10 Signs That I Come From A Big Family

I grew up in a big family. HA massive... and it's growing by the minute. Most people I tell that I have 17 people in my immediate family (this is including in-laws and children) don't believe me. No, we don't have our own TV show. No, we don't all have names that start with J (we do have two Meredith's though). And no, we don't wear long jean skirts.... that's a strong no. We are normal. HA okay maybe not normal, but we are at least not totally wacko. 

Anyways, apparently today is National Sibling Day and well, as I have told you before, I have the best. And while I would not change my family for anything, it has some side effects. Apparently, I have some interesting characteristics that point to the fact that I come from a big family, so I thought I would share some with you!

10 signs that I come from a big family:

1. I love kids. All kids. All ages. And this isn't the type where they are fun to hold or play with but when they poop or scream you hand them back over. Nope, it doesn't bother me. I have absolutely no problem changing a poopy diaper. I like trying to soothe a baby. HECK, I don't even care when my nephews wake me up at 6:30am on a Saturday. I just love those little ones so much.

2. Hand-me-down clothes don't bother me. Sure, I went through a period of middle school and part of high school that I thought it was just so uncool! But, those were my clothes growing up. I have two older sisters and I had whatever they got. Now, I get excited if someone gives me hand-me-downs. UM free clothes people!!! I'll take what I want and give whatever I don't want to someone else.

3. Chaos doesn't bother me. Actually, I work better when it's crazy. When there are a million people running around doing a million different things. Yup, it just works better for me. That's how it was in my house growing up and that's just what I'm used to. 

4. Silence makes me go insane. I have learned this thanks to my new job. HOLY... just no. I need noise. This office is silent. Like so quiet I can hear the person on the other side of the building typing... Sometimes I just have to put my head phones on and blast music cause I just can't take it. This is also why I don't study well in the library. I have to talk to someone while I study and apparently that is frowned upon in the library. Mehh.. 

5. Everyone, somehow, knows my family. Or at least knows of my family. I thought this was just true when I was in Greenville. HA nope. It applies to Clemson and Charlotte so far as well. It's ridiculous, honestly. Somehow, most everyone has some crazy connection to my family and would just love to tell me how. Maybe it's a small world, or maybe my family is just huge. 

6. I can sleep through ANYTHING. I'm not talking about the TV or talking. I'm talking about earthquakes (in case you were wondering, yes, I have) and screaming and dogs barking and banging. I just don't wake up. If I didn't have this trait, I'm not sure that I would have gotten any sleep growing up. There was always something going on, whether it was brothers screaming or my dad banging the hammer at ungodly hours of the morning. 

7. I talk loud. I don't mean to, it's just how I talk. I think it has something to do with the fact that I have to talk loud around my house just to get a word it. If I was quiet, everyone else would just talk over me. So, I talk loud so that I'm heard.

8. I will eat just about anything. I'm not a picky eater. I will eat whatever is on my plate, even if I don't like it. That's because if I didn't like whatever my mom cooked for dinner growing up, I had two options. Either, I fixed myself dinner, OR I just didn't eat. And let's be real, I am entirely too lazy to fix myself dinner. So I ate whatever and complained about it.... but I still ate it. 

9. I have more respect for my parents than most teenagers have for theirs. I don't come from a wealthy family, but my parents NEVER failed to provided what we needed and more. They dealt with six crazy kids, which I knew could not have been easy. I don't know how they have done what they have, but it's impressive.

10. Family is everything to me. I know that my family is in it for the long run. We rely on each other. We love each other unconditional. They aren't people that just happen to be related to me, they are everything to me. 

Well, there ya have it. I'm not like normal people, I'm weird. But if you didn't know that by now, you must not know me at all. There have been a few times that I had wished I was an only child, but I promise you, it takes a special kind of person to be from a family this big....

** you can interpret "special" how ever you may like**

Not Now Isn't So Bad

If you know me at all, you know that I hate waiting. Especially for something that I really, really want. Just ask anyone who has gotten me a birthday present and told me they got it before they would give it to me.....**cough cough SARAH cough cough** I can't handle it. I just can't. It's cruel and unusual torture to me. I hate waiting for the next step in life. I hate waiting for my next meal for that matter... I hate waiting for the summer. I hate waiting to get a new car. I hate waiting for friendships to be rebuilt. I. Hate. Waiting.

With that being said, God has a funny (kinda... not really comical to me...) way of making me learn to wait. When I was young, I was taught that God gave us one of three answers; "yes," "no," or "not now." The "yes" is the easy one, you get what you want. The "no" is harder, cause God knows you what's best for you, but you still don't get what you want. The "not now" is awful to me. It's not yes and it's not no. I would rather just be told "no" right away. Well lately it seems that the only answer I have been getting is the "not now." As you could imagine, that's hard for me.

My life is in some kind of transition phase. I'm technically still in college, but currently I'm working in the real world. But it's only temporary... It's hard for me to explain to other people and honestly hard for me to truly understand myself. Regardless of what this stage of my life is considered, it's a waiting period. I'm waiting to go back to school. I'm waiting for my career to start. I'm waiting for life to be normal (I don't even know what that means anymore). What God is slowly, and I mean SLOWLY, teaching me, is to enjoy it. He's showing me that waiting doesn't have to be awful. I can enjoy where I am right now. And I have a lot to enjoy to be honest!

I love where I'm living! Charlotte is a great city, but who I'm living with truly makes it the best. I love being able to live with my sister and her family. I enjoy getting to spend all that time with my nephews. Not even mentioning all the home cooked meals and rent-free. 

I have this crazy opportunity that most college kids couldn't even dream of! I'm getting a paid to learn more about my field. I get school credit. This internship is such a resume booster for me. PLUS I get to wear jeans and a t shirt to work all the time!

I don't have to worry about school work at the moment. (Besides a journal entry ever week that I honestly just make up as I go... shhh don't tell my teachers) I don't have any tests. No homework. I don't have to worry about getting good grades. As long as I don't get fired and I turn in my journal, I get an A. AND that means I will technically get all A's for the semester and a 4.0. Which will get me on the President's List. SO I have another resume booster there.

I am refreshing friendships... I chose my words wisely here because it's an unique situation. It's not that we were ever not friends. Or that we ever hated each other. We all had some moments (some longer than others) of anger, frustration, and even betrayal. And some major blowouts. BUT we are refreshing. We are making honest efforts to make our relationships what they used to be. It's not going to be exactly how it used to be right away, and we don't know if it ever will... but for now, we are refreshing. 

My life is good. No matter how many times I am convinced that it's not, it is. I have an amazing family who would support me in my dumbest moments. I have friends that are willing to work with me, even when I seem impossible. I have a boyfriend who loves me unconditionally, but isn't afraid to tell me when I'm being a drama queen. I have a job that is teaching me more than I ever thought it would. I love my major more than most college students. (I'm a little biased that it's the best major out there) And I am learning to trust God when He tells me "not now."

P.S. If you ever hear me say that my life sucks, feel free to hit me. 

Teach Me How To Rest

"Jesus, I am resting, resting in the joy of what Thou art. I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart." If you grew up going to church, you probably sung this song about a million times, but did you ever stop to think about what it really meant? Cause I sure never did. Until last weekend.

This past weekend, my sister and I, and about 30 other women from her church, headed down to Edisto Island for their yearly women's retreat. I was a little nervous about the trip, I only knew a handle of the girls, but I was excited to meet more people and see what God had for me in store. The theme of the weekend was "Yes, and I will rejoice." We were focusing on being joyful in times of sorrow.... well, if that wasn't perfect for me, then I don't know what is. 

I had a fantastic weekend! We had great speakers who really spoke from their heart. It made me realize that it's okay to be sad, but I should find the joy in those sad times. God does not promise that our lives are going to be perfect and that we are always going to have to super easy, but He does promise to be with us. That, right there, is enough reason to be joyful. But not only were the talks great, social time was so awesome! I met so many sweet women and loved being able to relax, drinking coffee, and talk while looking over the ocean. 

On Sunday morning, we spent some time worshipping and praying together. We sang "Jesus, I am resting" and for some reason, this time, it stuck with me. I could not get it out of my head and I couldn't stop thinking about what it meant to be resting in Jesus....

For quite some time now, I had been struggle with what God was calling me to do with my life. I was so ready for His plan to match with my life. I kept saying, "God, just show me. Show me and I'll do it." But the truth is, I was not ready to change. I was not ready to be uncomfortable. And what it took me a while to realize was that

God isn't molding His plan to fit our lives. He's molding our lives to fit His plan.

Well... that's harder. To truly rest in God, we have to give him full control. And we have to be completely willing to change our lives, even if that means we are uncomfortable. Ultimately, we are having to trust in the Lord, which is always easier said that done. 

Another misconception about resting in God is that this means that life will slow down. We think that our relationship with the Lord will come easy if we are resting. After all, resting is suppose to calming, relaxing, and even sleeping (my personal favorite), but when God talks about resting, He's not talking about those things. We are still going to have to work on our relationship, everything is not going to come easy. But our hearts will be at rest. We will trust that the Lord is there and working in us. We will be resting in the truth that we are not alone. 

We are not alone.... That is comforting. Knowing that what ever hardship we are going through, we can rest in the knowledge that we are never alone. I don't know about you, but that calms me.

Don't be afraid of the unknown. Because God knows. 

Don't be afraid of being alone. Because you never are alone.

Don't be afraid of what's to come. Because God has a plan.

REST, rest in the great arms of Jesus. 

^I know, I know, super corny, but it's so true.^ 

#100happydays

Ladies and gentlemen, I am on a mission!!

I'm not normally the person who does social media challenges, but this one really jumped out at me! It just seems to fit my life goal at the moment, so I figured, why not?!? 

I came across this website and just couldn't resist signing up! It's the 100 Happy Days challenge!

It's simple, I promise. All you have to do is Instagram, tweet, facebook (whatever you wanna do) a different picture for 100 days and say why that picture makes you happy! It can be absolutely anything! It could be a picture of your family, a new shirt, coffee, God, anything that is making you happy that day. Make sure that when you post your picture you tag it with the #100happydays so that others can see what makes you happy! Now if you don't want your to be publicly seen, they also have an option to email your picture straight to them, just make sure you click that option when you sign up.

The website tells you that 71% of people who do this challenge fail and their excuse was because they simply do not have time...... PEOPLE, we are on social media 24/7! Don't lie! So basically they are saying that they don't have time to be happy?!? UM, what? I disagree, I believe that we are just too lazy to find the good in life, it's easier to spot out what's going wrong. We all may not come from the best background, or have the best job, or the best family, BUT we all deserve to be happy!

So, I challenge each and every one of you to sign up. Let's be that 29% of people who succeed! (I know, that was intense math skills right there) If you have enough time to read my blog posts (as amazing as they are;) ) then you have PLENTY of time to post a picture of what makes you happy! 

To inspire you, here's my first post! 

It's that easy!!!! I'll be posting my #100happydays on Instagram (@merswiger) and Twitter (@merswiger), so feel free to follow me and my 100 happy days journey!

I'm In LOVE! but it's not what you think...

I am head over heels in love, y'all!!!!!

Yes, with my boyfriend, he's pretty awesome, but that's not what I'm talking about!

I am head over heels in love with this blog! Who knew?!? I'm sure a lot of you actually did.... but I was clueless! I had no idea that this thing would become what it means to me today, let alone last over two months.

That's right! It's been over two months now since I've had this thing. I'm like a blogging expert now..... except I have no earthly idea what to do besides type.

I'm the type of person who has to talk about their feelings. If I don't, they just fester up inside of me and I get madder/sadder/more emotional than when I started. This semester I have been in a place where it was harder to talk to the people around me. I don't see people my age very much, my best friend is in London, and my boyfriend is in another state. I got to text, call, and Skype them a lot, which was great, but still not the same as talking to them in person. SO, I turned to this blog. That sounds weird when I say it out loud, but I don't care.

This blog allowed me to get all my feelings out. It allowed me to rant and rave about whatever I wanted. I got to scream at it when I was anger, cry when I was sad, and smile when I was happy! AND the blog never disagreed with me, BONUS! hahaha This blog allows me to be a selfish friend. I come here, say whatever I have to say, and leave. Just like that. 

The weird thing is, I have never been a writer. Papers in school were my worst enemy! Maybe it was the formal setting I had to write them in or that I simply didn't care about what I was writing about, but this is different. Words flow easy here. I write about whatever I want. Nobody is giving me a grade. And there is no deadline. 

A lot of times I get mad at myself for going too long without posting, but then I remember, WHO CARES! This is my blog, my get away, my diary (if you will) SO I'm just gonna write whenever I want. If I don't post every day, or week for that matter, that's fine. If I post twice in one day, then I probably need it. 

So, thanks bloggy! You've been the best thing for me! I can honestly say I love you!

Happy Second Monthiversary, RWL! 

Also, Thanks for all the supportive friends and family! Y'all are the best! And don't worry, I love y'all too!

"Passion" Can Turn Sinful

Throughout my life, I have learned that I am an extremely passionate person. I don't like to do anything halfway. Whatever I decide to do, I commit to it completely. I mean like ALL of my time to whatever is my current fad. (This is partially fueled by competitiveness and wanting to the best.)

For many years, I was passionate about sports. Every free minute I had was spent running, kicking the soccer ball around, or shooting baskets with my brothers. I would not stop practicing until I beat my personal record, started on whatever team I was on, or was captain of the team. And then I got injured. Not an "you'll be better in 6 week" injury. It was an injury that I am still dealing with and will have to for.... ever. God stopped me right in my tracks (literally) and made me realize that I had turn this passion into an idol. I had turned a completely innocent and harmless joy into a sinful distraction. 

After I was injured, I was not allowed to compete in sports for a while, so I started working. I started out at a restaurant where I did not fit in. It was a locally owned sports bar where I was the hostess. The only server who remembered my name was my sister and the other hostesses and I butt heads a lot. I thought for sure that I would not have a problem with this becoming an idol in my life. And then I switched jobs. I started working the Marriott's restaurant where it was much more classy and the staff and I just clicked. My job itself was rather boring, but I started to love the money it came with and the people I got to see at work. I started working a lot! I'm talking 6 days a week (I didn't work on Sundays or it probably would have been 7). Every day after school I would run home to change and head to the Marriott. I had friends start to call me a workaholic. And finally it clicked in my head, CRAP! Sure enough, I had made another innocent act into my sinful idol. 

Well, then I was off to college. I wouldn't be doing sports and I didn't have a job. I loved my major, but not enough to make it into my idol. I was absolutely positive that I was in the clear. And two years later, I am just now realizing what "passion" of mine has been turned into idols. It was not a physical act, it was not anything physical at all... It wasn't even certain people. It was a feeling, a comfort, really. It was friendships....

Being in a dorm setting, I was surrounded by people, "friends", literally, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. I dove into many different friendship head first, holding nothing back. I was sure (even after being warned) that these were true friendships that were gonna last as life time. I became obsessed with the idea of being so close to so many different girls. I spent all my time with them. When we weren't together, we were all texting and calling each other. I did not go a single day truly apart from them. Even through the summer, I visited many of them and made sure I talked to everyone at least once a week. I was so invested in these "friendships" I would have told anyone that asked that I was truly passionate about my friends, but the truth of the matter was, I had made friendships into my idol. 

I was relying on these friendships to make me happy. I was set of them bringing me joy when I should have been looking in a completely different place for that. Only once they failed me, did I realize that they are going to fail me sometimes. Because that's just what idols do. They are sinful and distracting. I'm not saying that friendships are wrong by any means! They can only be harmful if you put all your hopes into them and solely rely on them instead of God. 

The truth of the matter is, idols will not satisfy you! Maybe temporarily, but there will come a time when they disappoint. Not just in friendships, sports failed me when I was limited to no running. Idols will never fulfill whatever desire that you have. You may think that you are full, but one day, you will realize that you are very very empty in these idols, just like my friendships. 

Don't forget who brings you joy. Don't forget what truly satisfies you. And take an honest look at your "passions" and make sure that you aren't changing them into your idols, because they can be taken from innocent to sinful very quickly. Trust me. 

My Story Matters

One thing that I have always battled with is my story.

Growing up in christian family, going to church every Sunday, and being involved with youth group all my life, we are told story after story about how magnificent God's work is and how He can take the "worst people" and make them the "best christians." We are shown time and time again how God can pick anyone up out of the worst neighborhoods or the most dangerous countries and turn their lives around. What's not as common is being told someone's story that we could even possibly relate to.

Don't get me wrong, I love hearing about how God works and how He can take the hardest hearts and soften them. And while that can be encouraging, it's hard to relate to. I was born into a christian family full of love. I went to church since before I can remember. I could rattle off the books of the bible at a very young age. I had christians all around me, supporting and loving me. I said my little prayer to God by age five. There was always food on the table and a warm place to lie my head at night. Even though I've had my times (still do) where I doubt God and everything He gives us, I still know that I am a daughter of the most wonderful Father. Because of all this, I truly believed that my story was not important. 

After all, I didn't go through this horrific journey to get to God. I didn't find Him through tragedy in my life. As far back as I can remember, He was always there. My story was simple, it was basic, and I was certain that it was anything but inspirational. 

God has shown me recently that I am very wrong (shocking, I know). People need to hear my story. They need to hear your story, too! Yes, I may have been born into a blessed life, but that doesn't mean that God's not working just as much in my life as He was Saul's.

We all go through struggles with God. If you think you haven't, I would highly suggest analyzing your relationship with Him and making sure that it is real. Real relationships have real struggles. 

Your struggles could be big or little, but if even one person can relate to them, your story matters. 

If even one person is comforted by the fact that they are not the only one going through whatever, your story matters.

God has shown me recently that it's not how many people your story can touch. One person affected because of your openness to share your journey with or to God makes it all worth it.

I beg you to remember, your story matters.