And I'm off...

Well... another CA-RAAAAAZY week [almost] survived.  I am looking forward to a nice date night tomorrow and then flitting off to Charlottesville, VA for a friend's wedding.
There seems to be a lot of moving and change around, enough so that - even for me - it is a bit overwhelming.
Photos?  Of course.  A new city and a wedding.  How could I not come back with some good photos?
Catchya on the flip side friends!  Happy weekend :-)

Catching up and the simple joys...

Sometimes we can be running, running, running, and it seems to stress us out even more to find times to rest.  I found myself running on E on Friday, and I just started to shut down. 

"And He said to them, 'Come away by yourselves to a lonely place and rest for a while.'  For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat."  Mark 6:31

Likewise, Psalm 23 gives us a beautiful image of God leading us to a restful place.  The imagry in the passage alone makes you want to get a cool tall glass of lemonade and start chillaxing in a hammock with the sun streaming down on you.  Hmmmm....

Life has been busy, but joyfully busy.

Last week I attended a very nice Younglife Banquet to celebrate and raise funds for Montgomery County Younglife.  There were a few sudden surprises thrown my way, but it turned out to be a great evening, reconnecting with friends across the county who support the ministry, and being part of something I believe in so much.  Younglife has, is, and will continue to change lives, and I am blessed to be a part of it.  Not only that but I got to hang out with some of my kid's parents, and I got a graduation gift for the baby sister, Rock Climbing for me and the boy, and a 1.5 hour date with a massage therepist around the corner from my house.  Mhmmmm....  Lovin it.

Friday was my day.  That was the day I shut down.  Cancelled my plans.  I picked up sushi, and watched the Flyers v. Penguins game with my roommate.  I did not even make it to the third period of the game because I went to bed around 9:30.  It was glorious.

After a much needed 10 hours of sleep, I trudged out of bed for some breakfast with some wonderful women from my chuch (and an adorable little man who joined us!).  Then I spent most of the rest of the day cleaning out and organizing the storage room.  It was tedious, messy, and frustrating at times, but at the same time there is so much peace that comes from cleaning up and clearing out space - I loved it.  I went to softball practice and then to Kev's parent's house for some out of town family, working on a car, and dinner.

Yesterday I started the Daniel fast, and that was pretty much the biggest accomplishment of my day.  It was quite a low-key weekend, and it was so wonderful to have a low-key weekend after all the business and craziness lately!  Now, I just need to make it through this wonderful week with pedicures, weeding, Younglife Club, and then Charlottesville for a friend's wedding this weekend!  Whooop!

Pictures from my recent busy-ness:



Easter creations!  Tim, Kev, and I made Peep sushi, found on Pinterest over Easter weekend.  So cute, fun to make, and deleriously sugary.  Yum!



Carousel Rogues - Friday night on the town with roomie, boyfriend, and YL friends.  What a great time!

Yep... he already has a girlfriend?  Not a big surprise...

Wyeth and Kev on our Saturday Virginia day.  This was at the winery just enjoying fun, sun, wine, and family.  What could be better?

Updates to my bucket list!

So I have my two lists... my bucket list and my 30 things to do before I turn 30.  Made some updates since turning 25, and still have quite a ways to go!

1- Ride an elephant in the Jungle
2- Skydiving May 2011

3- Missions trip in a foreign country

4- Hike to the peak of a mountain Spring 2010

5- Take a sailing trip

6- Go on a cross country road trip

7- Learn to drive stick shift (I CAN drive a stick shift, but I want to feel comfortable at it)

8- Kentucky Derby with a big hat

9- Ice skate at Rockefeller at Christmas

10- Ride on the back of a motorcycle

11- Give everything I have to someone (can be everything I can give, everything I have at that moment… I’ll know when it happens)

12- White Water raft on the CO River

13- Run a ½ marathon OR do a sprint triathlon
14- Worship with a different culture

15- Dance freely in front of at least 10 people Enter the Haggis concert January 2010

16- Take a helicopter ride

17- Go rock climbing

18- See the Northen Lights

19- Visit and explore Rio de Janerio

20- See Victoria Falls

21- Visit all 50 states

22- Ride the biggest roller coaster in the US

23- Make my own wine

24- Read all 100 books (I have a list of 100 books to read)

25- Not be in control 2010 - the whole year

26- Spend a weekend, just me and God

27- Do God’s will, not my own Younglife again this year!! Whoooo

28- Help build a home Kevin and I helped build a home in GA and plan to return :-)

29- Spend Christmas at a shelter

30- Make a difference in someone’s life

31- Write and publish a book

32- Watch the 50 Greatest American Movies of all time

33- Be a loving mother and wife

34- Go on a safari

35- Spend mornings with my husband and coffee on the porch

36- Attend a professional tennis tournament

37- Create an art project I can proudly display

38- Live in the now

39- Start a collection of willow angels I bought the Sunshine angel this year!

40- Watch the mummers parade – live

41- Send my parents to a YL camp as adult guests Northbay Camp June 2010

42- Drop everything to help someone

43- Have a life changing conversation with a stranger about faith after giving someone a ride to the metro from the Dr's office.  A wonderful woman from Kenya.

44- Go back to school

45- Stand out of the sunroof of a moving car

46- Grow a garden

47- Sleep under the stars

48- Build or fix something

49- Explore the beaches and ocean of Australia

50- Learn to surf

Here is my more immediate list of things to before my 30th.  And with 26 coming up, I guess I need to knock a few more out of here! (Some are new and some are borrowed from the list above)



1. Build a recipe book - started this!  just need to make it prettier :-)

2. Spend a whole weekend with just me and God

3. Sleep under the stars

4. Take and survive a yoga class

5. Start my willow angel collection (see above)

6. Refurnish/re-upholister a peice of furniture

7. Ice Skate at Rockafeller Center

8. Move out of Rockville, MD

9. Grow a beautiful garden

10. Lose 20 lbs.

11. Learn to surf

12. Break 100 bowling

13. Take a gorgeous photo

14. See the Mummer's parade live

15. Join a book club

16. Take a dance class

17. Go to Indonesia or Thailand

18. Do a missions trip in a foriegn country

19. Carve a great jack-o-lantern

20. Fingerpaint with kids

21. Get married (I don't think I get to choose when that happens...?)

22. Do a photoshoot with balloons

23. Go white water rafting on the CO river

24. Wake up looking at the water

25. Manage my time and relationships better

26. Have a real snow day

27. Have a great date day with just my mom and sister Philadelphia premium outlets and dinner.  LOVE.

28. Get paid to be creative (even if it's a one-time thing)

29. Take a trip on a whim

30. Buy a house

Best friends and weddings!

So 2013.  That is the year.  Yes, I am going to start packing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch and eating ramen noodles for dinner.  Because I have a lot of traveling and wedding gifts to be saving for.

I say it like that, but really I am so thrilled.  So far I have 5 weddings planned for next year, and while it might be a smart idea to pick and choose the ones I'm closest too, I can't possibly miss any of these weddings.  Between all 5 of them, I am most excited about the three below who have been some of my closest friends and together we have made it through life's craziest times.

Sara and Mike:
Sara and I have known each other literally since we were in diapers.  I get to be a bridesmaid in her wedding, and am so thrilled for her that she met Mike.  They are going to get married next October with a beautiful New England Fall wedding with an incredible backdrop to their wedding.  I have loved this girl like a sister for most of my life.  She has pushed me toward God, toward shooting for the stars, and has taught me that if you don't truly love yourself, you aren't living the best life possible.  We have been friends across town, across the east coast, across MD.  Been close and been far.  We've survived becoming teenagers, discovering boys, playing basketball, and producing creative plays and musical presentations for our parents.  Mike is amazing for her.  He is supportive, encourages her love of teaching and kids, has a great heart, and can ALWAYS make her smile.  He treats her so well and you can see how much he loves her.

Maris and Eric:
The most recent couple to take the dive into engagement-hood.  First of all - STUNNING ETSY ring (he did a very good job)!  They are very cute together, love to do nerdy things, indulge themselves in the hipster-ness, and can always be relied on to have something new and interesting to do.  Maris and I became friends in high school.  She liked the guy I liked, and I had the mentality "Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer."  I got to know Maris because I wanted to keep her from edging in on my man.  DEAD SERIOUS ABOUT THAT STORY.  Well good news is that the guy has come and gone from both of our lives, and we are left as half of a complete breakfast.  Friends like Maris are a dime a dozen, and I often think what would a hormonal girl do during teenage angst without her good friends to drive around P-ville in the middle of the night taking ridiculous pictures, having dance parties, and hitting the local diner up at 3am?  But Eric is a great man for her, and I love how independent they both are while still being so completely in love and committed to each other.  Eric is funny, and smart, and can get along with her dad really well!  While it will be sad to see these two up and move halfway across the country, I have no doubt that they will be living an incredible life together.  And oh - did I mention they are quirky, funny, and super ADORABLE??

Kyle and Caitlin,

Kyle is a different kind of friend than Sara and Maris.  I think Kyle and I became friends out of convenience, and stayed friends out of awesomeness - but that cemented each other as a big part of each other's lives.  Freshman year of college 2 of Kyle's friends were in my dorm late on a Saturday chatting up some girls on our floor.  Then another one of his friends became interested in my friend.  Through these interwoven relationships, I met Kyle.  Throughout college, a group of friends formed, including Kyle and I.  Then we started having classes and inevitablly being nerds together.  We would hang out at 1400 Linden and light Kyle (and eyebrows) on fire, watch Nip/Tuck, have parties, play pranks, have dance parties, going to Pennies and winning the World Series, and lived the college dream.  I am partial, but our friend group was pretty much the best.  Junior year Kyle and I went to London together for spring break, and had an amazing time. He drove Lisa and I to a house party in an ambulance one time, and we had countless other memories that need not be mentioned on a public blog.  Kyle was like the big brother I never had.  When senior year came around, Kyle had a 3 bedroom apartment in MD outside of DC, and had only one girl roommate.  When I got offered a job, I moved down here into the extra room in their place.  That first year out of college we played kickball together, made some interesting friends, and some really cool ones, discovered DC, had a terrible cat, and almost had our apartment burned down one time.  Now he and Caitlin are back up in NJ, buying a home and starting a life together.  They have an adorable dog, and have come very far in their careers.  They are perfect for each other and I am very excited for their wedding - which is bound to be beautiful because let's face it - Caitlin is planning it!  Sad that they are now up in NJ starting a life because it reminds me that that part/time of my life has passed, but still VERY excited about what is in store!

Just a little post to celebrate my friends.  Trying to be better about post updates so y'all can see what's happening in my life!