Little Love is One!

 I cannot believe that little Miss Maddie Grace is one! What an amazing year it has been. She is definitely seeming more and more like a little girl and less of a baby. Shane took her birthday off and we had a family day. It was really sweet and special. We took Maddie to the zoo for her first time. She ran everywhere. The little one won't slow down. It is really cute. I love how when she gets going her left arm swings back and forth really quickly. She giggled and squealed with excitement at all of the people and animals! I made a carrot cake and we sang Happy Birthday....just our little family of three! It was oh so sweet. We love you more and more everyday Maddie!

 

Lovely weekend in San Francisco

Last weekend I took a quick trip to San Francisco to spend some time with my dear friend Cameran. She was in SF for work and is getting married in Indiana this summer. This ended up being a perfect opportunity to catch up and explore in one my favorite cities! I took the BART in from SFO and we stayed right downtown. Unfortunately I didn't take very many pictures, but here are a few of the shots I have. The weather was amazing and gave me spring fever. We walked everywhere and it was great. Thanks Cam for a fantastic weekend!

 Views of Ghirardelli Square from the water

 The Golden Gate

 Chinatown was a bustling

 Cute cafe where we had lunch in North Beach

Time with Cam wouldn't be complete without something sweet. We saw an ad for That Takes the Cake, a cupcake shop, and hunted it down for our sweet treat. It was well worth the walk. The place was adorable and the cupcakes delicious. I wish I had taken a picture of them!

Pretty Pictures

Here are a few more pictures from our trip to Michigan. It is freezing here today in Colorado!! I think I will keep dreaming of the beach. Enjoy!

A Trip to Michigan

We just got home from a fabulous time with my family in Michigan. It was so fun to play in the snow and see the water. It actually felt like winter as compared to the warm weather we've been having in Colorado. I love spending time with family and only wish we could all be together more often.

 I thought this picture of Kim and her fiance Noah was really cute. I can't wait for their wedding in May.

 It was so nice to run with Lisa, my Dad, and Shane, as well as enjoy a change in scenery.

 We took this pic right before the whole family headed out for a loop in the State Park on our cross country skis. I hadn't been on mine since last year. It definitely has me excited to get out in Colorado and use them.

 Ludington State Park

We walked downtown one afternoon and Shane did a great job of snapping these shots of some of the buildings. This is a little art gallery.

 Our local coffee house Redolencia has amazing coffee that is served fresh in a french press every time. We always seem to make it there when we are home. It's hard to resist the cozy atmosphere and cool vibe!

All in all it was a super relaxing trip. I am so thankful for family, rest and beautiful places. Some highlights included watching my Mom and Dad play their new Wii (I think my belly hurt from laughing so hard), a snowy run along the lake and out to the lighthouse, and cross country skiing at night.  I really, truly just loved all being together and can't wait until next time!

More pictures to come...

Alabama

A few pics from our pre-Thanksgiving visit with Shane's family in Alabama. We had lots of fun playing with his nephew and niece in all of the leaves on the farm!

Cozy

The snow is falling....a great time to cuddle up in a blanket with a good book, light a candle, and enjoy some good quiet time. I absolutely love Anthropologie's Sweater Weather Candle Tins and their yummy scents of winter. And, my favorite read these days is A Praying Life, by Paul E. Miller. This refreshingly honest book is enlivening my dry spirit. Below are just a few statements that Miller makes that I particularly related to...just a taste of what the book has to offer.

"If I get an answer to prayer, sometimes I'll think, It would have happened anyway."

"Come overwhelmed with life. Come with a wandering mind. Come messy."

"If you are going to enter this divine dance we call prayer, you have to surrender your desire to be in control, to figure out how prayer works."

Enjoy this lovely Sunday and be encouraged to pray. The Lord will meet you!! 

We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Romans 8:26

 

All Is New

We are officially as settled as settled gets for living in an apartment with a month to month lease, one entire bedroom stashed floor to ceiling with boxes, a porch overflowing with bikes and hopes of finding a new place to call home!! I'm not sure how long we will be here, so for now I am trying to live simply. Simply meaning with "less stuff," as well as simply embracing each day and where the Lord has us now. After living on Button Rock for 3 years, by far the longest time I have lived in any one place for quite some time, we are in a new place. In many ways it is a surprisingly refreshing change.  Although only a 10 minutes drive from where we were....all is new. I am soaking up the pastel painted evening skies from my living room window. A short walk away, wrinkled golden leaves frame a new portrait of the rocky range before me. Zipping my fleece tightly around my neck as I prepared to scrape the unwelcome frost from my car window this morning, I wondered in giddy excitement what this next season holds.