California: Day 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Birthday day! 

We woke up early and drove over to Herbivore (for the second time in three days!) for a big birthday brunch followed by a drive into the city. JP brought me to the bench at the highest point of Delores Park and we sat and overlooked the big and beautiful city. It was a gorgeous day in San Francisco. 

That afternoon we went to Union Square to go ice skating. It was JP's first time ever ice skating and one of my birthday wishes to go. So, JP made it happen and it was so much fun! It turns out that John-Paul is quite the professional skater. I'm sure we'll be seeing much more of him on the ice. 

We headed back to our hotel and changed into our fancy birthday outfits and headed to Millennium, a beautiful new vegan restaurant in SF where JP had made dinner reservations. Oh my goodness. As they walked us to our table there was a huge display of roses on the table, all a part of JP's secret birthday plans, and only the beginning of an incredible birthday weekend.

California: Day 2

Day two was declared a lazy day upon waking up. JP made breakfast for us; a scramble with tofu, soy chiroso, black beans, and homestyle potatoes. The rest of the afternoon was spent laying around reading and watching hockey games. Before picking up burritos for dinner, JP and I raced out to see the sunset over the mountains along one of his cycling routes. A beautiful end to a relaxing low-key day. Birthday festivities were planned to begin early the next morning, so we certainly needed our rest!

Notes: Giving It All I've Got

Notes: Giving It All I've Got

Yesterday morning at NewSpring, Perry opened up with asking us to pray a simple prayer, "Lord, speak to my heart this morning". Perry went on to speak about how, as believers we are to always be maturing in Christ, we are to intentionally be pursuing Christ.
Below are some of my personal notes (in italics), along with the sermon outline (in bold):

A growing relationship with Jesus is intentional, not accidental!

 - Mark 12:30   - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all you mind and with all your strength." To love God with all of your strength - when this feels like a struggle, ask God to manifest His strength through you.
 - Many times we pray so that we about something so that we don't feel the need to obey.


Two Myths that Can Keep Us Stuck:

Myth #1: I'm great right now!

 - Philippians 3:10-14   - Paul writes, "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death."
 - 1 Corinthians 10:31   - "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."

Myth #2: God will never ask me to do anything difficult.

 - Luke 22:42   - Jesus prays on the Mount of Olives, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."
 - Luke 9:23 - God calls us to take up our cross daily and to follow Him.
 - Acts 22:16   - "And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name."
 - James 5:16   - "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for eachother so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."
 - 2 Corinthians 6:2   - "For he says, 'In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.'"


There is always another step closer to God. The reason God asks us to take, what may seem as uncomfortable or difficult "next steps", is so that He can point out and cut out the toxic areas of our lives that will harm us otherwise. Exodus 8:8-10 Pharaoh didn't handle the problem when he should have, his heart became hardened. Often we look to God and ask for what's next when we don't want to take the "next step" that He has already laid before us.

Although the Lord may ask for us to take an uncomfortable next step, it is always for His Glory, which is our constant encouragement and security. Our Lord is sovereign, constantly loving and forgiving each of us. What an encouragement knowing that our Lord, the Creator of the universe has laid out a path before each of His children, loving and protecting them each along the way.

God is always God. God is always good. To God be the glory.

California: Day 1

After sleeping in a bit, JP and I went out for a delicious breakfast at Herbivore. Tofu scramble for him, french toast and blueberry cornbread to share. We then went for a walk around Berkeley and grabbed a cinnamon roll topped with lemon icing and blackberries at Cinnaholic. With full bellies, JP whisked us away to the Golden Gate Bridge. I was a little child jumping with excitement and smiling so much that my cheeks hurt. It was the most beautiful and wonderful day for a visit to the GGB. We walked across the big red bridge and took pictures galore. These were definitely some of my most treasured moments from the entire trip.

Return

Long time, no chat, right? Let's get things rolling.

The last few months have been a whirlwind. Spending a few weeks in Indiana (the longest consecutive time spent at home since moving to SC) with my family, was a great blessing. I had the opportunity to grow closer with those who I typically only get a few days out of the year to spend time with. The first week of January was spent in California with my best friend, John-Paul. It was the most wonderful trip and I can't wait to write about each day and share a few photos here!

Alas, winter break has come to an end and a new semester has just begun. Sometimes I find myself more focused on (and/or overwhelmed by) my "Grad School Prep List" than enjoying this season that I am currently in. A season to learn and love more, enjoy, and appreciate all of the people and opportunities I am blessed with.

Today is for reading a non-textbook book, writing cards, and packing gifts for a few very dear people with upcoming birthdays (!!!!!).

I hope you're enjoying this quiet Sunday as well.

First Day of School Dress

If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter you may have heard me mention a little something about my very first sewing project (with a machine, that is). I’m still pretty excited about it and can’t believe I made it (well, my mom helped… a lot!) with my own hands! It was also such a great experience to learn how to use the sewing machine and share that time with my mom, doing something that she has a passion for as well. I wore the dress for the first time last week on my first day of school. I have decided that I now need 6 more, in various colors of course, so that I can wear one each day of the week. It is just that fantastic.

1. Patterns, 2. Fabric, 3. Sewing, 4. Deciding the hem length, 5. Final touches, 6. The first day of school!

I'm already looking forward to my next sewing project!

-K

It's been good

Summer break is officially over and school is now back in session. The last few weeks have been some of the best. I spent a couple weeks in Indiana with my family, went to the State Fair, learned to sew, visited friends, baked, and ate the most delicious food.
 

I cannot believe summer is over! It has been one of the best ones yet. I won’t lie – I’m pretty darn excited about this school year though. It’s already off to a wonderful and fresh start. I’m looking forward to all that’s in store!

-K

A quick "hello!"

Hello from the great Midwest!

I've been visiting my family in Indiana for the past few days and it has been so nice! Especially now that summer classes are over, it feels like a huge weight has been lifted and I now have all this free time that I just don't know what to do with myself! I have quite a lengthy (and growing by the hour!) list of things I want to learn, make, do, try, go, eat, see, read, etc. within the next week or so.

I began reading Emily Giffin's book, "Something Borrowed" the night I arrived in town and so far it's pretty good! I've been looking forward to reading her books for awhile now, so I'm excited to finally have one almost finished. I also purchased my very first (or 4) dress patterns yesterday! Today my mom and I picked out the perfect fabrics for a couple of them. Tomorrow I'll get started on the sewing! I'm so excited to make my very own first-day-of-school dress!

-K

Busy busy!

[1] Beau, [2] Sugar, [3] Grandparent's field, [4] Beau and I early in the morning

[1] Harry Potter with Matthew, [2] Hello!, [3] Pretty new Pyrex bowl, [4] Mochi, walnuts, blackberries, and raspberries

[1] View from the house my dad and brother stayed, [2] Matthew and Dad, [3] Dad and I, [4] Blueberry pie

These past couple of weeks have flown by. It's too bad, because they were so wonderful. I would have liked for them to have lasted so much longer! My dad was asked to play in a three-day-long golf tournament (he came in second place!) in Asheville, so I soaked up as much time as I possibly could with him and my little brother. A few days later I went to Georgia to spend a little bit of time with G. It had been over a month since we last saw each other! It goes without saying that it was definitely great to see him. I was also able to finally meet his band-mates and Vanessa. It was a little funny feeling at first, because we all knew of each other, but had not truly met before. But, everyone was very sweet and it was a good time! After the guys' show I drove a little further south to spend the weekend with my grandparents. They live out in the country and have the most beautiful dogs who kept me company during the morning-time while my grandparents were out and about. It was quite a wonderful few days!

See- these past two weeks have been busy(-ish)! This is the last week of summer classes and then I will be spending the rest of my summer break in Indiana with my family! More on that later.

-K

The Blueberry Festival

This past weekend, there was word of a blueberry festival at the Roper Mountain Science Center. Blueberries AND science? Count me in! My friend Aaron and I met up bright and early for what was sure to be a delicious learning experience. And learn we did. Who knew that the pre-historic ground sloths were three times as tall as Aaron? I sure didn’t. 

It was hotter than blue blazes (I learned that phrase this past week. Thanks Grandma!) and ever so humid. Oh, sweet South Carolina in the summer. The science center is in an old school building with exhibits in all of the classrooms and on the surrounding land, there is a mock colonial settlement. There were demonstrations, samples of blueberry concoctions, pilgrims playing music, etc. in and around the entire “settlement”. You know, like any other blueberry shindig. It was a blueberry festival success.

-K

Summertime iPhone photos [image heavy]

We've had so many wonderful times and adventures over the past two months and there is still more fun to be had over the next month and a half before school begins. I'm so excited!

-K

Vegetables in bread?

A couple of weeks ago I figured I would attempt making zucchini bread for Garrett when he came to visit. I had never tasted this strange vegetable bread before, so I approached it with great hesitancy. On my first attempt, I split the recipe in half and baked two small loaves; one loaf for Garrett and one for my friends and I. As soon as I took the loaves out of the oven, I dropped the majority of one loaf on the floor, so I was left with a small taste of what hadn't fallen on the floor and I hoped that the other loaf tasted alright. 

Fast forward a week and I decided it was time to attempt this strange yet tasty bread again. Well, I believe that zucchini bread is my new favorite thing. On top of the deliciousness of this bread, it has 1-2 whole zucchini in it, so it must be healthy, right?!

 I used this recipe with a few modifications, which I've noted below.

Zucchini Bread

2 cup grated zucchini
1/3 cup water
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil  

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce 

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon baking soda 

1 1/2 teaspoon salt
3 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Mix wet ingredients into dry and fold in. Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.

 Yum.

-K

A wonderful visit

Thursday morning Garrett drove up to Greenville from Savannah (and then back to the SC coast that night!), so that we could spend the day together before he leaves for tour in a couple of weeks. It was such a great day!

Twelve Bones bbq for lunch in Asheville, NC

left: Chipotle for dinner in Greenville, SC. right: my book purchase from the bookstore

*I may have stolen a couple of these photos from Garrett. Shh!

- K

Cinnamon Toast

I've spent my whole life eating cinnamon toast the WRONG way. I had no idea until this woman brought it to my attention and I'm thankful she did. So, the following morning I tried cinnamon toast the RIGHT way (according to her, soon to be me, and probably you too). Oh my goodness! Who knew such a nice and simple treat could have such potential?!

You need to try this, seriously.

Cinnamon Toast - The Right Way (adapted from The Pioneer Woman, you can find the original recipe here)
*I altered the recipe to a single serving, replaced and omitted a couple items.
 
2 slices of whole wheat bread
1 Tbsp. Earth Balance, Softened
1/2 Tbsp. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir to completely combine the Earth Balance with a sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.

Spread onto slices of bread, covering the entire surface, all the way to the edges.
Place the bread on a cookie sheet and bake for 3 or so minutes (I honestly didn't pay much attention to the time, but it was much less than her suggestion of 10 minutes).

Turn the broiler on and broil until golden brown and bubbling (be careful not to let it burn!).

Remove from oven and enjoy!

How simple is that?

Ooops

How did I forget about the photos from the end of the year picnic?! It's so strange that the school year ended two months ago and now we (amongst the group of us in the photos) are spread all across the country for the summer. Matt and Beth are married now (!!!) and living in Virginia, Blair and I are in South Carolina, Raul is in New Mexico, and Betsy is splitting her summer between Honduras and Washington. Here are photos from our picnic, before I forget about them again.

Fall's Park

Raul and Betsy

Bethany and Matt. Matt had just returned from an internship where he spent the entire semester away in Virginia. We were all  pretty happy see him (especially Bethany)!

Don't be fooled. Blair was having the time of her life.

Betsy, myself, Bethany, and Blair.

Another picnic is coming up this weekend. I just love summer picnics. If it were up to me, we would have picnics each and every day.

-K