"My low is my outfits have been really not good this semester. And I'm trying to work less in school."

BIG NEWS!!!! THEY STARTED DIGGING FOR OUR HOUSE!!!! The ground has thawed and today they began digging to put in the slab for our house. We've officially begun the Davis house my friends. 

Early this morning I met with girls before school-- sharing life, sharing coffee, sharing the Bible. I love that Wash brings enthusiasm and focus to what we're going. I'm thankful that Cass is so consistent in this group and that she is leaving a legacy of showing up for what matters.

I'm proud of Maddie for how she transitioned into making her faith even more of a priority this year and how that's grown her heart. I'm such a fan of Shub's silliness and questions and the way she embraces opportunities for fun and learning and trying new things. 

I had a spontaneous adventure with Cass tonight which included visiting Smelko at The Well, getting a glimpse of Carmel WL's kick off night at Skyzone and delivering some surprise compliments  to our friends. I really like nights like this.

Once upon a time, Tecumseh only had one pool that was in desperate need of repairs. A crew of Camp Kids all starred in a Pool Partners video that asked people to help us with the renovation and building of a second pool. That jewel of a video has resurfaced and you can watch my sister and I, Arielle and some more Tecumseh alumni here.

The January Varsity FBC Project: Molly's Kits for Riley

Varsity FBC is in year four of advanced friendship bracelet making. Our team includes 56 girls from around HSE and across the Midwest. Besides just making cool bracelets, one of our goals is to provide opportunities for these girls to partner together to do small things with great love. Each month I'm going to give them a project where they can make bracelets for a cause. Together we can make a bigger impact than if we were trying to do it on our own.

Last December our own Molly Kelly was admitted to Riley Hospital for brain surgery. Varsity FBC brought her bracelets to donate to Riley in honor while she was there as that month's Varsity project. 

Since then, Molly has been recovering and getting stronger as her body heals from the surgery. This girl is a fighter and filled with more spunk and gumption than ever. Molly and her family now regularly visit Dance Marathon events around the country and Molly gets to share her story. 

For her birthday this year, Molly decided to create friendship bracelet kids for kids at Riley. Each kid will get the supplies they need to learn to make a friendship bracelet while they're at the hospital. Molly told us, "I know how it feels to be bored in a hospital bed and I want to help these kids find something to do. The kits include a clipboard, string, directions and a pattern."

Varsity FBC donated bracelets this month to those kits so that kids will get a bracelet that they can immediately put on. 

January bracelets were made by Ellen Baker, Holden Malone, Kaylin Hoover, Sarah Augsten, Jenna Jenkins, Carolyn Nohren, Rose Bohlsen, Elise Ruby, Cassidy Ogan and Sarah Wright. 

"That was equivalent of saying, 'I'm on a diet,' and then going and drinking a Diet Coke and eating a pizza."

Today I was reminded of how important it is to be weird and how overrated it is to be considered cool. It's the quirky people who have more personality, the silly kids who have fun, the passionate people who spend less time on their phones, and the kind ones who have a whole truck load of friends. 

We took yearbook club pictures this afternoon and I told the FBC gang to be weird (they didn't need much prompting) because that's what I want to celebrate. I'm thankful for girls who are figuring out who they want to be and what they want to be about. I'm thankful that we've got a space for creativity and face to face conversations. 

In this season of life I'm learning to schedule less in my week and to just make it up as I go more often. Sometimes that means I can say, "Yes!" to last minute plans with people and other days it means I get more rest. It's different but it's good. I have to resist the urge to go, go, go and accomplish, achieve, multi-talk all the time.

I was listening to an interview of a YL trainer today who said that every morning she has adopted the habit of sitting in a chair in her living room and drinking a cup of coffee without doing anything else. It's difficult for her and took a couple weeks before she actually sat there and was just still with God. The person who recommended her to try this practice said, "If you can't sit still long enough to drink a cup of coffee than you're probably not tuning in to God enough to be leading anyone else."

"I have to hurry and drink my water so the cute waiter will come back to re-fill it again."

One of my student's in 6th period starts off every class by "hiding" somewhere in my room. It's hilarious. This is where I found him today:

Today I'm thankful for:
power days
snail mail
great co-workers who make school more fun
being consistent in habits I want to keep
cadet teaching with Cass
dinner with YL girls
transparency, grace and being real at Young Life
working on big bracelets again
the new Rend Collective album
when our difficult choice is to pick between two incredible things

"There's a half time?!"

Twas a very Fancy Friday for the Davis family. Justin made sushi for the whole family and then we all went to the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra downtown for Beethoven Symphony No. 6 Pastoral. 

We loved the singer's facial expressions, watching the conductor, the music itself, the video in the middle and the whole experience of being there.

Nick was slightly less enthused and was completely shocked when he found out there was an intermission aka half time.

Saturday was a marathon.

The day began with 3 HS WL leaders, 3 7th grade girls, 1 8th grade girl and the newly revamped Skyzone. We watched Sarah and Claire try the climbing wall, jousting pillars and the ninja warrior course. We all had lunch together at Portillo's where Cass and I had hotdog #1 of the day.

Late in the afternoon I met up with Maddie, Elise, Cass and Katie to chug red bulls and share breadsticks before meeting the rest of the YL family. Once a year, all of the IN and KY Young Life areas meet up in Indy for a Pacer's Game.

At Banker's Life we sat in our seats for about 15 minutes before turning in our food vouchers for hotdog #2 of the day. We hung out with Smelko the whole first half-- she's the real MVP.

We're not the biggest sports fans to be honest, so we were more than happy to wait at the lower level entrance so we could be the first ones down to the front row for YL Club on the court after the game.

We danced, we sang, we watched people play crazy games and win camp scholarships and listened to a Club Talk. It was a grand success.

Did you know Smelko is an actual coach? Her team has a big game coming up Thursday, Feb 15th at the Clubhouse. You don't want to miss it!

Sunday was a power day of my favorite things.

Church at Northview, working out at the gym, catching up on podcasts, finishing the collection of kid sized bracelets for the wedding, coffee with Molly and Sav, cutting string, "less stuff" and dinner with Justin's home made chicken curry noodle soup. 

"The goal is to balance a life that works with a life that counts."

Today was a good one. It felt like Monday since we weren't at school yesterday, it felt like Wednesday because we were doing Wednesday's work and it felt like Thursday because it actually was. Confusing. 

I got to hang out with a fantastic crew of FBC girls after school. 

I found some great words. 

And we got to hunt down Denver when he escaped without a collar. 

What a day. I hope yours was filled with good things too.

"I just did 50 squats while I was in the shower. It actually helped me dry off. And now my legs burn."

I listened to Oprah's interview with Rob Bell on her Super Soul podcast today. I was reminded of how much I loved hearing from him weekly in college while I attended Mars Hill Church in MI where he was the pastor at the time. I love this metaphor.

Oprah: "Who is God?"
Rob: "Like a song you hear in another room and you think, 'That sounds beautiful, but I can only hear a little bit.' So you start opening doors and rearranging furniture cause you have to get in that room to hear that song. And when you get in you turn the knobs all the way to the right cause you're like, 'I've got to hear more of that.' And then you open the windows cause you want the people in the next houses to hear it too.'"

Tuesday was grand. Started the morning early with Mads, Cass, bagels and a Campaigner's lesson. Got two prep periods because 8th graders were touring the HS 4th period. Cass brought me a vanilla latte in the afternoon. Took myself on a date after school to see Forever My Girl and it had all the elements of a chick flick you could want.

Wednesday started with a surprise delay which turned into a surprise snow day. I slept in, finished the book I've been reading while drinking coffee and then got to have a week day adventure with Justin. We got Chipotle for lunch with Christmas gift cards and then he took me to Top Golf for my first time.

No school means no Wyld Life so Campaigner's didn't end up happening. Instead, my HS leaders and I invited all the 7th grade girls who are usually in our group from the Clubhouse to hang out at Chik-Fil-A instead. Meric brought extra cupcakes from Gigi's, Maddie sold $185 worth of choker necklaces for JP who is raising money for Wilderness, we discussed our snow days, Tatum and Grace thrived in the playground and realized that this felt like when you stop for food on the way to WL camp. I'm a huge fan of these people.

"I cleaned out my closet this weekend and gave away one of my shiny Straight No Chaser suits to Goodwill."

Highs of the Day:

Because I went to bed at 9:30 last night I was incredibly awake today-- it was glorious

Watching Slam Poetry with my 8th grade classes

Letters in the mail from Jane, Carolyn and Shub

8th graders got the bus roster for the DC Trip-- I'm on Bus Luke and our group is full of fun kids-- I'm more than a little pumped about it
I'm in the middle of a book I was recommended and it's just so dang applicable and helpful
Hanging out with leaders before YL tonight
Spending Campaigners with a solid crew of girls-- Alexis, Mal, Gidget, Katie, Brooke, Marni, Meric, JP, Maddie, Olivia, Cass and Danielle I think y'all are awesome

"I always wonder why you like me so much." The Shieling WL Leader Retreat

I had a dream. If I ever went on YL staff, I would make sure we had a WL leader retreat. This weekend, that dream came true. 

The setting-- a beautiful home/cabin/lodge in Nashville, IN that's owned by the Glanders family. I've known them for as long as I can remember through Tecumseh and Karen has always told me that we can use this place. It was perfect for what we wanted to do this weekend. 

The people-- our WL life team is made up of both adult and HS leaders. The timing of this weekend ended up working out for Cailtin and I (the adults) and Wash, Elise, Megan, Caroline, Cass, Meric, Lauren, Maddie and Kaylee (the HS girls). 

The plan-- from the start, I wanted this time together to be about rest, community, growth, WL kids and fun. Thanks to planning with Cass and Maddie, borrowing ideas from KCraig and CILTs, and the culture this group created, all of those things happened. 

A different set of 3 girls were in charge of each meal. They planned ahead, bough the groceries, cooked the food and then cleaned up the kitchen. I loved seeing them get excited about their meal and taking ownership of this part of the weekend.

The Shieling is surrounded by woods so we took the opportunity for solo time. Girls explored different spots and worked on writing out their testimonies.

Back together, cozy in the cottage with mugs of coffee in our hands, we all shared our stories. We know one another in varying degrees, so spending our time listening to how God has worked in each person's life was valuable and eye-opening. 

While it was still light out, we hiked back out into the snow together. Caitlin is a photographer and she took pictures of the whole gang which was really fun. The weather has finally warmed up and it was such a gift to just be outside without freezing. 

In just a few months most of us will be at Michindoh for Wyld Life Camp with nearly 100 of our 7th and 8th grade friends. We prayed over the list of names of girls who have already signed up and then we dove into a tradition KCraig created in our YL area. Collectively, the 11 of us wrote a letter to all 75 of the girls who have registered for camp.

During our pizza party dinner we talked about the privilege of being a WL leader and how they've been surprised in their time leading in this role so far. I always appreciate their honesty and I loved hearing what each of them had to say.

"I was afraid I wouldn't know what to say when the kids asked questions, but I know more than I thought I did."
"It's a team effort-- I'm not on my own as a leader."
"Contact work is so much harder than I thought it would be."
"It's more fun than I thought it would be. They talk a lot more than I thought they would."
"I'm involved in so much but WL is my favorite thing-- it's not a stressful commitment."
"I wish all of the WL leaders had more of a community and wanted to hang out together outside of WL stuff."
"I thought kids would ask more about things like how to pray or how to read the bible, but they ask about technical things like dinosaurs."
"I thought it would be way easier to make friends with the WL kids... but sometimes they just walk away from me."
"Sometimes I feel like I'm not cool enough for them."

We picked themes for our last 4 WL Clubs of the year and used our collective brain power to plan out all the games and songs and supply lists. Now we're pumped for Winter Olympics Club, the Lock-In, College Game Day and Minute To Win It.

We played Family, ate cookie cake, and sang along with Caroline until late in the night. We didn't want our first day together to end.

We slept in late and I woke up to the smell of coffee and the sound of the coffee pot gurgling. Caroline and Caitlin were already up having quiet time. Cass and I started making breakfast-- she tackled mini waffles and I cooked up more bacon than I ever have in my life.

We talked about self-awareness and I introduced these leaders to the Human Barometer activity that we created for the CILTs at Tecumseh. I don't think self-awareness is ever easy, but I'm thankful we took the opportunity to give each other feedback and to engage in a conversation that really matters and affects our lives beyond this season of life.

Lastly, we talked about the culture of Campaigners and the particular group of girls we're getting to know. Every week, I'm with Maddie, Wash, Meric, Cass and Kaylee and our 7th grade girls from the Clubhouse. We talked about how to best use our time in Campaigners, how to make all of the girls feel included and where to go next. We planned some time to hang out with them next weekend and I'm excited for us to be in it together. I'm incredibly proud of these HS girls and how I've seen them grow and sacrificially serve this year.

Back in Fishers I couldn't wait to mail the letters we wrote-- start checking your mailboxes girls. And it only took minutes before Cassidy uploaded a video of our weekend. Go watch it here. She is so talented and beautifully captured our time together.

Update: Photos from Caitlin! Her work is phenomenal.