Happy Birthday!!!

BIRTHDAY SHOUT OUT TO TWO OF MY BESTIES. 

Rosie & Mad - I'm soooo happy you were born! I celebrate you :)

love is in the air.

i don't think i've ever been to more than one wedding in a month... or even in a couple months.. but this has been the year for lots and lots of weddings. this past friday & saturday, two of my closest friends got married! 

jeff & rose kline. - these two people are some of my favorites in the whole wide world. seriously. i'm so excited for whats in store for the both of them!!! 

jason & sydney yang. - wow. wow, wow, wow. my best friend of 22 years has gone off & fell in love. sitting at her wedding, i was balling my eyes out because i was so happy for her. we've been through a lot together and have spent countless hours with each other. our parents were pregnant at the same time with us, and so literally, since birth - we've been best friends. it's a bittersweet thing for me.. jason swept syd off her feet & now, they're both on their way to their new home in california (which leaves me here without anyone to buy target candy and play hide & seek in target with) but i know it's a good thing! 

two weddings. back to back. the best time i've had in awhile. but like i said on facebook, my diet starts tomorrow .. wait, today actually ;)

friends are friends forever..

seriously laughed really hard when i read this.... !!!

today, i was faced with the fact - a very amazing fact - that i have some of the best, quality, friends a girl could ask for. one of my closest friends, elisa, texted me, randomly, and said, "you should come over and make me some food." so i did. we had a spontaneous home-cooked meal - masala chicken with garlic aioli quinoa - great conversation, lots of good laughs and just enjoyed each other's company. and then, my other dearest friend sydney (of 21 years) wanted me to go to value village with her and so, after having a great fun, spontaneous time with one amazing friend... i did the same with another. 

you see... syd is getting hitched soon and she's going to be leaving me to become the best housewife out there. sad for me, but then again, i'm so happy for her! so tonight, i just kept thinking, "thank you jesus for such amazing friends! help me to never take these times for granted..."

so yeah, as i'm getting ready for bed (another early morning tomorrow), i'm just thinking about how blessed i am to know some pretty amazing people. and i guess, not just know them, but share life with them. community is the best. and knowing that if i were to ever jump off a bridge, my friends would come save me.. well, that's an added bonus ;) 

Meet my new friend.

"Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier." - Mother Teresa

Everyone, meet Lydia. She is literally half my size... but her kindness, her smile, her laugh, the youthfulness in her voice - is way bigger than her tiny frame. 

It was just a normal day - sat down on the bus, pulled out my book and was extremely focused on the words on the page. Until this little lady pushed her way through the crowd and plopped down on the seat next to me. At the next stop, the bus driver slammed on the breaks pretty hard and Lydia pretty much flew out of her seat... but don't worry guys, I caught her. And that's where our relationship started. She looked at me with her blue-grey eyes and just laughed. I wasn't sure what kind of response I would get for voluntarily putting my arms around her to make sure she didn't fall. I mean, we are downtown and some people would be quite angry with me for touching them, even if it was to save their lives. {weird, right?} But she laughed and whispered, "Whew.. that was close! I should remember to hold on to the bars here." We both shared a laughed and then the whole bus ride to our destination {which so happened to be the same place} we just talked.. about her life, where she grew up, what she does now, her family, her ex-husband, what she did in college, etc. 

After I took this photo of her, I asked if I could take a picture of the both of us. I told her that I wanted one to print out and put in my journal. So that every time I see it, I can pray for her. She was more than happy to take one, but before we did, she whispered to me, "Oh man, I need a perm. And to color my hair. So bad." haha. 

We ended our conversation with me giving her my number just in case she needed anything! {her son doesn't visit her much} And she gave me a huge hug. 

Some people would be overly-cautious and not give their number out to a complete stranger. But in my mind, the way I think is... she really has no one and I don't want this to be the last time I see her or have a conversation with her. If all we will ever have is that one conversation on the bus, okay, fine. But if there is an opportunity to serve her and help her with whatever, even better. 

goin' to the chapel..

today i received two bridal shower invitations in the mail. crazy. i have so many friends getting married.. actually, every month until august. yep. tis the season for love, people. 

Handwritten Sentiments.

This week has been the week for receiving fun letters & packages :) I LOVE it! Getting mail is one of my favorite things ever.
Thank you Maggie & Elisa for my lovely notes/goodies. Made my week & it's just begun!

let it snow..

today was a lovely, lovely snow day. 

my view from my kitchen window

sledding is always fun...

handstand snowman, joanna, syd & me. all with our sledding positions.

momma mary made thumbprint cookies. so, SO good!

i liked the snow on our trees in front of my house.

homemade oatmeal chocolate butterscotch cookies. delish.

while i was baking, i looked over and saw my niece just chillin... funny girl.

and after i consumed too many cookies.. i decided to go for a walk with a bag of those cookies. i wanted to hand them out to people in my neighborhood. i figured, there's no school tomorrow, people love snow, and it's still light out - there has to be people out! so i took the pup jordan out with me to fulfill that mission.

....well....

& that concludes my snow day #1. now to get some rest before my snow day #2 tomorrow =) 

keep an open home.

"keep an open heart & open home." a phrase i always want to live by. growing up, my parents had tons of different people over to our house. to talk, to eat, to sleep... company, all the time. i want to live that way when i have my own home. a huge dining room table is a must - i want to have unexpected dinner guests often! an open floor plan - it's just better that way. a big, big kitchen - that's where we all end up congregating anyway, right? might as well have a big one!