Welcome Week Wonderfulness

Welcome Week! Dos Dubs! Deuce Dubs! 

Shut the front door! Here we are, Friday of welcome week - 4 more days to go! 
With a little down time, thought i'd let you all in on the happs down here in Flag. 

I moved down here on the 10th of August and was then joined by my parents for a couple days later that week to get me settled in. From there we started team meetings, outings and memories. Starting last week we had a Newman Center Staff Retreat which was by far the best day-long retreat i've ever been on. Every team builder was explained so well, each talk was very clear and the meals were delicious! We got to know each other (the missionaries, student interns, adult staff) so well and made this week way more enjoyable. The day after this retreat, we missionaries had a hard act to follow. We had a retreat with the student missionaries - those we are linking arms and battling for souls with this year - to cast vision and set goals for the year. We even went downtown Flagstaff and asked strangers about Pope Francis! I think I can speak for all of us by saying how impressed and excited watching the students in this activity made us. They have such joy and truly know the love of Christ, they want everyone to know the same. It is so exciting! 

We got the last couple of days last week to hang out with students before freshmen move in. Which. Was. Awesome. A group of us went cliff jumping one day! It was so fun. The next day we decided to throw a party at our house. We met a handful of students at the very last freshmen orientation so we invited them over, along with the interns and student missionaries we had been hanging out with. We ended up with about 30+ students at our house, singing karaoke, smoking cigars and having a good time. Such a good time, in fact, that the police had to put an end to it. Holy rager 2013: Success! 

Then welcome week really went into full throttle. We kicked it off with BBQs and Ice Cream after every mass - we met so many people! It was SO awesome to see so many students at each mass. Made me excited for the year! Met students from Alaska, Hawaii, Arizona, California - even Lebanon and England! So fun. Monday we took about 70 students to hike the Lava Tube Caves (formed from flowing lava from mount Humphreys back in the day), it was beautiful, hilarious and amazing all at the same time. Helped me jump into the Flagstaff life, too! When we returned from the hike, we had a couple hours of chill time before we met back at the Newman for a rousing game of Fugitive...which 200 people showed up to! It was an incredible turn out, especially because it was pouring when we met at 10pm. Tuesday we had a Luau at the Newman, complete with the Hawaiian club doing some beautiful hula dancing, hawaiian bbq and limbo! People stayed and hung out until midnight, with a grand total of (we're thinking) 150 people coming and going throughout the night. Wednesday we continued the awesomeness with Exalt - an hour of adoration, confession and praise and worship before candlelit mass followed by root beer floats. Another successful night of meeting people and Adoring Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Thursday we turned the excitement up again with the first Newman Night getting underway - complete with an 80 year old Priest who doubles as an EXTREMELY entertaining magician! He was hilarious, I couldn't handle it. This brings us to today, Friday, when we will be leaving for California on a bus tonight at midnight to hit up 6 flags magic mountain tomorrow before getting back on the bus tomorrow night! It's going to be exhausting but AWESOME. I'm so excited!  When we get back, we get more BBQ's and ice cream after the masses on Sunday and then a choice between hiking Mt. Humphrey's (Flag's highest peak at about 13k ft) or going to the slide rocks of Sadona and enjoying some natural water slides! I think we know which one i'll be doing :) 

Thank you for all your words of encouragement, prayers and love as I have started my job as a missionary with FOCUS down here in Arizona. They have meant the world to me and I am so grateful! Keep checking back, i'll add some pictures and write another blog introducing you to my team here in the next couple days. Love love! 

Oh, the times we shared!

Guys. It has been a LONG time since I posted on this bad boy. My apologies.

Today I had the pleasure of meeting with Clint's pretty momma and that little Stu too. I met with Lynn to explain further what FOCUS is and what I'll be doing down in Flagstaff, as she is generous in joining my support team. We got to talking and she brought up this gem of a blog and here I am with a little time to spare so - what the hey. Let's write a blog!

I will be leaving Greeley on Thursday evening for the longest time I've spent away since I moved up as a freshman. Most people, from what I've gathered, have been beyond thrilled to jump ship but I can't say I feel the same. Greeley did a lot for me and it'll always have a little piece of my heart. Growing up in the Navy it is the longest place I've lived consecutively with a total of 6 years - yeah. Took me awhile. Oops. I did a lot here, like I said: I made a lot of friends, learned a lot of things, lived a lot of places, had a lot of roommates, had a lot of adventures, but most importantly and most substantially, I met the Lord here. I know, Greeley! Of all places! But isn't that the beauty of it? In one of the smelliest, most bizarre, laughable and (for some) miserable place in Colorado (besides maybe Alamosa, ha) God took ahold of my heart and I couldn't be happier.

The adventure to FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) has been everything you'd expect an adventure to be; exciting, joyous, HARD, confusing, sad, hilariously entertaining, dirty and any and all other adjectives you'd use to describe an adventure. I've been welcomed into all sorts of lives by people who find joy in the most obscure things, like coffee or sharpening knives in front of children to people who are OBSESSED with things like Harry Potter or Harry Styles and I would not have made the leap to FOCUS without a single one of them. You see, I'm not the craziest of people, not the holiest or the most awesome but for some reason people enjoy being my friend. To me, its simply by the grace of God.  He has invited me time and time again to grow and be molded into a woman (which lets get real, has been quite the process), a woman who desires eternity.

He did it through people, people who were bold enough to let Him. So, here's to all of you, my sinful faithful. My new adventure is because of you. I love you and I thank you.

If you'd like to join my monthly support team (yeah, I raise my own salary and it's AWESOME!) visit: www.focus.org/goto/sarra

Or if you'd commit to praying for the students i'll be hanging out with at NAU send me your address and i'll send you my newsletter :)

March Updates

Spring break is over and everyone survived. Not that any of us did anything life threatening. Besides drive home or to work everyday. woooooh. 


Since we are oh-so-very exciting, I thought it was high time for some updates. 


Most importantly - David Darling has moved out :( BUT....he is also now, officially, ENGAGED!!! Congratulations to the soon-to-be Mr. and Mrs. Moore! Kellsie has a beautiful ring to prove it! They have moved onto bigger and better things in Denver. David got a grown-up job at Toys-R-Us! Pray that they have a stress-free engagement and an extremely happy life together!


Ryan has a cutie patootie girlfriend Lindsay - who i absolutely adore. She is the total package and i couldn't be happier for the two of them. Just look how cute they were on V-day. 

Other than that, Ryan is applying for grown-up jobs at Sprint and AT&T in sales, so pray that he gets that! However, if he does, he too will be leaving the Duplex :( 


Lucas is applying for Grad School here at UNC in Sports Admin. I'm sure he'll have no problem getting in, and once he does, he'll just breeze on through. He coached JV girls basketball and assisted with the Varsity squad over at Frontier this year. He had a great time (minus all the drama and unnecessary tears of course....pft...girls) but i think he'll probably want to move into boys sports in the future. 


Jordan went home for spring break so I havent seen him all week. I guess he had a good time. Who knows. I do know that he enjoys observing in his assigned school here in Greeley. I think he is excited to  be in the classroom and not doing mindless busy work. He has also been playing basketball quite a lot. Trying to "get back in shape" .... like he was ever out of shape. whatevs. 


Clintopher has adopted a major change this semester. From Business (Accounting?) to Criminal Justice, he is quite enjoying it from what I understand. He is still hard at work being a butcher at Sam's Club and in his free time he likes arguing and making fun of the neighborhood children. I just made some delicious homemade chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes and i'm sure in a couple days they will all be gone and Clint will have diabetes. :) 


Stu is bigger. He poops a lot and is too scared to go down the stairs. He only goes up them. Poor guy. 


I am great! I am officially a certified Barista at Starbucks and am loving it. My co-workers are amazing and so kind and patient with me. Im sure we're going to get along swimmingly. It looks like i'll be able to graduate in December and I am super excited about that. Right now it looks like i'm planning on working for Starbucks all year, then applying for FOCUS next year. Lookout world! I'm discerning fundraising my own salary and spreading the Gospel to the future leaders of the world! Holler!! 


We are in need of a roommate...it could be YOU! :) Warning: Thorough application process. 

Valentines Day

This year was probably the first year I wasn't dreading Valentines Day in the slightest. I had my valentines cards made, chocolates bought for my bible study, homemade cards finished, I was ready to give give give. And it was wonderful.

The night before, I stopped by the liquor store and picked up a case of Bud Light Platinum and went home to wait for everyone to go to sleep. When all the little boys went nigh-night I snuck out and set up the four six packs with their cards on top of them, took a picture and went to bed. Oh ps-since the boys in question are old, this fist happen until about 1:30 or 2:00.

(the top is last years valentines, the bottom is this years)

Happy valentines day!!


At around 9:15, I get a knock at my door, I tell them they can enter and in walks Clint and Stu. Clint comes right over to my bed, leans over to give me a hug and says, "THANK YOU!!!". I say, "you're welcome", give Stu a little pat on the head and send them on their way. I'm tired.

At noon (haha) I get another knock. Let them come in again and it's Ryan, Clint and Lucas. Ryan and Clint tell me about their journey out that morning to get flowers and things for their little ladies, I immediately cut them off predicting they spent way more money than normal going to a local florist. They say that would've happened but they decided to go elsewhere. I approved their decision. After that, they were done stalling-or staring at me in bed and started pleading with me to go into the kitchen.
"there is something waiting for you on the table...!" they taunt.
"come on! Get out of bed!" they nag
"okay okay" I comply
I had to kick them out of my room, assuring them I would follow just so I could put on a bra in private. They were so excited for what they had done.

And they should've been. They were so good to me, it still warms my little heart.
Waiting there on the table, just for me, was a bouquet of flowers, a pot of tulips, a bag of jelly beans, a HUGE chocolate bar and a little card. What they wrote was so nice I wanted to cry, but since they don't know what to do when I cry, I didn't.






I go on with my day as originally planned, when I got back to the house that afternoon there was a rose on the table with a heart shaped box of chocolates from Jordan! Oh me oh my!! How amazing are these men??!

Later that evening fed ex man brought flowers from my parents!

Basically, I was spoiled rotten and I am so thankful for people's thoughtfulness and gratitude for being my friend. I am so very humbled and blessed.
End.

Christmas

Merry Christmas!!! The Duplex has dived head first into the joyful season, drawing names and setting a $15 limit on a Secret Santa gift exchange (we're all a little too broke to get something for everyone). Everyone did a pretty good job getting each other things we'd actually use. David got some Perfect Pushups, Jordan got a ginormous Nerf gun, Lucas also got a Nerf gun, I got some badass footies, Ryan got some drinking glasses and Clint's present is in the mail but Stu got some yummy bones. 
To get into the spirit we wore ugly sweaters to our family night/gift exchange...and boy can we pull off some ugly shit. We were actually SO good looking, we went bowling in them. Thats right. Swag on. 

Here is one from the day after. 

end.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving came four days early at The Duplex. My parents were in town and generously purchased a feast for us a couple weeks previous. So, the turkey thawed for a couple days and then I went to work. My first turkey and it went off without a hitch! Could never have done it without my dad on the phone for most of the morning, but it was great fun. Raechel has pictures so when i get those, i'll post them. But it was quite the smorgasbord.
20lbs Turkey
Stuffing
Sweet Potatoes
Mashed Potatoes
Green Beans
2 Pumpkin pies
1 Oreo Cream pie
1 Chocolate peanutbutter pie
Homemade whipped cream

mmm mmm good.

Since we had so much food, we invited some extra, equally awesome people to eat and watch Home Alone.
In attendance:
Sarra
Lucas
Clint
Jordan
David
Ryan
Kellsie
Raechel
Collen
Andy
Scott
Melanie
Micah
  13
Yep, thats right, 13 people. If i had thought about that number at all during the course of preparation, I would've freaked out. Freaked out. Haha, good thing i didn't and from the silence during meal time and the generous compliments after, it's safe to say it tasted juuust fine. :)

out.

Puppy Time!

The latest addition to The Duplex....Stu! What a little stud. He has us all wrapped around his little paw. so super cute.

out.