In Review

2011 was quite a busy years. Babies were born!!! Interestingly, all the babies born into my life this year were boys.

 

I played with friends.

 

Enjoyed our last family vacation as five in St. Joe, Michigan.

 

 

Spent some quality time in The District with my college roomie & bestie:

 

 

A couple of my favorite, dearest friends finally got married, and Kaye & Chad’s wedding was gorgeous:

 

Enjoyed my hometown, rediscovering our amazing zoo, having my artwork hung (and sold!) at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, and becoming a devoted patron of such fabulous places as Firefly, Yum-Mees Bakery, the Acme Bar & Grill, Club Soda and Cocktails:

 

 

Displayed & SOLD at FWMoA:

 

       

 

Oh yeah, and my little sister got married, giving me another brother!!!  Here are Andrew & Maria, and my little brother, Zach, and I:

  

Lastly, I spent a few days in Manhattan, enjoying the Christmas sights and sounds of New York City with my aunts.  Here’s a teaser, but more on all that, later:

The year ahead is bringing a job promotion, a few exciting weddings, and some special graduations. I’m going into the new year with the hope that it is far better than this past one. Blessings to you all, and thanks for your continued faithfulness in following my sporadic posts!

 

Senior Shoot: Melissa

And, my favorite:

Giving Thanks.

I don’t have a perfect life, or even my ideal life for that matter, but I am so grateful for all the ways in which I’ve been blessed. I have a job while many of my fellow citizens still do not. It’s a steady job with fantastic co-workers, and though it doesn’t pay much, I’m thankful to be working with people who genuinely care about their co-workers and their clients. My parents are graciously allowing me to live with them rent-free; I recently realized, when going over my finances, that if my parents weren’t letting me live with them, I’d probably be homeless or living in a shelter. I’m so thankful for a family that loves me and supports me and enjoys having me around. I’m grateful for relatively good health, for the generous, funny, and compassionate people of Triple Pointe Church, and for my dear friends, near and far, who continue to maintain relationships with me despite the distance. I’m blessed by a God who continues to love me despite my fickleness.

Now, on to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and Papa’s slow-roasted turkey, and real mashed potatoes and Nana’s pies and naps and hauling up the Christmas decorations. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. You may not have everything you want, but you probably have everything you need.

Happily Ever After: Kaye & Chad

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Chapter = New Bedroom

I shared a room with my sister for about 20 years. We haven’t redecorated since Maria & I were little, and I’m not really a huge fan of pink. Maria got married over the summer and moved out. It made me quite sad to have her suddenly gone from our little room. I didn’t think to take “before” pics until we moved out her furniture, but oh well…

 

…aaaaaaand after:

My walls received a coat of light sage paint and thick white curtains nicely diffuse the natural light from my awesomely large window. Since these photos were taken, I have found a chocolate brown bed skirt to replace the bed skirt from two bedding sets ago, and taken Mom & Dad’s old armchair and put it to the left of my bookcase. Which brings me to my bookcase: I love it.

 

 

My room is now my little oasis. I can’t afford to have my own place, but I at least have a little retreat that feels like I belong there. I smile when I walk in, and I’m smiling when I leave. Remarkable what a coat of paint and some re-designing will do. It’s also nice to have my easel next to my bed for those middle-of-the-night wake-ups when I can’t fall back to sleep.

New Addition to the National Mall

 

 

 

 

 

A Visit to the Pen of the Declaration

It’s the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, in case you’ve never heard him referred to as “The Pen of the Declaration”.

Valley Baby

She is a deep thinker, a child prodigy of sorts with an abundance of knowledge and eloquence.  She is a writer, a poet, and spins words on paper as easily as she speaks them.  She is fiercely loyal, compassionate, and a great listener.  She is also a science fiction-fantasy junkie, which is part of what balances the remarkable woman with childlike fun.  She is Valerie, one of my dearest friends, whose life I celebrate today: her birthday.

Maria Flower

My little sister’s birthday is today.  She was an adorable baby, and always very happy, even early in the morning.

I’ve always been blessed by Maria and thankful to have her in my life.  She got married this summer, and it’s made me quite reflective on our past and our relationship.  I wouldn’t be able to laugh at myself if it weren’t for her.  She introduced me to The Civil Wars and Missy Higgins and Jon McLaughlin.  She shares my passion for 90′s pop culture.  We’ve never been able to share clothes because, well, she is a teeny, tiny person and I am a solid, curvaceous person.  That’s okay, because we’ve shared friends and laughter and tears and we’ve made an abundance of great memories together.  Today, she turns 24, and it’s strange because while she is younger in age, I feel she is more “grown up” than I am.  Regardless, I am so blessed by the gift I was given 24 years ago in my little sister, and I wish her an abundance of all of the great things life has to offer.  I love you, Mimi!!!

*Kristen, I’m pretty sure you took this, and it’s one of my favorite shots from that day, so thank you!

A Wish Tree

I’m really terrible at 3D art, so I have a deep appreciation for art that is interactive.  My new favorite piece is The Wish Tree by Yoko Ono (yes, that Yoko Ono).  Visitors to the sculpture garden at the Hirshhorn in Washington, DC can write down a wish and tie it to a tree branch.  When the tree gets full to a certain degree, the wishes are taken down and sent to Ono’s Peace Tower in Reykjavik, Iceland.  I like to think that she reads each one, but that may just be a peculiar optimistic view.  Regardless, it’s a whimsical piece of art with beautiful tags in a variety of languages, from the silly wish to the heartwarming wish to the sad wish, and I could have spent hours there reading each one.