what's been happening in my life: the good and the bad

*warning* this is a very long post but I have a lot of things to share with y'all
Wow. I'm sitting here thinking about all the things that has happened in the past few days. Where to start?? OK well I'll start with Christmas :) I hope you all had a great Christmas! I did :)
 We went to go visit my dads family on Christmas eve and we got home late like midnight so I didn't get into bed until around probably 1:30 or 2. My 8 year old sister got up at 4 am!! That's a record in our house! But mom made her go to bed ;) around 9:30ish everyone was awake. I spent a few minutes by myself ( I was inspired by Annie to take a few minutes and read the bible) reading the Christmas account in Luke and then prayed. Then we all gathered in the living room and dad read a bible passage and the we opened presents! :)
Here's what I got:



 I got this necklace from my parents! i had pointed it out to my mom one day ;)






This SUPER soft blanket! serioulsy its THE softest blanket ever! its just a little slice on heaven on earth :)




 This really cute plaid shirt from my mom :) and it matches the blue vest ♥


 I absolutely love vests!




I got some earrings ( i was in dire need of some) from my brother and sister :)


 My dad got me some little iPod earrings!  ( a girl in our homeschool group made them) they are so cute and they match the plaid shirt :)


My dad got me the movie Imagine That ( its a tradition that he tries to get me a decent movie for Christmas ;) Its a great movie! got a iTunes card, some crocheted things from my little sister, socks and lotion.



We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with some dear friends. We had Christmas dinner, watched a movie, played games and just had a really fun relaxing evening!

On Sunday afternoon we had an unexpected surprise! my dad was given tickets to the Bengals and Chargers football game and he had tried to give them away but all of the people he asked, couldn't use them. So mom said well why don't we just go?! so we did!! It was f.r.e.e.z.i.n.g. and a few snow flurries came down at one point but we had a great time! and then Bengals WON! so that was a big plus ;) we had really good seats, so I got a few good shots but our camera does not have a very good zoom but I did my best ;)

my dad and little brother walking to the stadium :)


I took this picture real quick, I was doing my best not getting run over ;) thought the clouds were so cool :)












Ok now on to the tough stuff. Some of you know that I've been dealing with headaches for a long time now. Well I'd had one for a few weeks and on Tuesday it was so bad, I didn't hardly eat anything and I was very tired. I ended up going to the ER for an IV headache treatment. That's the first time I've really gone into the hospital for something "serious". and I already have a phobia about hospitals so that just made it worse! anyway, the treatment broke the cycle of the headache and i went home without one. the dr. wanted me to have no headache for at least 24 hrs. well I woke up yesterday morning with a slight headache :/ but I am ok with that because its much better than some of headaches I have had! but the dr. wants it 100% gone. So right now I'm drinking TONS of Gatorade and water, trying to keep my body hydrated ( because dehydration is sometimes the cause of headaches) and not eating gluten ( I notice a big difference in my headaches when I'm gluten free), but if my headache doesn't go away or gets worse I will have to go the hospital for 2-3 days to have a longer IV treatment that gets rid of the headache forever for 90% of the people that get it. I really do NOT want to go the hospital but I'm afraid that my headache will not go away. We have shared the situation about my headache with some dear friends and they have been praying for me which touches my heart. We are praying that God show us His will clearly in this situation. That He would clearly take the headache away or that He would show us the right time to take me to the hospital. I am frustrated, a little afraid, and uncertain right now.but I know that God is in control and that He has a plan for me and that whatever happens to me He will be glorified and praised. its just so hard. trusting in Him and trusting that He knows what He is doing. Please pray that God's will would be done and that He would clearly show us what to do. thank you dear friends :)

2011 is almost here! I can hardly believe it! I have a few New Years Resolutions:

• I would grow in my relationship with Christ, continue to be amazed by Him and that I would show His love, grace, forgiveness, mercy and patience to others around me.
• Be diligent in school ( which is an everyday resolution ;) 
• Be consistent in working out and eating gluten free. I really need to get my body in shape and I want to do it but I need lots of encouragement and diligence :)
• I would be open and willing to whatever God has planned for me in 2011 :) 

I want to go into 2011 with confidence and diligence that I can get in shape and that with God who knows what will happen in 2011!

This song about sums up my post. Hold by Superchick. I was listening to it last night and the lyrics are the words of my heart right now.



hope you all are having a wonderful week!

with love,
Samarah♥