I just had the most wonderful last week & it is just getting better! I must share & I must say: PRAISE THE LORD.
Patrick came to Seattle on Friday for the birthday weekend. We had a great dessert with my roommates, most of their boyfriends, and a seriously large sundae. We played catch phrase, the "family" game and giggled a lot. We walked around Lake Union (9 miles!), ate at Purple Cafe for dinner, Canlis for dessert, went to church, had a great brunch at 14 Carrots & did I mention we ate a lot?
Monday morning was my birthday and every year I have the same feeling: I don't want to get older, I don't know what I'm doing with my life, and can I just sit here and cry? Just me being honest here. However, I woke up Monday morning to Patrick having cooked breakfast and a giant present on the table. He got me a killer peacoat & Coldplay's CD & the sweetest card.
I went to Zumba with Amanda & Alexa, was blessed with some seriously beautiful flowers, shook my groove thang and came home to take a nap.
I awoke to soup & gorgeous flowers from Metropolitan Market from Missy. We dined together and contemplated this next part....
As many of you know (all 3 of you who read this), I interviewed for a position back in September that I was reeeeally hoping to get. I'm not going to school right now, so my 9 hours a week of nannying just wasn't gettin the job done. I never heard anything from said interview, so I applied to be a barista and have loved working a few espresso catering events to fill my time.
So, Monday as I woke up from my nap, I had a text from a friend to call the owner of said company. I called--voicemail. Went to work & had the best time with the two munchkins I nanny for. They made me the sweetest cards & I was given a starbucks card and an entertainment book: what a GREAT gift idea! While at their home....
Said boss from the interview called--HIRED. BAM. BOOM. 2 MONTHS LATER. HIRED. I jumped up and down. Seriously. Called the fab 4 (Patrick, Mom, Dad, Alex). I was overjoyed. More on this job on the next post.
Came home to the best dinner ever from the best roommates ever: pulled pork. They know me too well. Chatted on the phone, had dessert with the roommates, then we danced around our dining room table.
I felt so blessed on this 22nd birthday. I love you, dear family and friends.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
A Prayer of Thomas Merton
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following Your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this You will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
Amen.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following Your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this You will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore will I trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Amen.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
best pre-birthday present ever.
This past Sunday-Tuesday was a treat beyond all treats. Because I'm not going to school right now, my mom & I had discussed taking a mini-trip together to northern California's wine country. When my roommate Amanda and her mom were on board, we booked the trip only two weeks prior to departure!
Amanda's mom had been there before and had the best place in mind to stay. It is called the Cottage Grove Inn & I recommend it to anyone and everyone. Delicious breakfast spread daily, luxurious accommodations, complimentary bicycles to ride through the countryside, wine & cheese hour daily, and the most friendly staff. Did I mention there was champagne in our room when we arrived? So fun!
We stayed in the town of Calistoga, not far from Napa & Healdsburg. We took a long bike ride through the vineyards on our first morning there, followed by lunch at a French cafe in Healdsburg that was to die to. Turkey & brie sandwich? YUM. After a filling lunch, a facial & massage sure put me to sleep. This was hands down the best birthday present I could have asked for from my parents: a getaway with my mom. Let's be honest, we could have been doing anything and I would have loved time away with her, but the fact we were somewhere so warm, beautiful & quaint was beyond perfect. Enjoy a few more pictures & book your trip. I will definitely be returning someday.
You're the best, mom.
Amanda's mom had been there before and had the best place in mind to stay. It is called the Cottage Grove Inn & I recommend it to anyone and everyone. Delicious breakfast spread daily, luxurious accommodations, complimentary bicycles to ride through the countryside, wine & cheese hour daily, and the most friendly staff. Did I mention there was champagne in our room when we arrived? So fun!
We stayed in the town of Calistoga, not far from Napa & Healdsburg. We took a long bike ride through the vineyards on our first morning there, followed by lunch at a French cafe in Healdsburg that was to die to. Turkey & brie sandwich? YUM. After a filling lunch, a facial & massage sure put me to sleep. This was hands down the best birthday present I could have asked for from my parents: a getaway with my mom. Let's be honest, we could have been doing anything and I would have loved time away with her, but the fact we were somewhere so warm, beautiful & quaint was beyond perfect. Enjoy a few more pictures & book your trip. I will definitely be returning someday.
Friday, October 28, 2011
pre-adventure to the other adventure south
I just had the most wonderful four days & I must share..
To begin, drove down to Salem on Friday night with brother Alex & his girlfriend Alexa. Saturday morning was full of fall fun--pumpkin patch: hot cider, my first (really easy) corn maze, buying a white pumpkin and wearing flannel.
Patrick & I had some hot chocolate (me) & cheesecake (him) at Konditori for over two hours. Perfect date night to end a really perfect day.
And this was all on Saturday! whew! Next post: wine country with my favorite mom.
To begin, drove down to Salem on Friday night with brother Alex & his girlfriend Alexa. Saturday morning was full of fall fun--pumpkin patch: hot cider, my first (really easy) corn maze, buying a white pumpkin and wearing flannel.
Alex & Alexa
Patrick & myself
We hurried home, where I met one of my best friends & we drove to Corvallis to have our annual birthday date with the other member of our bff trio. It is such a treat to have friends to celebrate with year after year--I love that we were all born only two weeks a part from one another. Meant to be? yes.
Check out Molly's blog for pictures of us doing what we do best: eating pizza, drinking Starbucks lattés, painting pottery (they do this best, I just copy their ideas) and chatting 'til our hearts content. And by content, I mean it'll do until next time.
Following a wonderful day, I had a great dinner with the fam at a place I always crave going back to Salem: Best Little Roadhouse.
Patrick & I had some hot chocolate (me) & cheesecake (him) at Konditori for over two hours. Perfect date night to end a really perfect day.
And this was all on Saturday! whew! Next post: wine country with my favorite mom.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
I'm back & with a list in hand...
After a (long) hiatus to blogging, I am back simply because I need a space to write things down and reference back to! And because my one faithful reader (Patrick) wants to read it. Hi, boyfriend.
My summer was really wonderful. I lived in Seattle, worked at SPU as an event coordinator, nannied and house sat for one month. When I wasn't busy busy in the city, I was at the Oregon Coast enjoying time with the family or at Younglife's Washington Family Ranch working in the store.
When not working or playing with friends and family, I was reading. A lot. I read quite a few books this summer and wanted this first post back to the blog world to be about the various books I read. Reading allows me to dive in to another world, another time and another story. With that being said, I hope my love for some of these books (and confusion for some others) inspires you to enter a new world for a while.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: a fascinating look at the depression in America and the reality of life in the circus during that time. While not based on a true story, this was a historical novel where you enter in to the life of Jacob Jankowski who joined the circus after a series of events in his personal life. Despite the nods to animal and substance abuse, this book was thought provoking and easy to dive in to. Sara Gruen paints word pictures that are easy to visualize. It didn't hurt I could picture Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson with every page I read, so watching the movie after finishing the book was a treat.
Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall & Denver Moore: wow wow wow, everyone should read this book. It was such a beautiful memoir into the real-life friendship of wealthy businessman, Ron Hall, and the homeless man he met at the Union Gospel Mission, Denver Moore. This poignant, inspiring read was about the similarities between all people, despite background, race, or paycheck. Have tissues on hand for this one.
The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins: myself and middle schoolers everywhere fell in love with this series by Collins and are eagerly awaiting the movie come March. All of my roommates have passed around these books and we will be hitting up that midnight premier when it's time. Let's get past the writing meant for a younger audience and go straight to the plot line: these books are crazy. The idea of kids entering a terrifying futuristic arena to kill one another increases my heart rate with every page turned. Knowing kids across America have picked up these books in record numbers makes me nervous. If you're wanting a quick easy read, pick up this series. Can't wait for March!
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller: Miller's writing is all over the place at times, but he looks so honestly at his own life, how can you not gain something profound from this book? After being asked to have a movie made after his life, Miller began to realize he wanted a life that was exciting to watch on film--a story worth watching. He decides to live a new story and ride his bike across America. The people he encounters along the way force him to look at his life differently. Short after this book, I, too wanted a story worth watching. A dip in Greenlake and chaos at a middle school camp rejuvenated me. For a new, honest look at your life, Miller will help point you in a new direction.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett: Like all middle-aged women in America, I fell in love with The Help. Historical fiction is always interesting and allows me to enter in to a different era and the reality that what I am reading really could have happened in a different time. The dialogue in this book was startling and forces me to constantly look outside myself in to the discrepancies still present between people. Similar to Same Kind of Different as Me, this book forces the reader to look at the world in a different way--to see the gap between people and work to bridge that. I loved that the way to bridge that gap in this book was through writing and literature. I was so excited to see the movie after finishing the book with my mom and our guys, and let me say, the movie was fantastic. I want to be best friends with Minny.
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay: If there was any book I would recommend from my summer of books it would be this one. This book satisfied my love of historical fiction (specifically World War II) and French (anything). De Rosnay wrote of the 1942 round up of Parisian Jews. Thousands were arrested, held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver (a stadium just outside of Paris), and eventually deported to Auschwitz. The book bounces back and forth from the prospective of an author living in present-day Paris and a little girl named Sarah who was arrested with her family in Paris in 1942. This book is profound and forces the reader to look at loyalties that span decades. While de Rosnay's actual story is fiction, the roundup was not fiction. Why had I never learned about this? Thought-provoking and a beautiful read. It's now on film, but first, borrow the book from my roommate, Hannah.
Passion & Purity by Elisabeth Elliot: This book is proof I was sorting through the book box at camp looking for a quick read. This was an ode to Elisabeth's late husband, Jim Elliot, who was a missionary killed in Ecuador in the 1950's. This book included beautiful, honest letters written from Jim to his future bride, Elisabeth. Overall, this book was a great reminder of what a true Christ-centered relationship looks like and how in all we do, our goal is to please Him above all else. Quite dated for a contemporary world, but beautiful and intriguing, nonetheless.
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: Let's me put this out there first: I am not in agreement with the idea of leaving one's marriage because of unhappiness to take life in a different direction. I'll be honest and say that I found the overall plot of this book incredibly selfish. However, there is definitely something to be said that travel allows you to see your life more accurately. I definitely agree that you need to get out of your everyday "going to the grocery store and bank" life, and get some perspective. What works for one doesn't always work for others. I read this book because it's wildly popular, I had seen the movie, and let's be honest, Gilbert is an excellent author. Her writing is absolutely hilarious and I was laughing through every chapter (bed buddy, Hannah, during that house-sitting time can attest to this). I found myself visualizing every instance she encountered and came to really like the main character. Not a mantra to adopt, but definitely a book worth reading.
Belle-mère by Kathleen Norris: My nose is currently in this book (and has been for 3 weeks). I found this at the outdoor book fair on our favorite coastal town during the 4th of July this summer. I bought it because it looked vintage and had a French title (mother-in-law). This book was published in 1936 and beautifully bound. After doing some research, I found that Norris was one of the most widely read and highest paid writers in America. This book, like her others, pushes the notion of a very modern woman for the time: one who is strong-minded and pushes for her own family ideals, even if they don't match the culture at large. I'm not going to lie, I want this book to be done, but considering I have the time these days to read for enjoyment, it is fun to dive in to quirky family drama from eons ago.
There you have it! A list of nearly all the books I read this summer. I'm tired from writing that, so I'm sorry if you're tired from reading it. Did I mention I'm not going to school this fall? I recently erased the four internship possibilities I had written for these three months from my four year plan (isn't that normal to have a four-year plan?) and wrote "nanny/barista/HAVE FUN!" So there you have it. I feel well.
Happy reading!
My summer was really wonderful. I lived in Seattle, worked at SPU as an event coordinator, nannied and house sat for one month. When I wasn't busy busy in the city, I was at the Oregon Coast enjoying time with the family or at Younglife's Washington Family Ranch working in the store.
When not working or playing with friends and family, I was reading. A lot. I read quite a few books this summer and wanted this first post back to the blog world to be about the various books I read. Reading allows me to dive in to another world, another time and another story. With that being said, I hope my love for some of these books (and confusion for some others) inspires you to enter a new world for a while.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen: a fascinating look at the depression in America and the reality of life in the circus during that time. While not based on a true story, this was a historical novel where you enter in to the life of Jacob Jankowski who joined the circus after a series of events in his personal life. Despite the nods to animal and substance abuse, this book was thought provoking and easy to dive in to. Sara Gruen paints word pictures that are easy to visualize. It didn't hurt I could picture Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson with every page I read, so watching the movie after finishing the book was a treat.
Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall & Denver Moore: wow wow wow, everyone should read this book. It was such a beautiful memoir into the real-life friendship of wealthy businessman, Ron Hall, and the homeless man he met at the Union Gospel Mission, Denver Moore. This poignant, inspiring read was about the similarities between all people, despite background, race, or paycheck. Have tissues on hand for this one.
The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins: myself and middle schoolers everywhere fell in love with this series by Collins and are eagerly awaiting the movie come March. All of my roommates have passed around these books and we will be hitting up that midnight premier when it's time. Let's get past the writing meant for a younger audience and go straight to the plot line: these books are crazy. The idea of kids entering a terrifying futuristic arena to kill one another increases my heart rate with every page turned. Knowing kids across America have picked up these books in record numbers makes me nervous. If you're wanting a quick easy read, pick up this series. Can't wait for March!
A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller: Miller's writing is all over the place at times, but he looks so honestly at his own life, how can you not gain something profound from this book? After being asked to have a movie made after his life, Miller began to realize he wanted a life that was exciting to watch on film--a story worth watching. He decides to live a new story and ride his bike across America. The people he encounters along the way force him to look at his life differently. Short after this book, I, too wanted a story worth watching. A dip in Greenlake and chaos at a middle school camp rejuvenated me. For a new, honest look at your life, Miller will help point you in a new direction.
The Help by Kathryn Stockett: Like all middle-aged women in America, I fell in love with The Help. Historical fiction is always interesting and allows me to enter in to a different era and the reality that what I am reading really could have happened in a different time. The dialogue in this book was startling and forces me to constantly look outside myself in to the discrepancies still present between people. Similar to Same Kind of Different as Me, this book forces the reader to look at the world in a different way--to see the gap between people and work to bridge that. I loved that the way to bridge that gap in this book was through writing and literature. I was so excited to see the movie after finishing the book with my mom and our guys, and let me say, the movie was fantastic. I want to be best friends with Minny.
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay: If there was any book I would recommend from my summer of books it would be this one. This book satisfied my love of historical fiction (specifically World War II) and French (anything). De Rosnay wrote of the 1942 round up of Parisian Jews. Thousands were arrested, held at the Vélodrome d'Hiver (a stadium just outside of Paris), and eventually deported to Auschwitz. The book bounces back and forth from the prospective of an author living in present-day Paris and a little girl named Sarah who was arrested with her family in Paris in 1942. This book is profound and forces the reader to look at loyalties that span decades. While de Rosnay's actual story is fiction, the roundup was not fiction. Why had I never learned about this? Thought-provoking and a beautiful read. It's now on film, but first, borrow the book from my roommate, Hannah.
Passion & Purity by Elisabeth Elliot: This book is proof I was sorting through the book box at camp looking for a quick read. This was an ode to Elisabeth's late husband, Jim Elliot, who was a missionary killed in Ecuador in the 1950's. This book included beautiful, honest letters written from Jim to his future bride, Elisabeth. Overall, this book was a great reminder of what a true Christ-centered relationship looks like and how in all we do, our goal is to please Him above all else. Quite dated for a contemporary world, but beautiful and intriguing, nonetheless.
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: Let's me put this out there first: I am not in agreement with the idea of leaving one's marriage because of unhappiness to take life in a different direction. I'll be honest and say that I found the overall plot of this book incredibly selfish. However, there is definitely something to be said that travel allows you to see your life more accurately. I definitely agree that you need to get out of your everyday "going to the grocery store and bank" life, and get some perspective. What works for one doesn't always work for others. I read this book because it's wildly popular, I had seen the movie, and let's be honest, Gilbert is an excellent author. Her writing is absolutely hilarious and I was laughing through every chapter (bed buddy, Hannah, during that house-sitting time can attest to this). I found myself visualizing every instance she encountered and came to really like the main character. Not a mantra to adopt, but definitely a book worth reading.
Belle-mère by Kathleen Norris: My nose is currently in this book (and has been for 3 weeks). I found this at the outdoor book fair on our favorite coastal town during the 4th of July this summer. I bought it because it looked vintage and had a French title (mother-in-law). This book was published in 1936 and beautifully bound. After doing some research, I found that Norris was one of the most widely read and highest paid writers in America. This book, like her others, pushes the notion of a very modern woman for the time: one who is strong-minded and pushes for her own family ideals, even if they don't match the culture at large. I'm not going to lie, I want this book to be done, but considering I have the time these days to read for enjoyment, it is fun to dive in to quirky family drama from eons ago.
There you have it! A list of nearly all the books I read this summer. I'm tired from writing that, so I'm sorry if you're tired from reading it. Did I mention I'm not going to school this fall? I recently erased the four internship possibilities I had written for these three months from my four year plan (isn't that normal to have a four-year plan?) and wrote "nanny/barista/HAVE FUN!" So there you have it. I feel well.
Happy reading!
Saturday, February 5, 2011
new addiction
I am here in Spokane for the weekend & similar to last week during classes when I should have been focusing, I could not get my mind off of one thing: vrbo.com
Ridiculous, I know.
This site is Vacation Rental By Owner. Now, I am not planning on jet setting on any European adventure any time soon, but a girl can dream of a chateau in the French countryside, right?
On this website, you can rent a beautiful quaint home in the country, a condo on the coast, or an apartment in a major city anywhere in the world. Needless to say, I do a lot of dreaming lately. This is making me wonder if I should plan something grand anytime soon...
any takers?
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Anthropologie, you would
The day has come! Anthro is coming out with a wedding line....check out the preview site.
It is launching on V-Day this year. How appropriate!
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