Man, this year has been a sweet one for sure. It's been full of surprises and searing pain, lessons learned and lost causes, trials and triumphs, but both sides make life a lot more joyful, am I right? Just looking over how much the Lord has blessed me this year, I feel like it has become so real to me how He can specifically place hard times and sweet moments at the most perfect times. How He can use such adversity for His glory and how He allows that to happen through us. And through that process of Him revealing His glory through us in our train wrecks, He heals, restores, forgives, and redeems us. And boy, how freeing that is! This year has been one for the books. I've traveled the most I feel like I ever have, met the most people in a short amount of time, grown deeper and had more intentional time with friends, and fallen so in love with my Savior. I'm just going to go through 2013 and give highlights and reasons why those moments were so great.
- Rang in 2013 and celebrated my birthday with some great friends at Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati (something I always wanted to do)!
Sweet Laurel took me out to Olive Garden for my 19th! 
Grace, Danny, and I before Fountain Square! - My old Young Life leader from Norway, Kristine, got MARRIED! And looked absolutely stunning!
Kristine and Sindre -- ABSOLUTELY stunning! Love my Norwegians! :) - My brother, Tommy, FINALLY proposed to his girlfriend of 7 years, Sonja! I could not be more excited for these two and for another sister in the family!
My brother, Tommy, and his fiance, Sonja! 
How adorable are they?! I can't wait!
- Made my first blog ever! :)
- This place has for sure been my outlet and a great place to reflect. It's almost exactly one year!
- Had the BEST Valentine's Day of my life!
- My good friend April knew how in love I was with the UK basketball player, Jarrod Polson (I promise I'm not that creepy!) and had him give me a card and candy for Valentine's Day!
- All of the guys going through leader training decided to take the girls out to dinner at Ramsey's and pay for them! It was way too sweet and a great way for the guys to get to know the girls better in a non-romantic date way!
- I also saw the movie Safe Haven with my bible study!
Jarrod and I! 
All of my sweet friends at dinner! - Met Emily Welz.
- This lady has been a HUGE encouragement in my life and I am so happy she came to Lexington! She never ceases to amaze me with her hard, challenging questions that help me grow! Her heart for the Lord is beautiful.
Just about the exact face she gives me every time I see her. - Got placed as a Young Life leader at Tates Creek High School! :)
- Emily, Lukas, Sean, and I all got placed together at Tates Creek with Rouse, Katie, and Eric! So blessed by this group of people who I get to do life with and spread the Good News with. They are so fun and loving! Katie stopped leading over the summer, but we still love her!
My sweet leader team and I! We miss Katie! 
So excited! - Went to Panama City Beach, Florida with 68 of my greatest Lexington Young Life friends for Spring Break and made relationships of a lifetime!
All of the girls on the beach on the last day! 
Some of my leader team! Rouse, Emily, Lukas, and I!
- Was blessed a lot by this friend and accountability partner, Gracie :)
- This girl has spoken a lot of Truth into my life and I cannot imagine college without her! Gracie is for sure a gem and I am not ready for her to graduate!
This girl is too great! Seriously. - Learned how to live in a box and became basically sisters with this best friend!
Grace and I in our box/dorm!
Painting pumpkins as roomies! - Had my prayer of an extra summer job answered and got to spend LOTS of time with these two!
My favorite little kiddos from this summer! Eli and Sarah! - Celebrated Easter with some fun family for dinner!
My favorite cousins! Emily, Ashley, and Grace! Jaden too! - Went to Chicago for the first time for Student/Staff Weekend!
- Okay this trip was too great. I was the only Freshman girl, but I had some awesome, deep talks with some great friends! Also, visited The Bean, which I have always wanted to do!
Downtown Chicago! 
Patten and I at The Bean! - Spent way too many hours and late nights at the library, but had some great life chats while doing so.
Bridget and I at the library! - Went to some really fabulous concerts that I LOVED.
Brad Paisley with Laurel! 
Hoodie Allen! Met him too! 
NEEDTOBREATHE in Louisville! 
Ben Rector in Nashville! 
Taylor Swift w/ Katelyn! MY DREAM! SO GOOD! - Finished my Freshman year of college at UK and decided that I loved it enough to stay! :)
- Went to Timberwolf Lake (a Young Life summer camp) for Leader Weekend and found out some junk about myself that was used for His glory.
My bestie from NKY was there! 
Some high school friends serving us on Work Crew!
My bestie in Louisville was there too! 
Love these Lexington friends!
- Found out my Young Life leader from high school was pregnant AGAIN!
- In 2011, Lauren had sweet Parker and this year she had Brooklyn! Ahhh, LOVE IT!
Is she not the cutest pregnant person?! 2011 and 2013! - Celebrated the graduation from high school of this gem (and many other friends) who just happens to be my cousin and best friend!
Em and I at her grad party! Ah, she's in college! - Spent some much-needed time with my fun-loving nephews!
Austin! Taught him right! 
Landon! Sweet boy! - Did more crafts than I can count!
- Went to lots of weddings!
Gohs wedding with my friend Huddy! 
Tieke wedding with my cousin! 
Cartwright wedding with April!
- Celebrated Austin turning 6 and Landon turning 3!
Austin loves baseball!
Landon loves Mickey Mouse! - Went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee with my dad, sister, brother-in-law, and nephews!
Me, Bryan, Austin, Landon, Kelly, and Dad!
Love these boys! - Went crazy on the Fourth of July with family and friends because I love America :)
Aunt Janet's party with these two!
Just a little excited to be an American! - Attended lots of UK basketball and football games!
Some new freshman friends!
GO CATS! - Went to the CSF Water Balloon Fight with these gal pals as the bandana buddies!
Me, Catherine, Gracie, and Camille! - Celebrated one year of my momma resting in Heaven with Jesus!
Miss this lady. (RIP 09/08/12) - Started my Sophomore year of college at UK!
- Still at UK. Still a Spanish major. Still aspiring to be a high school Spanish teacher.
- Took part in the 1st annual Lexington Young Life Turkey Bowl and WON!
All the girls! Woohoo! - FINALLY got an iphone!
Tech savvy - Went to All-City Club with these girls from Tates Creek and had the most fun I have in a while!
Sarah, Jensen, Ally, Bailey, and I freezing to death! - Gave thanks with the biggest family ever in the smallest house ever!
Me, Kelly, Dad, Timmy, Tommy, Christy, and Robbie! Only missing Ronnie! - Went Black Friday shopping for the 6th year in a row with this high school friend!
- Every year, Blayke and I go with her mom, aunt, and grandma Black Friday Shopping!
It's been 6 years! - Celebrated one of my best friends, Camille, graduating from nursing school and following her dreams of moving to Colorado. Hard to say goodbye.
- Cam and I have only been friends for a year and a half or so, but she is one of my dearest, best friends now. She has always planned on moving to Colorado once graduating and her dream finally came true!
At her going-away party! - Gave up social media multiple times to focus on finals!
- Two weeks before finals I have always given up social media to focus on studying and it has been pretty rewarding!
- Celebrated the birth of Jesus with family and friends!
At the College Life Christmas party with my roomates! Awkward? Never. - Moved into a house with 5 great friends after a LONG journey!
- After not knowing what Grace and I were going to do for living the upcoming school year, we decided to ask Maggie if we could live with her. It was all planned that us 6 girls were going to live in a house Maggie and Angie had been living in. One week in the summer, Maggie called me telling me we couldn't live in the house anymore because the owner was selling it. Within a week, these girls and I went from homed to homeless to searching to homed. It was a crazy trust exercise that the Lord pulled through for us once again. Now we have an ever better home that suits us quite well!
GAH they're the absolute best! - Dressed up as the Peter Pan characters with friends for a Halloween party and as Google Maps with my cousin for another one!
- Gave my first club and campaigners talk as a Young Life leader!
- As nervous as I was, it was so wonderful sharing with Tates Creek students and it finally sunk in that I am a Young Life leader!
- Drank more Starbucks than I should have (I don't know if this is good or bad?) Hehehe :)
- Many of these Starbucks dates were with sweet, sweet friends that lead to hours upon hours of Jesus-centered conversation. I would not have changed these times for anything.
- Met my BRAND NEW nephew, Colten!
He's the cutest!! Welcome to the family! - Spent LOTS of bonding time with my bible study :) Love these girls
At our bonfire at the Horse Park!
Jill, Bridget, Gena, Gracie, Brittany, Chelsea, and I! - Got to see my old Norwegian Young Life leader for the first time in 2 years!
- Ya'll might not understand how special and close to my heart Kristine is. She has been of constant encouragement and reflects Jesus so well to others. I hadn't seen her in 2 years and this summer she came to America!! Ahhh, it was so great! So much has happened in her life and it was awesome catching up!
Kristine and I this summer! 
Kristine and I two summers ago at the airport when she went back to Norway! - Got to see my old Slovakian foreign exchange student friend for the first time in 2 years!
- Guys, I may have only known Martina for about 9 months or less, but this girl is one of my best. She cam back Slovakia and hung out with me for a little bit! She even managed to bring me this cute little horse (because of Kentucky) with a Slovakia shirt on it! So so great to see her again and to catch up! I missed her!
Martina and the little horse she got me! - Made a Summer Reading List for myself and actually DID IT!
- WOW. Was this a huge blessing in my life or what!!! I never ever ever read, but this Summer I decided I wanted to actually read some Christian books that I had always wanted to -- and I DID! I read Love Does by Bob Goff, Crazy Love by Francis Chan, Heaven is for REAL by Todd Burpo, Forgotten God by Francis Chan, and Counterfeit Gods by Tim Keller! I was so proud of myself and God used these books so much to reveal sin and how broken I am, but who He is in all of it.
- Did a lot of Zumba!
- This semester, I took a 1 credit Zumba class and man, it was so rewarding! It was super fun, I became healthier, and I made some really great friends through it! My instructor was way too sweet too!
- Got excited for friends going to unfamiliar places to spread the Good News!
- This summer, Camille left to spend the WHOLE summer serving as the camp nurse at Windy Gap Young Life Camp in North Carolina in order to be a light to lost and disinterested high school students in hope that they might find Jesus and grew so much from it.
Cam at Windy Gap! - Brooke left earlier this week to go to Haiti on a mission trip to spread the Gospel and is still currently there! I can't wait for her to come back so I can hear all about her travels! Brooke is such a gem and an encouragement!
Brooke on about to board her FIRST airplane ride to Haiti! - Celebrated my 20th birthday (oooooh man!) and the New Year some of my favorite people!
- You're not reading this wrong, I promise. I DID just turn 20 on December 31st! How crazy is that?! I can't believe I've been alive that long, honestly. I went to Lexington to celebrate later that night and to ring in 2014 with friends. It was such a great day, ya'll! My dad bought me an ice cream cake that said "Happy Birthday, Turbo!" (my softball nickname from high school -- too cute!) and sweet Grace bought me a cookie cake that said "Feliz Cumpleanos, Casey!" (because we both love Spanish! I went party hopping with my roomate Angie to 3 different Young Life New Years parties and it was so great! I am indeed blessed with some great people in my life that make me feel so dang special.
Well, folks. That's a wrap. Sorry it was a long one, but there was a lot to be thankful for in 2013. Here's to 2014. New experiences, friends, hardships, triumphs, and NEW LIFE. Grateful that the Lord is renewing me each and every day. Praying for 2014 to hold BIG challenges and changes -- I cannot wait! Until next time, friends! 2014 has for sure made me a little bit older and a little bit wiser! Thanks for reading!
obsessed and in love with you and your love for the lord. man you make me want to love him so much more. you're such a bright light for Him darling, keep it that way forever.
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