Did you THINK today...

I really like these quotes. They make you think throughout your day and we could all use that! I think we could all use a little more grace too...at least I know I do! Working on it and getting closer every day! 

until next time...

Happy Birthday Dad!!

We spent the weekend down in Sammamish for Dad's 53rd birthday! We spent the day lounging around the house and mingling. We had a bbq, opened presents and ate coconut cake from Pure Bliss! YUM!! At 5pm, we loaded up into the car and ventured to Seattle for the Sounders soccer game! If you have never been to a Sounders a game, I highly recommend you get to one! They are a blast! This particular game was our goal keeper, Kasey Keller's, last game ever... so sad! He played amazing with tons of saves. We pulled off a WIN 2-1! 


Today, I am driving Nic to Seatac as he is headed off to work in Ione for the week. This is the last trip of the season... FINALLY! 


I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! 


until next time... 

fAmiLy

I have been thinking a lot about family lately. I have an older brother with whom I am very close with. He calls multiple times for no reason at all throughout the day. Yes, sometimes it drives me crazy but when I think about it, on the days he doesn't call, I wonder where my phone call went. I think it would be really weird if he stopped calling every day! I talk to my mom almost every day and my dad once or twice a week. I don't know if that is normal or average but I like knowing that I am close to my family. My immediate family is who I have here in WA and almost all of my large extended family is in NY. I have an Uncle and two cousins in Texas. These two cousins are closest in age to my brother and I and yet I know hardly anything about them. I have four cousins in NY that are in the high school/middle school range. I feel guilty about not knowing much about their lives. It honestly makes me sad. We moved away from NY when I was nine. My extended family is very close to each other and I miss being around all of them. I always wanted to be the cool older cousins that they could come to and it is hard to come to reality and find that as much as I don't know about them... they don't know about me! I was so excited that two of my cousins came to my wedding last summer. I was crushed when the other four didn't make it. I was crushed when one of my second cousins didn't come because he and his side of the family were not getting along. I wish everyone could have been there but I understand that life doesn't always work perfectly. 

Last weekend, we were in Wenatchee visiting our newest niece. This past weekend everyone came to Bellingham for our niece Avery's baptism. This coming weekend, we are heading to Sammamish for dad's birthday. The following weekend, we are going back to Wenatchee for a baby shower. We are surrounded by family all the time and I love it! However, it is hard sometimes when we are surrounded by sister in laws, brother in laws, mother in laws, father in laws.... yes, all the in laws... and not find myself thinking about my extended family and wishing they were closer. 

Sometimes, I feel guilty that it has been two years and I haven't been back to NY. I think about all my childhood memories at each of my grandparents houses. At my mom's parents, we would run to the basement and play pool and drink orange juice and club soda just like Aunt Toni. We took our annual summer trip to Florida, all the girls and my brother. We had the big family bbq's in the summer and everyone was there. We would always go see movie's with my dad's parents and play uno out on the deck. On my birthday, my Aunt Kathy took me for mani and pedi's and my Aunt Tre and Uncle Gerard took us to all the cool places in the city and of course the Thanksgiving Day Parade! I miss being a kid but most of all I miss my family. 

I am looking forward to next year. We are planning on making a trip out to NY over Memorial Day. My brother is getting married in August and we will hopefully see EVERYONE out then. I love my family and I miss them. I am so grateful to have inherited such wonderful in laws as well! The more family the merrier!!! 

until next time...

Makes your heart melt

Emma

Emma

Avery

Mal

Emma Mallory Avery

Avery

Don't they just make you smile! I love being an Aunt!

until next time...

I believe in God

I was on my way home from small group aka bible study tonight and my radio was on praise 106.5 per usual. The song that was playing was unfamiliar to me. I have realized in church that I really enjoy the music. It is what talks to me and the words resonate inside me. I repeated the lyrics to myself as I quickly pulled up youtube. Below is the song "bring the rain" by Mercy Me... have a listen! 

It is catchy isn't it?!? I love the slides they put with it as well. It has a verse from Ecclesiastes below in the comments. The verse talks about how God has a plan for each and everyone of us. Although we may face many problems that seem to contradicts God's plan, these shouldn't be barriers to believing in him, but rather opportunities to discover that, without God, Life's problems have no lasting solutions! 
The lyrics say:
So I pray
Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that bring you glory
And I know there'll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to praise you
Jesus, bring the rain
We should lean on our faith and God even more when curve balls are thrown at us. We should not ask why me? Why would you make me go through this? But rather trust in him that all things will be okay! 
"Clouds in our lives are often sent to bring the showers of blessings"


until next time...