#BookWorm: Heaven Is For Real

Hey fellow readers,

So I finished this book a while ago, but have not had the chance to post a lot lately with all the travels and I was finishing school and working full time and such, so here is my post about the book Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo. This book is about a little boy who has a near death experience and gets a glimpse of heaven. Before I read it, I thought it was going to be similar to The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom (which that movie FREAKED me out as a kid) where they say they go to heaven and its a different version than what Christian educated kids have learned about their whole lives. Well not really. According to the father of the child, AKA the author of the book, little Colton's description of what he saw was pretty darn close to what we have learned about. The book was very interesting, however there were things I liked and didn't like as usual. Since it was based on a true story, and written by the person who experienced it, it is hard to judge it because that is what happened and they are writing about what they think is important in their life. If I ever write an autobiography, I wouldn't want people who read it to say "I wish this was different or xyz had changed" because it's their life, they can't change it! Phew, well digress.

So I did like the book. I liked the fact that it was so honest, and the first 3/4 was super interesting as far as how Colton almost died and what led up to that. Then also exploring how the parent's felt going through the experience. After Colton described heaven a few times, it got kind of repetitive. He just kept bringing up heaven in random conversation and that is how the book made it seem, which made it kind of drag a little. I don't know how they could have changed it around to make it flow a little better, because they were writing it as it had actually happened, but it did make it a little long winded. I do wish they would have included more about what happened after, the introduction of their new child, and how they decided to write the book and such, but that's okay I just like to read about people's lives I guess. Maybe that is why I like to watch reality TV...

Anyways I haven't seen the movie yet, but really want to. If you haven't read the story, read it! It is super interesting! I would overall rate it about an 8/10 just because of how long winded it got, but the story really is good and I would recommend it to people. Have you read it? Or seen the movie? Or both? What do you think? I am reading Growing Up Duggar: It's All About Relationships now thanks to my awesome boss Beth. And now that I am done with school I have quite the updated list of books for fall that I will share with you all at the end of Summer! Hope you all are ready happily too! Share with me what books are on your list!

Thanks for reading with me,
Olivia :)

Jackson, MS: WeWillGo

Hey all!

So this past week I spent my time in Jackson, Mississippi. The first thing I thought when I heard we were doing our mission trip there was oh my word that is where The Help took place, basically meaning it is a huge piece of the slavery story. Which while that was true, I learned that now typically any rich person or middle class person moves about twenty minutes north to Madison or Hattiesburg leaving Jackson the impoverished area that it is today. Literally 80% of the houses are abandoned or drug/prostitution houses. I also learned that pizza delivery men aren't able to even deliver pizzas there because its too dangerous. So crazy.

So that was my first impression of Jackson. Then I met the people at WeWillGo and was absolutely AMAZED by the fact that they live IN these horrible neighborhoods and restored abandoned houses for the WeWillGo staff and interns to live in. We had so many awesome opportunities to work with and serve the people of Jackson through working with kids, to manual labor for repairs, to canned good hand outs, to prayer walking, and even a clothing store. It's amazing the work that they do there. While in Jackson, we worked with another family, a single mom and her two kids: Ava, age 6 and Haley, age 4. It was incredible the attachment they took to Madi. Spending time with this awesome family was one of the highlights of my trip. They're adorable!

While prayer walking our first day in Jackson, we met a dog named Goldie. She legit walked the entire way with us (no leash she is a stray) and checked out the area each time to "make sure it was safe". SO amazing and cool. When we left she even started chasing after the car and Madi's mom had to lead her back. My favorite part of the trip was going to a place called the fountain where kids come and hang out in the afternoon for a few hours a couple days each week. There are pool and ping pong table, a gym, a craft area, a "book nook", and an outside playground. It is so awesome seeing firsthand how WeWillGo impacts these kids through the fountain.

We also got to spend some time playing with local kids on the basketball court. If you know me, you know I don't play sports. Ever. So knowing I am not hand eye coordinated, well I ended up in a bush trying to save a ball from going out of bounds. Here's what my lovely bloody leg looked like (-->). I learned a lot about the power of prayer and being a servant during this trip. A verse that captured the trip overall to me is 1 Peter 4:10 which says "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." I definitely think that is relevant to our time in Jackson and is something everyone should think about.

So that's it for me. We are now in Michigan relaxing after I worked 3, 13 hour shifts at the hospital in between trips! Fun times guys, fun times. So have  you ever been to Jackson? What are your thoughts? What areas do you think needed prayer? If you haven't been, consider doing a mission trip with WeWillGo. You will learn a lot about yourself and the importance of serving others on a big level.

Thanks for keeping up,
Olivia :)

#BookWorm: A Stolen Life: A Memoir

Hello fellow readers,

So I finished A Stolen Life: A Memoir by Jaycee Lee Dugard. Wow. That describes this book perfectly. To give you some background information before I start into the book it is a real memoir by Jaycee Dugard who was kidnapped in 1991 for 18 years. 18 years. I cannot even comprehend that. It goes through her life events from before she was kidnapped up until 2009 when she was found. It is an amazing read. Now to be cautious: it is very disturbing. The events were real making it incredibly difficult to get through at times. I cannot say enough good things about this book. It was a page turner, and really made me interested in her story. I spent time after looking up where she is now and everything. Without giving away too much, it is worth the read. I really enjoyed how she included pictures as well as actual journal entries from her time being kidnapped. There wasn't too much I didn't like about the book except for at times it was repetitive and sometimes during the reflection sections I was confused as to whether that was present time or still in the past. But overeall I would give it a 8.5/10. You definitely should read it.

So have you read this book? What did you think? Currently, I'm working on Heaven Is For Real now, which is a quick read but very interesting as well. And it doesn't help that I've spent a lot of time in the airport lately flying back and forth from Michigan.

Thanks for keeping up,
- Olivia :)

DIY BBQ Crock Pot Chicken

Hey guys!

So this is a superrrr simple recipe. But you cannot believe the number of people I have met who don't know how long to set a crock pot or make their recipe way too complicated. Crock pots are for quick easy dinners that you can put in during the morning and it will be ready when you come home! For this quick BBQ chicken here is what you need:

Small Crockpot:
- 3 Chicken Breasts
- One Bottle of BBQ Sauce

Yep that's it.
Place your chicken in the crock pot on high and pour in the entire BBQ sauce bottle. Make sure the lid can close and that the BBQ sauce is on at least part of all the chicken. Leave on high for six hours, then you can eat it or turn it down to low for a few hours.

Note: If no one at your house is home, leave your crock pot on LOW for 8-10 hours.

Wallah, that's it! Super simple and easy. The only thing I would do different is maybe use low sodium BBQ sauce as it tasted pretty salty. So do you have a crockpot recipe that's simple and delicious? Share it with me! Anything you know that goes super well with the crock pot chicken? Let me know!

Thanks for reading,
- Olivia :)

#BookWorm: Nights in Rodanthe

Hey everyone,

So I finished another book that wasn't originally on my summer reading list, but I picked it up and breezed through it anyways. It wasn't super long, about 200 some pages, but it was good! Again another Nicholas Sparks book I hadn't read. Shocker, I know. My mom is obsessed with the movie, and tried to get me to watch it one, but I fell asleep after they arrived at Rodanthe. So not very long into the movie... It wasn't boring or anything, I just have a hard time watching movies at night. Anyways so the book was pretty good! As always Nicholas Sparks throws in a depressing part, but overall I liked it. The things I didn't like were the fact that he would switch between characters super frequently, like sometimes even in the same paragraph. It wasn't really all that confusing, but it was kind of annoying at times. I also didn't like the ending. At all. I found it kind of dumb the main female character's outlook on life after her "time in Rodanthe" and how it changed her forever and yadah-yadah. I get that it would impact you, but I don't know just read the book and tell me how you feel about it. However, I did like the background story of the male lead, and found it interesting and true to today's world. His issues happen so often and so I find it relevant and something I would want to read about. I thought the sounded awesome, and after doing some research via Google, I found out it's real! Like actually exists! They moved it like 400 feet closer to the water for the movie, but it was a real place. Suuuuper cool. I guess a couple was so obsessed with the book and movie that they bought it. That my friends, is dedication. And maybe a little crazy. Overall I would probably give this book a 7/10. A passing grade, but not as fabulous as others.

So what did you think of Nights in Rodanthe? Have you read the book? Would you reccommend it? Currently, I am reading A Stolen Life: A Memoir by Jaycee Dugard and omg its amazing. Like so amazing. And disturbing. But it's real and that is the part that blows my mind. Don't worry, I'll let you all know how it is without spoilers when I finish!

Thanks for reading,
- Olivia :)

My Random Addictions: 21 & 22 Jump Street

Hello fellow bloggers,

A few weeks ago, I went to see 22 Jump Street and when I told people that 21 Jump Street was one of my Top 20 favorite movies, people were shocked. Like floored. I guess because I am considered a quiet sweetheart it surprises people that I like movies like that, but I find them hilarious. So let me just explain why I truly enjoyed 22 Jump Street, while my not so convinced fiance said "ehh" to yet another movie. Yes, it was a sequel, however I found it pretty darn hilarious. Without giving away a lot of the movie, I will describe some of my favorite parts:

1) The scenes with the roommate of Jonah's love interest in their dorm. Hilarious. The whole college experience is super awkward and they portrayed it in a mostly realistic way.
2) The fact that Dave Franco makes a few appearances. I do wish that he was in it more as I love him. Truth.
3) The credits- stay and watch, the part with Seth Rogen=priceless
4) Ice Cube didn't piss me off as much, or really at all, in this movie but in the first one he did with his constant profanities and "gangster" attitude. In this movie he was actually hilarious.
5) Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum together are just perfect. I love their comedic chemistry and they are just awesome.

But one cannot forget the greatness of 21 Jump Street

1)Dave Franco, Dave Franco, Dave Franco. Hilarious. Gorgeous. Perfect character. What more can you ask for?

2) The part after they do HFS and are at school.

3) Channing Tatum, Channing Tatum, Channing Tatum. That is all.

So I hope you enjoyed the GIFs and I hope you go see 22 Jump Street and enjoy it as much as I did! I am looking forward to purchasing it when it comes out on BluRay. And if you haven't seen either, watch the first one first! Worth your time as long as you aren't super against vulgarity. If you are then don't watch it...

Thanks for reading,
-Olivia :)

{Real Talk} You Light Up My Life

It's with a heavy heart and tearful eyes that I write this post. Some people may wonder why I go to my blog as the place to talk about this, but maybe it's because the best and easiest way for me to express myself is through words. Today I lost my Grandma. She was one of the strongest, bravest, most caring people that I know. She made the best homemade sugar cookies and mashed potatoes and meatballs, and she always knew how to take 'em in scrabble or upwords. Sharp and a fearful woman of God, she struggled with Parkinson's disease for the past five years. Being the fighter she is, many didn't know until recent months. As most, there are so many things I wish I could have asked her. Only things she could have been able to teach me. But in the twenty one years I had with her, I learned so much. I learned how to sing this little piggy in Finnish. I learned how to make homemade frosting. I learned the importance of having a God-centered marriage. I learned how to play any kind of word game you could have ever imagined. I learned about the different kinds of birds that live near Lake Huron and how to make nectar for Hummingbirds.

There are so many things I would have loved to do with her again, like make a hundred Christmas cookies, sing praise songs, do a puzzle, watch Little House on the Prairie or The Sound of Music. Or have a conversation in Finnish. I have been blessed with the opportunity to know and love this wonderful woman, and I am so grateful that I have always been so close with her. I am also blessed to have two sets of grandparents who have shown me what it is like to have a long lasting marriage and care for someone so much. I have never seen someone take such amazing care of a person like my Grandpa did with my Grandma. No one had even shown me what the wedding vows "in sickness and in health" really meant until my Grandma was diagnosed with Parkinson's years ago.

In the end, I know she is in a better place and it is where she wanted to be. It doesn't make it easier, but it does make me joyful that this is what she wanted for a while. This year has been such a whirlwind of crazy life events. I literally can't even fathom handling much more. Everything was so slow and sudden at the same time. Although you sang to me always as a child the song "you light up my life", you literally did light up my life and the lives of so many others around you. So for now, bake everyone the best cookies heaven could offer Grandma. I can't wait to see you again one day.

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.