At Last it's Growing

So I finally took my braids out, I had my hair done in braids for a total of 5 months. Let me tell you it was so great waking up and not have to hassle with have to do my hair, just get up and go. It had been a total of 8 months since I last saw my hairstylist, Erin. I was going to try to do my hair natural, and sport a little Afro but that turned out not to be a good idea. So I went and got my hair done, Erin said that I had about 3" of growth...which is amazing. I think that I will let my hair rest and then in a few months possibly get braids again.

March 2009








October 2009

Live Wire

My church's youth program merged with a partnering church's youth group about 2 months ago. It has been a great experience, I enjoy spending time with the students. They are all really good kids. We have the Jr. High service on Sunday nights and the Sr. high service on Monday nights. Turns out the Youth Pastor had his ten year high school reunion last weekend and was out of town. The other two leaders were out celebrating her 30th birthday. So that left me in charge of the Jr highers.... I did have some help there was a couple (who are parents of one of the students) stay and help me last night. I had them play a game involving balloons, which I must not have explained very well because by the time the game was over there was no winner. They totally missed the point of the game, but they definitely had fun popping them. I was also in charge of giving the message last night. This was going to be my first time speaking in front of this group of students and thought that I was going to be super nervous, surprisingly I wasn't. I spoke on cliques and the importance of getting rid of them and if I do say so myself it went rather well. I actually liked it, it was great and I look forward to the next time I get the opportunity to speak. Who would of thought!

On Your Mark

I recently returned from a two day Leadership Conference in Atlanta GA, Catalyst Conference. I was blessed with the opportunity to go to this conference free. I was accompanied by three other awesome people, Rob, Glenn, and Kailey. God wasted no time hitting me with it hurt. The conference was filled with a lot of wonderful speakers and I took a lot away from each of them. The theme of Catalyst was On Your Mark, making a mark on the world (through leadership). Not just your mark, but allowing God to make his mark through you.
God has been dealing with me in the of a career. I think I know what it is God has called me to, but I would still like to have a little more confirmation. At the conference there were a few speakers that said things that spoke directly to me, somewhat of a mini confirmation. I guess I'm just hesitate to publicly proclaim what I feel God is telling me, because I have gone down this road a few times already. I really just want to make sure that this is what God has called me to do, so I'm still praying about it and I will wait for his timing. There was something that Rob Bell said that stuck with me, "Whatever Christ has for you to do, may be costly, bloody, and hard; but there is a difference between difficulty and burden. God will not give you a burden."
The main point that was universal with all speakers was God has invited each of us to play apart/role in HIS story. It's not about us, it's never about us, it is always about God. Pictured above: Glenn, Kailey, Rob, Mark?, Phil, Me
Two days before I left for the conference I lost my credit card (actually it had been missing a lot longer than that but I hadn't noticed). Then while I was in GA, I somehow managed to lose $50 and I also left both pairs of my prescription glasses that the Hotel. Geesh, I called the hotel and they are sending them back to me, I also lost my ear buds to my ipod. I'm not sure what the deal is but I sure am tired of losing things. All in all it was an awesome trip and I am so happy that I was able to go!
P.S. We stayed in the Marriott!

Think Pink

So my hours have been cut at work, but for some reason my bills didn't get the memo and are still going strong. So I'm in the process of being a Substitute Teacher with Seminole County Public schools. I should know something within the next week or so. I know, you're thinking Sub?...Vicki do you know how kids treat Subs?? Yes I know I used to be one of those bratty kids, but I've decided to pursue a Certification in Teaching again. Since I already have a BA all I have to do is take 3 tests and the I'll get a temporary teaching certification good for 3 yrs. This isn't my first attempt with this I took the first of three test last year and missed passing it by 4 pts. Let's just say I didn't take that news well and gave up to quickly. Very rarely does anyone pass the first time. The only thing that stinks is the school board has raised the prices of taking the test. Last year when I took them it was $50 and then $100 for re-takes. (I know shouldn't re-takes be cheaper..I don't know, doesn't make sense to me) Now it is anywhere from $150-170 for the first time and $220 for the second. So since money is an issue I don't see me taking these test anytime soon.



Having said that I am proud to announce that I have started my own business with Mary Kay. I am now an Independent Beauty Consultant. I had my Debut party last night and am ready to get things rolling. I haven't used Mary Kay in over a 11yrs so I been enjoying all the new products Mary Kay has and pampering myself daily..fun, fun! There are a lot of perks to working with Mary Kay, like setting your own hrs, moving up in the company as slow or as fast as you like, getting your products 50% off, earning the use of a company car. Once you get access to a car Mary Kay will pay 85% of your car insurance and you get a car every 2yrs. That's one great deal. I am here for any of your Mary Kay needs whether it be products, questions, or wanting more info on becoming a Consultant yourself. I do have a website that you can go to, to simply look at what we have to offer or to shop. www.marykay.com/vbeachman

Heart Full of Pain

I don't even know what to say right now, my emotions are all over the place. Over the course of two months there have been seven people who have passed away (either that I have known directly or a loved one of someone close to me) Yesterday a co-worker died of a massive heart-attack (I just saw him earlier that day). It's getting to the point where it just seems so surreal, like some big joke and they're all going jumped out from around the corner at any moment. The last time I dealt with these many deaths clustered together like this was my senior year in High School. That year I attended five funerals, all of friends I went to school with.

My heart is just aching for the families and friends of those who have gone ahead. I never realized that my heart could hurt so much for others. I know what it is like to lose someone close to me and I do not wish that upon anyone. But at the same time I know that is un-realistic, death is an inevitable part of life and we will all experience it, directly or indirectly. I know that they are in a much better place but that doesn't ease the pain any. My heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to those who are dealing with the aftermath of losing someone. I pray that God's peace and comfort would encompass you and those around you.

"The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace."
-Psalm 29:11

The Light Show

I have lived in Florida for almost three years and this was the first year I have seen the fireworks here. I started off the evening with a BBQ at Rob's house, followed by some Guitar Hero, and then the fireworks. It was great being able to hang out with friends, making memories. It was hilarious, as we were waiting for the show, Haley (Rob's daughter) started dancing..... 'like a Rock Star'. This conversation followed.
Haley: "Vicki dance with me!"
Vicki: "Haley, I don't dance"
Haley: "Yes YOU do!!!!"
(You see occasionally I babysit her and her brother and I have been known to let loose)
Vicki: "Haley, what I do at the house isn't exactly something I do in public!"

She still wanted me to dance but kind of left it at that. The fireworks were great, I even went to the ones downtown the following night with another group of friends.

I'm a Winner

Before I left for vacation I won a prize package through a local radio station. The only thing I really had to do was write in a 100 words or less why I deserve this package. My little entry didn't really make sense because I thought I was entering another contest. I guess they just felt sorry for, however it doesn't matter because I got free stuff, YAY! Ok, so this is want was inside:
John Tesh CD, a t-shirt, a $100.00 gift card, vitamins, a pack of granola bars, facial cleanser, hand cream (a little bag to put them in), a book (Will work from home). I haven't really used any of the stuff yet, have to finish up the stuff I already have first. And I'm saving the gift card for a rainy day.

Happy One Month!

Today Ariel (my niece) is one month. I can't believe it, she is growing up so fast. She is the cutest little thing in the world. I know I keep saying that but, look at the pictures I'm not lying. So I decided to take a photo shoot of my little niece here are just a few.

Our Rose

I had briefly mentioned in another post that my grandmother had passed away and kind of just left it at that. I'm not sure why that was, maybe I wasn't emotionally ready to write about her or maybe I thought writing about her would make others sad. But after reading my sister blog and the things she wrote about my grandma it was quite the opposite. It wasn't sad it was good remembering the memories we had/have of her.

When we were younger my family would spend some of the summers in Ohio with my grandparents. Carole (my grandmother) wasn't one to take crap from anyone. Whenever my sister and I would act up she would always ask if we wanted pork chops (which meant a whoopin). I remember the first time she ever said that to me, I had no clue she was talking about a spanking. I don't remember what I was doing but I'm sure it wasn't good, Carole said "I'm gonna give you some pork chops?" I was little and a little smart alec (yes believe it) so I said "Good cause I'm hungry!" Ha Ha. That was pretty much a summary of mine and Carole's relationship. We were so much a like. I miss Carole, but I'm glad she is no longer in pain.

Fun With the Greenes

So we made it to Colorado safe and sound and to my surprise Ariel was a very good traveler. She definitely had a way of letting you know when she was hungry, she wasn't messin around. I just can't believe how stinkin cute she is. It has been so great getting to spend time with Nicole, Eric and Ariel, it's times like this that I wish I lived closer. I feel like I'm going to miss out on so much of her life.

What are some of the things we have been doing you ask. Well Nicole, Ariel, Pazu (thier dog) and I go on a walk in the morning, then come back and take a nap while the baby is sleeping. After we wake up we all ate, watch a little tv, did our best to keep the baby awake (with no success). When Eric got home we would pass Ariel off to him, for Daddy/Daughter time, and later play Wii (which I bowled 270, ya buddy!) together. During all this Ariel is usually sleeping and plotting how she is planning to keep all of us awake during the middle of the night. We danced and sang the Hokey Pokey..GOSH did we sang the Hokey Pokey. Apparently this is Ariel's favorite song, when she was crying if we started singing it or play it from the cd she would calm down. Holy Cow it was magic!

Family Time

VACATION........finally! I had planned a month long vacation to visit family because it has been 16 months since I have seen them. I know way to long. I was supposed to leave on Saturday, but had to take off a few days earlier because my grandmother passed away. It was great to reunite with family, however under the circumstances it was bittersweet.


So I have been in Ohio for a few days now and I was able to meet my niece for the first time. She is the cutest, most adorable child ever.She so itty-bitty and I couldn't stop looking at her and taking pictures of her. I have like a hundred pictures of her, no lie. Upon leaving Ohio I will be riding back to Colorado with my sister, brother in law and niece. I have never travel cross-country with an newborn, so we will see how this goes.

She Is Here

Ariel Madison Greene, the name of my beautiful niece. Ariel was born May 6 2009 at 10:03am. She is the cutest thing ever, but of course I am only basing my opinion solely on pictures. I have not be able to see my niece yet, due to the fact that I live half way across the world. I haven't seen my family in 15 months, and boy am I ready to go home. I will actually be leaving for Colorado at the end of the May to see my sister, Eric, Ariel and Pazu (their dog). I'll be in Colorado for a week and a half. Upon leaving Colorado I will be flying into New Mexico to see my parents and friends. I will be in New Mexico for a little over 2 weeks, and then back to reality. (*sigh*)

My trip is a little over 2 weeks away and boy is it dragging. Hopefully time will pick up a little bit. But until then I am going to have to settle for pictures of my niece.

Miracle Grow

I found some amazing stuff that helps your hair to grow super fast. Alright so I didn’t, wish I did because then I would be rich. No instead I decided to get braids. I have be going back and forth on this for awhile, I just thought that braids were something that I couldn't pull of and that it would damage my hair. But as you can tell from the recent haircut I had damaging my hair down to a science.

I went in yesterday, and I was alittle nervous since I never had this done before and plus all the ladies who braid hair are from Africa, so they have thick accents. So this nice endeavor took a total of 9hrs, I know that's what I said. But I am very happy with the outcome, life has gotten so much easier (at least as far as getting ready in the morning) I am now able to sleep in an extra 20mins...it's great! I love the braids and have been getting tons of compliments on them also.

IOA 5K

So I thought that it would never happen, but it did. I took part in my first 5K ever (Insurance Of America 5k), for those of you who don’t know, 5K is three miles. Ya, so three miles isn’t really that big of a deal, I realize that, but for someone who doesn’t really exercise and hates running…that’s huge. My church was getting a group together to enter this race and somehow I let my roommate talk me into doing it. There were over 11,500 people at the race that day. Too any people for me.

Things were pretty crazy leading up to the race and the next thing I knew it was race day. I had no intention on running, but thought that maybe I would run on and off throughout. As I was preparing for the race my time was consistently at 45 minutes. So my goal was to just come in under 45 minutes. My roommate Kim ended up doing the race at the last minute and decided to walk with me, which was great cause she really pushed me. We ended up finishing in 44 minutes…YAY! YAY, for making my goal. I realize that it is only by a minute but I still did it. And BOY was I tired and sore the next day and lucky me, I got to work both jobs the next day.

Hallelujah It's Over

Yay, Joy, Happiness, the diet is over!!! And we got to celebrate but eating amazing food Easter Day, what more could you ask for. That was the longest, hardest 7 weeks ever. Although I learned tons of stuff while on it boy am I happy that it is over. I started off strong and then frustration kicked in and then I don’t know what happened. By week two I had lost 5lbs and then by week two I had gained 3lbs. Then we started eating out more, as our schedules got busier, by week 7 I don’t even think I was still on the diet. By the time the diet was over I think I had lost about a very sad 3lbs, however I did lose quite a few inches. I don’t know how many inches I lost because I didn’t think to take those measurements at the beginning, but I am able to fit into some jeans that have been collecting dust in the closet. I’m still trying to be healthy with the choices that I make when it comes to eating and I exercise more now.

The Importance of Obeying Signs

So as I mentioned the house is doing this crazy diet and one of the things we have to do is exercise everyday. Walking gets boring after a while and my butt doesn't do well (on the bike I've had since 8th grade). So I decided to get some roller blades. Why?, you ask. I have no idea. I remember having roller blades when I was little, neon green, purple and black. I thought they were the coolest things ever. I also remember trying to use them once, failing miserable and never putting them back on again. Yes I was a fickle child. I went with Kim and one of her friends on their weekly walk. By this time I had had the blades for about a week and hadn't really mastered the skill of stopping, a pretty important skill to have when rollerblading. To get to the trail you have to go on an overpass above the road. As we enter the overpass there was a sign that read "No Skateboards and Bicyclist must dismount". So Kim says are you going to be okay coming down?" and I said "No I'm probably going to die!" You see going up was a steep incline, so naturally coming down would be down hill. I don't know why I didn't just turn around right then, I guess I was just trying to be cool. This wasn't just a straight shot, it was straight for a bit then turn (like in an L shape) went down a little more and then turn one more time.

So as I start going down, I gained to much speed and started to apply the brake....and it wasn't working. CRAP!! CRAP!!! CRAP!!!! Panic was definitely running through my body. What I failed to mention was there was a brick/concrete wall at the end of the first turn. So since I couldn't get my brake to work I then had to figure out a way to stop before I slammed into the wall and flew over the edge. Trying to be smart about my options I decided to slam into the side wall before I got to the end, which slowed me down a bit but still ended up running into the wall and falling on my butt. I have a nice little scar to remind me of that wonderful day. I'm just glad I'm alive.

An Irish Week

Our church had a team of 5 from Ireland come to minister throughout Orlando the week of St Patrick’s Day week. This is the second year they have come to Orlando and we have sent two teams over to Ireland. It was so weird the week before they arrived I was working like crazy and then when they came I practically had the week off, and was able to spend a lot of time with them and helping them get around town. Lets see, we went to the beach, hung out at the Pub while they played their Irish music, went to a nursing home, had a blast at Disney, and enjoyed some good food and fellowship.


I’ve lived in Fl going on three years and never have really been able to experience Disney in its fullness. On this day I went to Hollywood Studios, Epcot, and Magic Kingdom…yes in one day. Holy cow was I tired, however the day did not end there after the Disney Park we went to Downtown Disney to enjoy some free chocolate samples and ice cream (that I wasn’t supposed to be eating because I was on the 7 week house challenge…shhh!). When I go back to Disney I want to do the American Idol Experience, if you are the best singer of the day you win some Disney prize package. Not sure what is in it but it would still be cool to win it.

7 Week House Challenge

Jay, Kim, and I have decided to do a 7 week challenge on being more healthy. It is crazy strict on the things that we have to eat and do. It based of a book called 'The Makers Diet', focused on eating food the way God meant for it to be eaten, without of the chemicals and hormones and stuff. We can't eat anything from a pig, or anything that comes from a cow (like, cheese, milk..that kind of stuff). We can however have meat from grass fed cows. We eat like goat cheese, goats milk, so it's not that we can't have milk and cheese, it just can't be from a cow. We have to eat a lot of fish, exercise everyday and some other crazy things. I don't really know that much about it, I just pretty much just do whatever Kim tells me to do and eat. We have been on it for three days and so far so good, I'm let you know in a couple weeks and see if it is still going equally as well.

A Night Of Singles

For Valentines Day I went to a friends house, where she cooked us dinner. It was Chicken pesto over noodles, topped with mozzarella chunks, tomatoes, with salad and garlic bread. It was yummy to say the least. We hung around the apartment for awhile and then decided to go Putt Putt. We went to Congo River, a safari themed place. We spilt up into two teams, and the competition began. I made a disclaimer to my team that I sucked at Putt Putt, but they didn't believe me as I started off fairly well. However, they learned quickly that I was telling the truth. Our team lost and to top it off I came in dead last, out of 9 people. I suggested going bowling, that is definitely more of my element. Over all it was a really fun night.

As you first walk in there is an area where you can feed the baby gators. In the pic from left to right: Mark, Kevin, Scott, Eric, Matt, Shannon and Melissa.

New Hair Do

So there has been a constant struggle between the health of my hair and myself. It seems that my hair always seems to lose that battle. I noticed that my hair was not growing and was very uneven and unhealthy so I decided to go in for a trim, only it was a lot more unhealthy than I thought and I ended up getting four inches cut off. So here are some pics of the new do. I'm still getting use to it, but seriously it is just hair and it will grow back.

School Switch-A-Roo

Anyone who knows me knows that I dislike school with a passion and that I was hesitant to jump back into the whole school thing. Southeastern was where I thought I was supposed to be, but it turned out to just be to expensive. The 5 years it took me to obtain my first degree cost less than one year at Southeastern. That to me is ridiculous. So due to the fact that I couldn't get approved for a loan and me not being happy at the school I decided to withdrawal  from Southeastern and transfer to one of the Community Colleges near by. It will be an AA or AS (I can't remember) in Music. I will start taking classes this summer and it should take me around two years to finish. Southeastern is an awesome school but it just wasn't for me. I am however not sad about my decision, I think it is the best thing for me.

Snow Day

HURRY TURN ON THE NEWS!!!! It snowed in Fl, look at that doesn't it look gorgeous?! Alright, alright, it's not snow...can't a girl dream? Due to the extremely cold (freezing) weather we have be experiencing, they put some chemical on the plants so that they will not freeze and die. It is actually a foaming substance, it kind of looks like bubbles from a bath but is actually like a spider web when you touch it. It was so funny I walked out of my room the other day and saw this white stuff on the ground. But it was only on the plants so I knew it couldn't be snow since it wasn't everywhere, but it did throw me off for a second. Tonight our low is going to be 32*, seriously? Our high the other day was something like 54*. Heeeelllo?, it Florida, this is complete craziness. It has been cold like this for about the last week and a half, and quite frankly I'm over it.

God is a breathtaking artist!

Ok I was out walking around campus the other day just as the sun had set and darkness was setting in, I was able to capture this AMAZING picture. This by far is my new favorite. The colors and the silhouette is just awesome, it almost looks like a painting. I Love it! Alright that was all I had to share.

Welcome Back!

Alright so last week was the first week back to school. I still can't believe that it is already 2009! If the next 3 years go by this quick I will be one happy person. I have made the plunged and moved into the dorms on campus. It's a little weird being one of the older ones if not the oldest one in the dorms. I was supposed to have a roommate but she moved off campus instead, so I have the room to myself which is great, but also somewhat lonely.

I really love the campus it is a very beautiful campus as you can see.

I'm taking 8 classes this semester and now I'm starting to get into the tougher stuff, Music Theory, Aural Theory all that fun stuff. I feel like I'm already struggling and the semester hasn't even really started. I see a tutor in my future.

One of my goals this year is to stay current with my blog, so check in with me periodically.

In case you guys are wondering what these pictures are of let me explain briefly. I guess the very first one needs no explanation. The second one is just of one of the buildings on campus. The third one is the main road/walkway on campus called El Prado, this is just one side of it. The next one is of Bush Chapel, this is obviously where we have chapel and also where some of our concerts and theatre productions are held. The last one is a fountain here on campus, it is of Jesus washing the disciples feet. This is really the theme of Southeastern, to have a servants heart. I will post pictures of my dorm as soon as I get everything where I want it to go.

If you are wondering why some of the text is blue and underline I have no clue, it just did that and I can't fix it.