leaving SUNDAY

After a FUN yet exhausting week in the Bourb, I am back at home in Ohio. I picked up my passport with visa today, so I am finally good to go. I went through the interiew process, which took a whole 3 minutes ha. I felt like I was in the Matrix or something haha :)

Anyways - yes, my flight has been booked for SUNDAY. very soon.

flight routes as follows: Cleveland - Detroit - Tokyo - Seoul = around 18 hrs of air time. pretty crazy, i know.

So yes, from now on, I will be blogging from http://www.abbeyinseoul.blogspot.com

If you are interested, you can follow along. I am sure there will be some interesting stories to tell.

From the Inside Out

After a week of family and friends, I hustled on home in time to watch the Buckeyes get pummeled ( pretty painful to watch ).

I feel blessed to have been home for Sunday because Church was amazing. I only get the chance to go to this church while I'm visiting home - which isn't often - but I seriously love it. The pastor speaks so REAL. The church is going through a series called Escape. Today was specific to "Escape Myself"

Freedom is found in following.

Surrender to His calling.

God has promised that you are who I have called you to be and I WILL be with you.

Escape Self.

Worship blew me away today...I tried to hold back the wave of emotions, but these words and the Holy Spirit were too powerful:

____________________________________

A thousand times I've failed
Still your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I'm caught in your grace

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
In my heart, in my soul, Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out Lord
Let justice and praise become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing you praise

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
In my heart, in my soul, Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out Lord
Let justice and praise become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

___________________________________

Visa Number

yep yep. my visa number is here and i have my interview w/ the embassy on Wednesday.
the school would like to book my flight for the earliest time possible - so looks like maybe Monday - which is a week from today ahhh :) lots to do this week. its all coming fast.

i will be in seoul before i know it. wowzers :)

We are GOOD to GO!

I got an email back from Mark, the school vice director and...

Immigration accepted my documents! WOOHOO! A praise for sure.

He said they are really picky and because my transcripts did not have the ONU emblem on the stamp - he figured they would reject them, BUT he said they prayed all morning...amazing!?!?

...and they were accepted. wow praise the Lord.

He will email me the visa number in about 2 weeks and then I can make my interview with consulate in Chicago - then my flight can be booked! :) We're shooting for Sept 20ish.

3 weeks ahhh...craziness.

S K O R E A

Today, I Express mailed my documents for my visa with signed contract an all! It's official...I have committed to a year long teaching job in Seoul, Korea. I will be teaching 1st - 6th graders at a private school. AH :) pretty exciting!

It has been quite clear that this is where God is leading me this year. It will be hard at times, but I'm okay with that. I want to open my eyes to a BIGGER world. a BIGGER God.

This next year will be life changing...ahhh I'm moving to Skorea!?!!

I will be blogging along the way with many photos.

more details and emotions to come...

Wedding Crashers

I crashed my first wedding this past weekend, while I was at another wedding!
When there is another wedding reception going on at the same place, you just can't pass up the opportunity for crashing.

SO, we decided to peek in...and PERFECT - the Electric Slide! I was like...ok, here we go. We made our way to the dance floor along with the bride and her wedding party, ha! I never looked up, but apparently the bride and others were giving us "who are they" looks. ha!

It was great. We only stayed for a couple rounds of the Eslide and then jetted.
BUT mission accomplished :)

0 J U L Y 8

July 2008 - h a r d but g o o d :)

This month has probably been one of the most stretching, challenging times in my life. The transition from the world as a student to the world as a professional has been much more difficult then expected. Seriously, I'm creating a required senior seminar course on LIFE. Aside from that, there has been a lack of stability in my life - living with a family, no job, ect.

I think I was due for a growing season in my life...and so JULY came - and it did just that.
It hasn't been easy, ha no no it hasn't.
During this time, I have grown greatly in relationship and prayer with God.
Often I ask myself...honestly, what would I do if I didn't have Jesus...His love, His promise, His comfort...on and on - He's got it all.

I have said it before that I have wanted to live these words of David -
-------------------------
Psalm 63:
Oh God, you are my God.
Earnestly I seek You.
My soul thirsts for You.
My body longs for You.
In a dry and weary land,
where there is no water.
-------------------------
I want to struggle and thirst for Him.
I want it to be hard and long for Him.
I want to fall to my knees and cry out to the Lord.
because I can't do it on my own.

This has been July for me --Psalm 63.
and I am thankful. really, I am.

In Job 2:10, it says "If we take happiness from God's hand, should we not take sorrow too?"

Although July has been an amazing growing month for me...I am finding myself losing sight of the growth. There will definitely be many more hard times in my life...who knows, probably just around the corner. ha.
BUT I don't want to only seek the Lord when I am in NEED of Him.
Yeah, I needed Him in July...but what about August...tomorrow...right now??
It is so easy to find myself so heavily in prayer with God only when I need Him.
There are people and ministries to be prayed for always.

I did some growing in July
but if i don't seek God 12 months
all is lost.

Don't Blink

Today I am reminded at how short life is.
We go to bed thinking tomorrow will be here, but we are never promised tomorrow.
embrace EVERY moment. you don't get them back. they are gone. over. past.
live your life NOW. don't wait.

Being with Jesus one day will be a beautiful thing. gosh, will it ever...but we have a call to life here on earth.
Am I living out that calling each day or am I looking to fill my time elsewhere?
yep. i'm guilty. i've got to stop talking about passions and start living them out.

and lyrics speak...

i love you
all of my hope is in You
Jesus Christ, take my life.
take all of me.

I have got to surrender my selfishness. pride. EVERY day.
I will be of no use if I don't.

choices

random thought...but
gosh, there are so many things i want to do in life...

yep, i'm going to start a list now so i won't let it all get away.

why can't you be a surfer in hawaii and a snowboarder in colorado?
why doesn't life work that way?
i guess it can, right. we have a choice.
sometimes we forget that. i know i do.

MAYER

Saw John Mayer in concert last night. so sweet.
endured the rain and wait.
i like that he is real...
his lyrics actually carry some kind of substance.
good stuff.

face to face

I am experiencing a whole new level of Jesus.
His love.
His grace.
His strength.

and to know...
You know the depths of my heart, and You love me the same.
wow.

The Family Vaca

North Myrtle Beach, SC - a week vaca with the whole fam.

Some highlights to remember:

-ran the road every morning.
-got stopped by some hippies who offered us meth. no worries, we declined ha.
-went and saw a random band play covers - called Black Label Band.
-almost wrecked like 10 times, thanks to my bro/sister's driving.
-skim boarded
-rode the banana boat
-saw a guy catch a sea turtle from the shore - size of a basketball.
-same guy also caught a couple baby sharks.
-kayaked in the ocean.
-tried to get a surfboard from sis's friend - never happened grr.
-wore matching shirts with the fam...twice. yahhh. ha.
-boogie boarded
-fell asleep and fried my back - not so smart.
-threw the football lots.
-watched fireworks on the beach both left and right - they were as far as thee eye could see.
-listened to brennan manning speak on the ipod over the beach waves, so good.
-saw lots of family

good times in the scarolina.

City Girl

No, I'm not a city girl, meaning...i would not survive in the city alone.

Altho...last weekend I spent a day in the city by myself, well most of it. I get to the city by way of train and then proceed to walk miles the wrong direction, ha! I figure I should turn around and walk the other direction.

I estimated I must have walked some 4 miles that day. After making my way to Michigan Ave, I found this cute cafe (Baci Cafe). I stopped in to grab some lunch - so good! As soon as I'm done ordering, I look out the window and...YEP it is downpouring! I enjoyed my amazing chicken sandwich and watching the hardcore people walking through the downpour. I finished in perfect timing - the rain had stopped. I continued to walk Michigan stopping along the way until I got to Jamba Juice - so good. I walked back to Millenium Park and met up with my friend Courtney - who I miss SO much and loved seeing. She makes me laugh so much :) I love her.

By this time, it was beautiful out and so the Chicago Blues Festival went on! It was a packed-muddy good time. BB King played. Good stuff.

Wadsworth - OH

Made a trip home for a weekend - a good decision.

The weekend happenings -

-watched a brother graduate hs
-saw the traveling Vietnam Veteran Memorial Wall
-attended the Austintown Fitch Regional Track Meet
-watched the most exhilerating boys 4x4 race - the bro made it to STATE!
-screamed and screamed some more for the 4x4 race...it was unbelievable!
my heart raced and my body shoooook - i now know what it's like
being on the other side. a spectator.
-saw my friends tiff and stef :)
-cooked out with my friend jake and his awesome groups of friends.
-went to a graduation party.
-laughed and laughed...there always has to be laughter.
-saw a girl i used to babysit 3 years ago - she's 5 now and the cutest thing ever.
-saw my high school soccer coach.
-made the drive to ohio in 6 hours on one tank of gas, which
was amazing...thanks to someone:)
-met up with my friend megan for breakfast - who i just adore.
-went to church at Grace and was overwhelmed by God's love and grace.
seriously - I just don't even know. His spirit was ever so present that day.

So yes, I saw lots of family and friends - always a good time.
Love love loved it.

PASSION for life

releasing some passssion for life...

ahhh after looking at past photos.....man my life has been full of some sweeeet memories.
so much i miss.
but yet so much more to come!

seriously................i LOVE life.

80/sunny

Memorial Day weekend...80 and sunny, best weather yet.

We did some biking along the shoreline in Chicago. so great. loved it.
first dip in the pool this summer.
little cookout by the shore.
played some wii tanks...my heart almost jumped out.
did some skateboarding - relived the college boarding days. Chachi remember!?

between biking and intense video games...my heart got quite a workout.

perfect day with some pretty sweet friends.

The Outside

I spent the whole day outside today at this old country house.
It was a beautiful day.
did some horseback riding.
fishing.
kayaking.
eating.
bonfire time.

coasting on the pond in the kayak...i was overwhelmed with creation. each, its own beauty.
so much you can do.
so much you can see.
lets not limit ourselves.

You are my joy.

keep it fun

i made a good friend this weekend. tammy - she's from germany.
we were both in a friend's wedding together. yes, amber's wedding.
last minute, decided we'd go to willow creek for church and then the train station.
it was only my second time to willow creek and the only megachurch i've been to, but i loved it.
it was mother's day and funny thing...the only other time i've been there was on father's day.
so yea, it was amazing and i wished my mom was there with me.
we both would have been in tears.

I'm a graduate. past tense.

I graduated this weekend.
yes, its official official. i'm done.
the fam came. we laughed a lot.
but no crying- i stopped mom from following through with that one. ha:)

sooo for now, "i'm going on a job hunt.
i'm not afraid." pha..yahhh right.

nah just kidding. a plan is in place. praying for guidance.

soccer causes injury

so today we do a soccer clinic for a local 5th grade school...oh my word hilarious!

we had like at least 12 injuries today.

including this one that isn't real funny, okay but it is.

here's the story:

the kids are doing this soccer drill which involves like 8 balls - flying everywhere...and these two girls come up to me. one is crying with her arm holding her stomach. her friend says, "the ball hit her in the stomach." so I take the girl to a nearby bench to take a breather...while still in tears, this girl takes a seat and it wasn't even 2 SECONDS and what do you know...........SMACK a ball beelines her right in the face.

oh my word, it was movie like and i couldn't believe it.
i felt bad. really i did.
but i can't help but laugh inside...we all need to get hit in the head once or twice if we want to be a stud player, right? ha:)

its never goodbye

as my time here at olivet comes to end, i feel so incredibly blessed to have been surrounded by a group of girls and staff that love the Lord and love one another.
seriously, i love every one of them to pieces!!!
how did i get so lucky? i'm really not sure.
i don't know how many times after being with the team i have said,
" gosh, I love them."

its never goodbye though.
i will be back for a game or two:)
I LOVEEEEE onu girls soccer!

Schoooools out FOREVER!

Yes, it's true.
I am done with school.
forever.
i turned in my last paper and presented my last presentation.

weird huh. it's weird to me...must mean i'm growing up, real world -yikes!

p.s.
last night i rode along with the softball team to their game in chicago and as we're into the second game, amanda (softball GA/friend), asks if i have ever stolen pitching signs...can't say i've done that one. well i can cross that one off the list! so yeahh...i watched for the "change up" sign and then signed to Amanda...who then signed to the batter. i felt like i was cheating or something....or like undercover. i felt like the coach knew i was watching him...made for an interesting game.

this sport is wild. amanda gave me batting and throwing lessons before the game.
i wish i had been a softball player.

fotos

so i was looking at all of my pictures the other day because i just love looking at pictures.
old ones.
new ones.
and i can't even count how many amazing people i have met in my life.
i miss a lot of these people.

uno week lefto:)

only one more week left of student teaching!!!
it has gone SO incredibly fast!

I also passed my APT, so I'm on my way to getting an IL teaching license:)

thick glasses

Today at school we are in the gym with all of the preschoolers and kindergarteners, waiting for the buses to arrive. I'm just standing there and a little girl approaches me and asks to go to the bathroom. I tell her she can but make it quick and if you tell one child yes...expect 10 more to come up and ask the same question, which is exactly what happened.

I have like 4 more kids come up and ask to go to the bathroom, including this one little preschool boy. He had big thick glasses that made his eyes appear 3 x their size. With his beanie hat, coat, and bookbag that was bigger than him, he asks to go to the bathroom. Oh my word...the cutest thing ever! After he melts my heart, I tell him yes. He speed walks out of the gym and as he leaves the gym I see him heading for the girls restroom, ha! He used the girls bathroom and it didn't faze him at all. It was hilarious.

Priceless :)

back to the midwest

I'm back in the midwest after a week on the beach. Gotta love the midwest:)

Myrtle Beach, SC - mom, aunt, and I stayed a week on the beach, while visiting my sister, who goes to school down there.

Here's how it went...some highlights:

-flight to NC was delayed for an hour.
-sat by a 2 year old boy on the plane and of course...boys never sit still:)
-got to the resort and they didn't have our reservations, yikes! It worked out though.
-ran on the beach.
-laid out in sweatpants and a t-shirt...it was freezing minus 2 days.
-witnessed people dressing for 30 degree weather, while others dressing for 90 degrees.
-had 2 descent days of 65+ and sunny.
-played sudoku like it was my job.
-ate at 50 million different restaurants (mom/aunt wanted to try every food possible)
-watched a sunrise.
-saw a high school friend.
-got stuck in WV traffic for hours, but thanks to the GPS, we made our way around it all.
-flight back to IL was delayed for an hour. (always my luck)

It was a good time, but I suppose I was ready to get back.
Back to IL, where I graduate in a month. can't believe it.

March Madness...I'm done teaching!?

March Madness begins!!!!!!
but the madness to it all is that today was my last day teaching!!
spring break is here, which means a week spending time with my mom/aunt/sister...
it also means a week in myrtle beach where it will only be reaching possibly 70 if we're lucky. eh.
i suppose any place warmer than 50s will be amazing.
i'm looking forward to getting away and relaxing.

hoping for some good stories to tell.

eh my bracket isn't looking the best.
i have memphis winning it.
so go memphis. eh.

not my own

the more i seek You
the more i find You

why do i often think its all about me and its my life....
because its not at all...
i so desperately NEED Jesus...
every day.

G is for Guitar

So this week is the letter G in my kindergarten class...Mr. G, we use letter people. So today, I decided I'd bring in my Guitar since it starts with G and Mr. G has a guitar too.
Of course, the kids notice it..."Ms. Zellers, is that your guitar?"

We come to the end of the lesson, and after constant pestering about the guitar...I play. HA. my first mini concert...with Kindergartners. I made up this like 7liner song and they thought it was great...so funny. Let me remind you, I am trying to learn by myself so I'm not great, but I did get an applause!

After I played, I asked if anyone wanted to come up and make up their own song while I play...of course, hands go flying in the air. I call on a couple of kids and as soon as they get up front....stage fright kicks in. Suddenly, they respond with "I forgot." Although I did have a couple pull through...one sang the ABCs and another sang twinkle twinkle little star.
So CUTE.

last week teaching with full control!
i'm loving it, but i'm ready for a breather.
the end is near:)

self reminder

it is not about me.
sometimes i forget that.

less of me.
more of Jesus.

Snowboarding in MI

Gaylord, MI - Our "tea time" group spent the weekend skiing/snowboarding in upper MI.

Friday: One car left early AM and our car left late afternoonish. Early car found themselves in a ditch and late car came inches to being side swiped by a semi...yikes. It seemed like the longest trip ever, probably because of the snowy weather. I couldn't believe the amounts of snow up north.

Saturday - a 10 hour day on the slopes (9AM-8PM)

The highlights: 3 borders; 6 skiers

-I got hit in the head by the chair lift.
(It was my first time getting off with the board and I didn't push off enough. As I'm putting my back foot on the board, I fall to the ground. The lift keeps going and yep, the chair hits my head. I get in the fetal position in fear that another chair is coming..ha! Matt is laughing...I am laughing. The lift is stopped and a lady runs out of the her little tower and asks if I'm okay. HA...it was pretty funny.

-My friend, Manny, who was a first time skier and doesn't do well in the cold (he's from Kenya) was priceless on the slopes. Hilarious. He got hit by the chair lift as well.

-I had two major wipe outs. Both were faceplants...got the toe edge caught. eh.

-Brooke was rescued by the ski patrol. She broke her arm.

-the ski resort and upper michigan...BEAUTIFUL!

-Watched 4 year olds go off jumps on skis and snowboards...crazy!!

-didn't get cold at all...not even hands or feet. It was amazing weather!

-hit the slopes under the lights at night.

-attempted to play Settlers but someone had a minor coffee spill onto the game.


By the end of the day, I finally got the hang of boarding. It was SO much fun. I hurt so much right now, but it was a blast. Broken bones or not, I'm trying a jump next time.

Sunday: Went to church and headed back home in matt's car, where the music never stops.

It was a great time and my goal is to go one more time before the season is over. I found a new love, snowboarding. Convinces me more to move to a mountainous region.

Bank Field Trip

So my kindergarteners and I took a field trip to the local bank today...

ha, so I sit with this little boy who has a "bus buddy" that goes on the bus with him.
Now, Bus Buddy is a yellow cottonball looking thing with one eye missing...ha makes me laugh thinking about it.
While we're sitting together on the bus ride, he shows me Bus Buddy and says....
Boy: Bus Buddy likes to look out the window.
Me: Oh really, does bus buddy have a name?
Boy: His name is Fifteen, you know the number 15.
Me: Oh, fifteen.
Boy: (flying the ball around in the air) He is just looking for crumbs to eat.

Oh my word, hilarious.
The questions and comments these kids had during this trip to the bank were priceless.

Oh laugh.

Today this little girl in my class stands up to share something with the class...we call this "daily news". So I ask her what she wants to share and she proceeds with " My dad thinks Rosey has a bun in the oven." HA...who's Rosey? Come to find, it's her pet cat. I'm like ohhh so she has a "bun in the oven"(trying not to laugh). She's says yeah we think she's going to have babies.

you never know what you're going to get with 5 year olds.
5 weeks down!
one month until SPRING BREAK:)

chicagooo again.

my wonderful friend amy came to visit me this weekend.
there is always a story to be told...

so we get to the train station to head to the city.
we see other people running so then of course we figure we should too (not realizing how close the time was)...as we get up the stairs...ha the train pulls away.
because i have a bad record of this, it made the situation pretty funny.

so we spend the next 40min in mcdonalds. we catch the next train and make our way into the city. once in the city, we had lunch at grand lux...and it was free, even better and then browsed the shops. we decided to use my cta ticket that i accidently put $20 on months ago to get back to the station. remind you, we are not city girls...so we get on the bus and it takes off...we did not have a hold of anything. I literally fall back into the crowd of passengers behind me...ha it was so funny. we all laughed.

fun. fun.

tomorrow is president's day...i don't have school! ahh:)

sickness, welcome to teaching.

i've got 4 weeks down on student teaching.
i've got 3 of 5 observations down.

i had 7 kids out sick last week.
the weekend came.
i'm exhausted and I have a cold.
and so they say........

welcome to first year teaching.

Kindergartener Quotes

So I was observed for the 2nd time today. My supervisor quietly comes into the classroom while all of the kids are sitting on the carpet.

Of course they notice him...."Ms. Zellers, there's your boss!" Ha!

After he comes in the class, I notice one of the boys pointing to my supervisor's chin.

Boy: "What is on your chin?"
Supervisor: "Is there something on my chin?" (he bends down for the boy to see closer)
Boy: grabs the excess skin hanging underneath his chin
Boy: "You look like a lizard?"

I wanted to die laughing!

It doesn't stop there...

Next, this little girl says, " Ms. Zellers, your boss got older."

I thought I was going to lose it, but the lesson went well and my supervisor was happy with it.

One more quote to remember...
Later in the day, this little boy raises his hand..."Ms. Zellers, you're sweater looks like a washrag."

HAHAHAHA...these kids make me smile every day.
I'm tired. I'm exhausted. but I am loving it.

Stunning Win

What a Super Bowl!?!?
Wowwowow.
Giants crush the Patriots perfect season with minutes left.
Manning brothers...back to back champions. pretty awesome.

tom brady...he's still a stud....he's still so hott:)

Super Bowl Weekend!

It's SUPER BOWL TIME :)

patriots...giants

i don't know...

well with my soul

when we choose to follow Jesus.
we better be prepared...because it will be an adventure.
it might not be safe.
it might be hard.

but we can say...

it is well
it is well, with my soul.

We are in the hands of the ALMIGHTY GOD!
Surrender. Seek. Love.

Student Teaching...Yikes!

I have officially started Student Teaching. Well, right now I am just observing, but soon I will be in full c0ntrol...ahhhh yikes:)

Good learning experience awaits.
I hope I survive.
Please be praying.
Thanks:)

BCS Championship

football season is almost over....blah.

i cheer for the scarlet and gray.
thee ohio state buckeyes;)

i'm a dork for sports.