This University!

So today while I was eating my lunch, I sat outside the UL (Undergraduate Library) and "people watched." I always think it's fun to watch the masses of people walk through The Pit and the lower quad - there are so many interesting people to see! In the 15 minutes I was sitting there I saw all kinds of people - of all ethnicities, religions, backgrounds. I saw a blind girl, a handicapped man, old people, young people (even Middle schoolers - they seem to be invading our campus today). I even saw a girl with five different sets of stripes - her knee socks, her leggings, her skirt, her shirt, and her jacket all in different kinds of stripes... not to mention her polka-dotted shoes. Last night, Amanda and I went out to dinner on Franklin Street and saw all kinds of different people there as well! (We jokingly said that Franklin St. is probably the closest thing you can get to NYC in the South.) I can't help but remind myself that God created all these wonderful things and people! He created us in His own image! We were all wonderfully and fearfully made!

I've been praying for some time now for a revolution - that all people of God could unite together and bring about a change in our fallen world. I hope that you will join me in praying for a rejuvenated fire for Christ - if any generation was ever capable of it, it is this one! I see so many people on fire for God, and I pray that this fire spreads to the people at this university, in this town, in this state, and people all over the nation! I believe it can happen and I know God will use us in His own special way to see to it!

On a (sad) side note, please pray for my Aunt (dad's sister). She is not doing well and is in the hospital. Things are not looking good for her recovery, but I'd rather not give too much detail, it's a sticky, personal, and sad situation. So please pray for peace for her and my family in this difficult time. (When will this plague leave my family alone?)

On a (HAPPY) side note, please pray for my friend Patrice and her husband Matt during the birth of their second precious son! She is in labor right now as far as I can tell from her blog. Their first son, Gabe, was stillborn, but I know he is in Heaven watching over his sweet baby brother coming into the world today! You can follow her blog here.

God Bless!

My Friends Are Prettier Than Yours

A spoof off Amanda's photo album from Roman...
My Friends Are Prettier Than Yours Part I:

I love these girls! I hope our silliness brightens your day! Happy Monday!

This Is Our Story... The Beginning Chapters

Parker and I have been dating for five and half years and so many people ask, “How can you date someone for that long?” We hear that question all the time. Well, trust me, if we had started dating at a later stage in our lives, we would have already been married – but nope, not us, we started dating at the ripe ol’ age of 14 and 16. (We’ve talked about it and agree that we will advise our children not to date so young.) Our theory is that you should date to marry – I think that “dating around,” just for fun, teaches divorce – when things get tough, just break up, find someone new, and start over again. Not to mention, it gives away pieces of your life/experiences to other people, which you may or may not like in the future. Pieces that you can’t get back to give/share with your true love. I am NOT saying that I think you should marry your first boy/girlfriend, but you should date people that you would want to marry. Clearly, I’m no expert on marriage or dating, but these are my thoughts, feel free to disagree!

So, the beginning of our story… On the night before I started my freshmen year of high school, Parker said to me, “We should go get ice cream to celebrate your first day of high school.” So I said, “Yeah we should!” A minute later, he replies, “Yeah, that’s what I said… do you want to?” So of course I had to ask my parents (being 14 and all), and since the Morgans went to our church and my parents knew the family, they said ok. The next night, Parker came to get me and asked my dad what time he needed to have me home (it was like 6:30 pm). My dad jokingly said, “Um… I think 7 o’clock would be good.” So, Parker, nervous from meeting my dad, says, “Yes sir, we’ll be back by 7.” My mom interrupts to ask what we are going to do for half an hour and Parker replies, “I don’t know, drive around the block and talk I guess.” Then my dad tells him that he was just kidding and we go on our merry way to get ice cream. Cute story huh? Note: Now, both my parents love Parker probably more than they love me… I’m not even kidding :-)

Well, little did we know that we would one day be planning a life together! Through the last five and half years, both of us have had some tough times. During the first couple of months of our courtship, Parker’s Papa died. I went to his visitation in Roanoke Rapids with some church friends, and I think it was then that I realized that I cared for him more than I thought. Later that year, my mom fell and broke her shoulder, arm, and leg (she was sober, haha!). The next year, Parker’s Granny died and he graduated and moved to college. The following year, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time. In Year 4 I graduated, moved away to college, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time, and my Granddaddy Mark died unexpectedly. Some people pick on us and say that we are bad luck for each other – all these bad things started happening when we started dating, but I prefer to see it as God put us in each other’s lives right before he knew that we were going to need each other.

Here's my family one Christmas at my Grandma's:


His family is my family and mine is his. Weston asks me all the time, “Are you guys ever going to get married?” or “Why do you love him so much?” or “Sis, are you engaged yet?” While I don’t think he quite understands the significance of what he’s asking, I think that he asks because he loves Parker so much – Parker is his friend and his mentor and he loves hanging out with him. Parker went to see him in the hospital every day that he was there until he transferred to Chapel Hill, and then he came on the weekend... I think it’s safe to say that Parker loves him too! Here’s a picture of them playing monopoly with Nurse Kevin at the hospital:


Here are the boys at the beach... Weston was 5 years old in this picture! (Wow!)


Through the years, Parker has become my best friend. We’ve grown in our faith so much, just like we’ve matured from 14/16 year olds to 20/22 year olds. Sure, we have a LONG way to go, and I like to think that we’re just getting started! I know that God has great plans for us and our family! One day, we will get engaged and we will get married. Believe me, when that day comes, the whole world will know about it! I can’t wait!

*Going Home!*

Weston, Mom, and Dad are on the way home! The doctors gave him the "All Clear" this morning and sent him on his way! He has a no-fat diet for 2 weeks, but other than that, life can go back to normal - school, basketball, baseball! Praise the Lord! I give all glory to God!

Thank you all for your prayers and encouraging words! We love you!

No update to give on my Grandma today, but I will let you know.

I hope you continue reading my blog now that Weston is better. I actually started my blog to share my thoughts on God, life, and other things - serious and silly, it just happened to be a convenient way to update people on Weston. If you have a blog, let me know and I'll add you to "My Blog List" (on the right) - if I haven't already! Please feel free to send me a comment if you feel led to - I love getting comments. Other than that, have a good day!!

God Bless!
-Laura

Can I have half an Oreo?

Hi ya'll!

Sorry for not updating you yesterday I was exhausted when we left the hospital. But anyways...

Weston is doing much better. If it wasn't for his enzyme levels and being on a no fat diet he would be normal... well normal for Weston haha. He is bored out of his mind and can't wait to eat: O'Cools chicken tenders, pizza, gummy bears, oreos (hence the title), and pop tarts. Haha! His amylase is back to normal levels and his lipase went down a little bit, but it's still in the 900s. The doctors here don't seem to be too concerned about it though. We're hoping to go home tomorrow!

No change for my Grandma Sue though, so please keep her in your prayers.

I also have a "Weston-ism" to share with you! The other day when the nurse was checking him in at UNC she was asking him a long list of questions and this is what happened:

Nurse: Do you have any problems with vision, hearing, or speech?
Weston: Well I don't really like to talk in front of a lot of people, like on a stage or something, I get kinda nervous.
Me and Mom: HAHAHAHAHA, no he doesn't have any problems.

This is what Weston's up to now:
Haha! Hope ya'll have a good Sunday!

I Will Praise You in this Storm!

Disclaimer: I am exhausted!

Weston is feeling okay, but his Lipase level shot up to 900 today! (UGH! - it was at like 150) The doctors are meeting together to decide what plan of action to take and they will be talking to us around 11 am. I'll let you know what they say.

Grandma is not doing well. They get her sugar level normal and it drops again within half an hour to an hour. The doctors still don't know why this is happening.

Dad is feeling better and may be coming to Chapel Hill this afternoon depending on how this morning goes.

My Mom is exhausted and has a horrible cough - I'm making her go to my apartment to rest when I get out of class at 2 pm.

I am exhausted and totally behind in my classes - I went to bed around 11 pm because I was falling asleep reading for a paper and woke up this morning at 6 to write the paper. Still have some reading to do for my last class today so I'll have to post more later. But hey - I got 7 hours of sleep last night and it was AMAZING.

Thanks for the prayers! I apologize that I am unable to update you personally or thank you personally for the prayers, I hope you understand and accept this blog as your update and thank you! I love you all! Have a good Friday (the 13th... ugh)!

Life is a Mess!

Weston is getting transported to UNC today around 1 pm! He's doing much better today compared to yesterday. He even ate some cheerios, crackers, and 2 french fries! Yay! One of his numbers went up a few points and the other went down a few, but basically they didn't change much. I can't wait to see him and my mom!

I wish I could see my dad too... but HE is at home in bed with an upset stomach and he was throwing up all night! (Nice timing huh?) Hopefully he'll be feeling better tomorrow and can come to Chapel Hill! Geez though!

My Grandma Sue was taken back to the hospital last night after she passed out. They can't get a hold of her blood sugar - it goes up and down and up and down. It was unstable all night. Pray for her! She has Alzheimer's and is very confused right now. :(

When all this gets over I plan to 1) Praise God, 2) Celebrate my birthday, and 3) Write a post dedicated to Parker because he has been SO wonderful the last few weeks!

One last thing... Carolina won last night! It was AMAZING! We rushed Franklin St. (but don't worry, I was not anywhere near fire)! This morning after a few hours of sleep, I woke up feeling like a bus hit me. Note to self: Do not speed walk/run/walk a mile at 11 pm - screaming, yelling, singing, and leaping the whole time - and then scream, yell, sing, and dance around with 10,000 other people, just to turn around and walk back to your apartment in the wee morning hours.

On second thought, Note to self: Do it all over again if you get the chance - because it was AWESOME and TOTALLY WORTH IT!