"We took all the money from the Target cash registers. And then we covered the money in peanut butter to hide it."

After a whopping three hours of sleep, since the Lock Out was last night, I woke up to go meet my friends Maggie and Molly for breakfast at Patachou. Mags lives in Chicago and I hadn't seen her since the CILT Reunion in December. 

I've been friends with these two for five years now and they've become such a big part of my camp history and my life. I love that when we're together we never run out of things to talk about or stop having fun. Molly and I can't wait for summer 2015 but it'll be so weird to not have Maggie there with us.

I went right from breakfast with Mags and Molls to picking up YL girls for lunch. It's a rarity when we can all coordinate our schedules and I was so happy to be hanging out with Chloe, Brooke and Julia this afternoon. They're kooky and quirky and weird and just some of the most wonderful people I know.

We went to Steak n' Shake, because that's how we roll, and hung out at our table for an extended period of time. No matter what we're doing, I love being with these three. I've known them for four years now and it's such a privilege to get watch them continue to grow into themselves as they figure out who they want to be.

Tonight I was invited to go to Luminaries on the Lawn, a Team Luke event that raises money for Leukemia and Lymphoma Research. The Andritsch family is one of my favorites and I love when I get to do things with all of them. Tonight there was a band, dinner was grilled out and I got to hang out with Elyse, Audrey and Lulu.

I think if my 8th grade self had gone to HSJH, these girls would have been some of my best friends. They remind me of the friends I had at that age. I'm thankful for their creativity, kind hearts, curiosity, silliness and compassion. Really, really love them.

One of my favorite quotable quote cards and calendar pages has these words from Pedro Arrupe,

What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything.

It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning,

what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends,

what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart,

and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.

Fall in Love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.

Maybe more in this phase of my life than any other do I see the truth of those words in my own life. Working with teenagers at school, in Young Life and at Tecumseh is something I feel passionate about. I feel like I'm doing something that really matters when I get to walk alongside these girls in the good and bad, when we're laughing or having a conversation about something difficult, if they're in 7th grade or a Senior about to leave for college. 

I read a post from Jon Houghton's Blog last week about Young Life leaders being Ebenezers, reminders of how God has been faithful before and how he will be faithful again. I pray that I would be able to be that reminder for my girls as I try to shine his joy and keep pointing back to him.