Why I'm Not Dating

Hey guys! How are you today?

As I have recently entered high school, my exposure to teen dating has sky rocketed, and I am not sure I'm absolutely enjoying it. Some kids just don't know how to treat each other right!
I don't have any experience in dating, but please don't think that I am writing this post because "I'm mad that I can't get any guys" or something. That is not true. Neither am I judging anyone who has decided to date as a young teen. I'm writing my opinion, which is absolutely open for discussion in the comments! I would love to hear from you guys

Here we go!

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I believe the ultimate goal of dating is finding your spouse

I absolutely know people that do not intend to get married, and just want a boyfriend for their whole life. For fun. Though I don't quite understand all of that, I don't think it's really what dating is meant for. My perspective (coming from a Christian background) is that dating is meant for finding your spouse, and being able to share that relationship together with Christ.
You don't often hear a married person say "I am so glad I dated around in middle school/high school, it has really helped my marriage a lot!" What I HAVE heard more often is "I found my first love in high school. He was my soul mate and we promised ourselves to each other, until he cruelly broke my heart for no apparent reason."
Don't get me wrong, I have heard those beautiful stories about high school sweethearts, like my parents for instance! They have been married for almost 18 years and still celebrate their dating anniversary! But the stats don't lie, folks, most teen relationships don't make it and end up in heart break. Not everyone turns out like Cory and Topanga. Besides that, I am trying to think ahead and not have a super long list of exes to explain to my future husband.

Via gifsgallery.com

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I am too lazy for drama OR I have better things to do
Hey. I have attended high school for exactly seven days and I have already figured out that I don't have time or energy to commit to a relationship or even attract a boy. Sometimes just seeing the kids around me get heart broken wears me out. I have decided for myself that when I am this young and this hormonal, putting my relationship with God first will be much more beneficial to me and my future. Plus, I still have to wake up by at least 6:30 each day, finish all my homework, be civil to other humans, and balance a whole bunch of other stuff (which I talked about in my last post)!!
Being super emotionally committed to a boy at this point in time could possibly tip the scale and I'm not much of a risk taker. Yes, I have seen other people be somewhat successful in that balancing act.
But there is SO MUCH ELSE TO THINK ABOUT.
In this day and age, texting someone you find cute is apparently a group effort. The response to his text must be perfectly flirty AAAND hard to get but not too hard because you certainly won't friend zone him but still not come across as too desperate/clingy
"k"
*cries*

GUYS THIS IS FROM WIKIHOW WHAT HAS THIS WORLD COME TO

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I don't want to be tempted
Now you may ridicule me. Your parents have probably said this at some point, but seriously, I don't want to put myself in a spot where I will be physically tempted. Like I mentioned earlier, I don't want a list of things to explain to my future husband, even if it isn't "that bad" by other people's standards.
 I'm just cutting it all out. Please understand

Via AHAHAHA ok this one gets me everytime

I don't think it's cool when kids are twerking all over each other at the school dance, or anywhere for that matter but ahahaha that pic is funny. I'm not that weird
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Maturity.
I don't know about you but fourteen year olds don't have the best reputation for being super mature or having the best judgement. And this is coming from a fourteen year old. Last time I checked, committing yourself to another human being requires a whole lot of that maturity thing. I just leave it there
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This is one of the ways I have decided to be a girl without shame. One girl who doesn't care if the other kids think it's weird she doesn't have a boyfriend, or any interest in getting one. No shame

Via twitter.com

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As a bonus, here are a few Bible verses about dating :) If you are interested, click the links to read them!
2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Proverbs 4:23
1 Corinthians 6:18-20
Ephesians 4:2
Colossians 3:14
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That's all I've got for the time being, please please share your opinion in the comments, I would absolutely love to hear it! Also, I will re-stress this. I AM NOT JUDGING YOU IF YOU HAVE DECIDED TO DATE AS A TEENAGER. WE ARE STILL FRIENDS RIGHT?
Hopefully you found this interesting :)
Have a great day
Love,
Brenna, girl without shame ♥

Dear Students: Let's Chill

Hey y'all! Sorry I haven't posted for a bit, I just got back from an amazing but short trip to Savannah, Georgia to a regional conference for Youth For Christ. It was a great experience and before I start this post I really want to show you this picture I took from my hotel room window 

Anyway, today I'm thinking about going to school. Even though I've only been in high school for two days, I've already witnessed the effects that stress has on people. I'm writing to tell you beautiful people to take care of yourself.

via tumblr.com

Here are some tips to making school a little less stressful, your body a little more happy and our school year a lot more chill!

1. Make sure you are getting enough food, water and sleep. It's pretty much the basic way to start feeling better. Being tired and hungry at school is the worst.

*Eat a good breakfast that fills you up

*Bring a water bottle to school and USE IT

*Put your phone out of reach at night and sleep

2. Organize your work in a way that doesn't put too heavy a load on your shoulders all at once. 

*Take study breaks 

*Do your homework early and get it out of the way if you can

*Write your assignments and due dates down and check them off to make sure you finished

3. Have a creative outlet and a friend!

*Make sure you are doing things that you love, like reading, drawing, listening to/making music, playing a sport, making new friends. Have time in your week just for hobbies

*When you have problems, knowing someone is there for you all the time is such a stress reliever. Talk to someone and get a new angle on your situation. 

*Also do fun things with your friends! School doesn't last forever and it's a great time to make some memories. Just make sure you're in a good place school-wise

4. Find positive role models

*Don't hang out with the kind of people that continuously make your life suck, even if you think it makes you cool. It isn't worth it

* Having a mentor is super cool. They aren't perfect but they might be a little more experienced and kind of know what they are talking about

There is a lot of things that need to be balanced, and hard work and confidence are essential. If you need someone to talk to, feel send me an email and I'd love to listen and be there for you. 

Please make sure to get enough relaxation and make good choices. 

I want everyone to be healthy this school year, so share this post with a friend!

Love ♥Brenna, the girl without shame 

The Ichthus Experience

Wednesday morning I got up at 6:30, grabbed my bags and headed to church to have a short Bible study, then drove to Lexington, KY for the Creation Ichthus Music Festival. Little did I know how much fun I was going to have and how much I was going to grow.

Day 1

Day 4

On the first day, my group got there around 10, after talking to the most random people and getting lost several times. I didn't really know the people I was with because I only moved to the church a couple of months ago, so making new friends was really good for me.

If you've ever been to a camp of any sort, you know it's pretty common to connect with people extremely fast and be able to mess around and still get to know each other through deep conversations. I really enjoyed being able to do that.

Newsboys Concert

The concerts were crazy! I saw a whole range of artists from rap, to indy, from heavy metal to contemporary pop and hymns. I loved all of it, and got 2 albums. My favorites were a band called Author and a singer/songwriter named Abe Parker.

I also got a whole bunch of free stuff, but aside from that I bought 2 t-shirts that I love and really want to show you!

On the second and third days it rained really hard and since the festival was held in a horse park, everyone got muddy and gross and smelled of something quite similar to animal poo.
I had to give up my poor green flip flops which did me no good anyway, and battled the rain head on.
Everyone was stationed at a canopy pole in our camp ground during the storm so we wouldn't blow away. I secretly enjoyed the rain because it was cold like back home, instead of hot and disgusting.

God's promise after the storm :)

Saturday was a gorgeous last day. We played Frisbee with strangers and tied dental floss to the legs of one of thousands of June bugs. I couldn't believe that it was already over, and how much I had learned about God through talking to others and hearing music.

A henna tattoo I got for free (before it dried and peeled)

 :) I'm sorry to bore you all to death, so I'll wrap it up. Thank you for reading and hopefully you all have had a blast this week too!

Have you ever been to a music festival?

How to Take a Compliment

I saw this teenager post on my Twitter feed the other day from @HuffPostTeen and I got really excited because this would make a great blog post! Obviously I googled 'how to respond to compliments' and I feel I have researched this subject thoroughly. Ok, not really, but I'm doing my best!

com·pli·ment

noun

ˈkämpləmənt/

1. 1.

   a polite expression of praise or admiration.

   "she paid me an enormous compliment"

   synonyms:

   flattering remark, tribute, accolade, commendation, bouquet, pat on the back; More

verb

ˈkämpləˌment/

1. 1.

   politely congratulate or praise (someone) for something.

   "he complimented Erica on her appearance"

Personally I get embarrassed when someone compliments me and I don't know what to say. I think a lot of kids these days have that problem too, and it all comes down to confidence. I have previously written a post called How to Be More Confident and you should probably read that too, if you are really serious about this.

Via happymonsters.tumbr.com

It really is pretty simple. You just have to have the courage/confidence to go through with these three "easy steps." 

1. SMILE
2. SAY THANK YOU
3. SINCERELY RETURN THE COMPLIMENT

Ok, the last one is really the hardest. But with a little practice, you'll be a pro! 

Here is my guide of how to return a compliment: If they compliment your appearance, make a nice comment about theirs! If they say something about your personality, say something about theirs! If they praise your actions, praise theirs right back!

But here is the important part. WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN SOMEONE COMMENDS YOU FOR SOMETHING.

Do not, I repeat, do not, deflect praise. It's not modest, it's a teensy bit rude, kind of like rejecting the person that gave it to you. For example, someone says to you "Wow, your writing piece was very impressive"

Yes: Thank you so much! I actually just finished reading your last post and it was amazing, especially the part blah blah blah 

No: Oh, no it was garbage, I suck at writing

A lot of people these days try to play down their work to be modest, but it makes the rest of us feel terrible. I know when I tell someone they did a good job, and they say they didn't even care about it, I feel like a talent-less wreck! Do you know what I mean? I tried really hard and they didn't, but they still did better!

This is especially a problem on social medias, because sometimes people post selfies to get praise, and then act like they are super ugly or something. It makes me a little upset! I just want to shake them by their shoulders and yell at them "YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!"

To fix my anger, I have decided to challenge myself by complimenting people way more than normal. Since I've been watching Parks and Recreation a lot, I have been catching on to Leslie Knope complimenting. 

If you want to do my challenge too, next time someone says something nice to you, be sincerely nice back to them. It shouldn't be that hard. You can do it!

Love, Bree♥

p.s. you are a wonderful tropical fish and thank you for looking at my blog

A Father's Day Home

Yesterday was a special day for me, because as well as celebrating my dad and grandpas, it was the one year anniversary of leaving Washington. 

One year ago yesterday, my mom, dad, two sisters and I said our final goodbyes to our close friends and family and drove to California. Of course we didn't get to Kentucky until 11 days later, but still, it was a big day XD

Anyway, yesterday felt like we went home a little bit because we went out for Japanese food. In the PNW we'd usually go to Koto's Teriyaki but they don't have that here so INSTEAD we went to this fancy-ish restaurant that I forgot the name of, but it was delicious! I had way too much fried rice and yakisoba, and I loved it. Interestingly enough, Kentucky doesn't have much teriyaki places. 

Afterwards we drove to a park with a nice river. We fell in a couple of times and pretty much basked in how much like home it was. Not too hot or humid, nice cold water, quite a bit of mud and lots of trees.

Plus, I collected shells! They are pretty small which is perfect for sneaking home in your pocket. Don't worry, no snails or oysters were harmed in the making of this post. 

You can see a much better picture of this on my Instagram, just click the button!

Speaking of the shells, I was wondering if anyone has any good craft ideas that I can use them for. I really like them but they can't just sit by the candle forever. Any spectacular ideas?

>Also after the park, we watched Back to the Future and I love Michael J Fox so that was a fantastic ending to a fantastic day<

I'm considering yesterday a success. How did you spend Father's Day?

Much love, Brenna :)

Travel-Photo Journal

Before I show you some of my pictures from last week, I want to say happy birthday to two old friends of mine, Maiya and Kasumi and one of my favorite aunts ;) I love you guys, hopefully we can visit soon
Anyway, here are the rest of my pictures from New Jersey last week. Enjoy

Cape May NJ

Benjamin Franklin House, Philedelphia

Menagerie Coffee, Philedelphia

Street corner in Philly

Really cute/historic room

Room where Decleration of Independance was signed

#brennaonbroadway

Yesterday I went to New York City! And it was wonderful! Since I grew up in mostly small towns and only visit Seattle or downtown Louisville every once in a while, so going to a huge city like this was a completely new experience.

Manhattan is so old, beautiful (a little smelly) and completely filled with history and music. 

I'm a big Broadway person, and the TONY AWARDS were happening. I walked by Radio City Music Hall during the big rehearsal, I didn't see anyone, but I was REALLY REALLY CLOSE to Kristen Chenoweth. There was one lady in a very fancy nude, rhinestone and black dress that looked very serious about being in New York. I wonder who she was. :)

Across from Radio City Music Hall

 I also walked past the Belasco Theatre, where I mentally met Darren Criss, who is currently starring in Hedwig and the Angry Inch. He was in Glee and pretty much wrote (and starred in) Harry Potter the Musical. 

DARREN CRISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

I also sang at Carnegie Hall and saw The Lion King on Broadway ;)

Singing at Carnegie Hall

Look closely

We also visited St. Patrick's Cathedral, and it was beautiful. They were actually having Puerto Rican mass, which was completely in Spanish. I'd never been to mass before, but it was pretty cool. The building, though, was something else. Huge stained glass windows, sculptures and detailed stone walls. I bet the whole experience for a Catholic visiting the city is amazing. 

Front of St. Patricks

Stained glass in St. Patricks

Ceiling Detail in St. Patrick. 

At the end of the day, I saw the One World Trade Center, which is quite a pretty building, and seeing how smooshed together the places are, I was able to picture the 9/11 attack, and that day must have been one of the most terrifying thing anyone has ever had to experience, and America will never forget that. 

One World Trade Center

I also saw Lady Liberty from across the river, but it was too far away to get a good picture, so you'll just have to imagine it. ;) This was an amazing experience and I am really hoping to visit again in the not too distant future, but no promises. 

I hope everyone is starting off summer with fun memories and lots of sleep! 

Have you ever been anywhere really special to you?

Love, 

Brenna

How to Be More Confident

As you may know, I am entering freshman year of high school next year. And, due to the school system, we have so many high schools that if you don't go to the one by your house, you won't know anybody, and I have made that decision.

So I have started looking at, you know, good ways to start off high school, that kind of thing, and I came across a TED Talk about confidence that I really enjoyed

If you don't have time to watch a lady talk about the science of being empowered for 18 minutes (look it up), here is a quick and concise version!

Basically, she said fake it till you make it! Definitely be yourself, but by acting confident, you will become more confident and even the stress hormones in your body will go down. If you literally act powerful, like spreading out, making yourself bigger. In the wild, leader or "alpha" animals stand taller as a way to intimidate people. That works for humans too!

It goes both ways. Sitting with your arms and legs crossed and your head down certainly doesn't help. Studies have shown when you sit like that the stress hormone levels rise.
 Start making it a habit. Stand taller. Uncross your your arms, it makes you seem more open. Smile. You'll seem more open and happy about what you are doing and people are more likely to talk to you.

Apocalyptic City & A Maple Doughnut

This morning I went out adventuring downtown Louisville.

It was disastrous. I don't know if you care at all about this city, but if you do follow local news here, you'd find out very quickly that yesterday the Prez flew in...and stopped up traffic. #thanksobama

So all the streets were backed up. Distress followed. Because around that time, there was a HUGE thunder and lightening storm. It rained a couple inches yesterday, so there were lots of people abandoning their cars and finding shelter somewhere. We got stuck behind a car at an intersection that was wrapped in caution tape and had no driver. THEY ABANDONED THEIR CAR AT THE FRONT OF AN INTERSECTION

Then this morning, when we were out roaming the streets, all that rain had rushed down under overpasses and near the shore of the Ohio River. Lovely, right? 

Streets closed for the president, then streets closed because you would drown in your car if you drove through them. 5 feet of water in some places. 

To add to that, a huge GE plant caught on fire and it didn't get put out until a few hours ago.

 

So imagine streets covered in debris from floods, thunder and lightening, pouring rain AND a smoke covered sky!

It was sooo bizarre. At one point, we were stopped by a police officer [oh no, the po-po] and my mom asked him if this was the apocalypse.  

Very merrily he replied "Yes, it must be!"

But on the bright side, we went to a cute little doughnut shop called Nord's Bakery and I got a maple one which is my favorite :)

You guys I've gotten very few entries and I need more for the contest! Click here to see the rules

We're Sorry Dollar Tree

A couple weeks ago, I went to a Reborn Retreat with some great new friends of mine. We needed some princess-wear for our fabtastic youth pastor and ourselves so we stopped by the #1 Princess-Wear Outfitter in the Country. Dollar Tree. 

One of the wonderful employees was not in a happy mood and there may have been a tiara left on the floor by one of my teammates. 

We apologize, dear Dollar Tree man. You are a local hero. WE WERE TRYING TO SAY SORRY but noooooooooo. This guy distinctly muttered a little something like "you aren't at home you are at a store you need to act like it" to himself. We understand that, we were going to apologize, sir but SAY IT A LITTLE QUIETER I THINK WE GOT IT

 at Kroger looking royal

A certain fabtastic youth pastor

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