Hodge Podge Friday: I love the mailman.

Ok, Ok, maybe the mailwoman and the occasional FedEx person. I don't know if our postal worker is male or female, but I do know that I love him/her.

1. Goodies that have come in the mail in the last week and a half:

My wedding shoes :D

Three cardio, interval workouts in a box:

Inspiring snail mail:

Engagement Pictures Set 1:

Engagement Pictures Set 2:

2. A lasting utterance from this past week:

"Being disoriented is good; it causes you to stop and be still--to really sit in the presence of the Father."

- Professor Liang

3. My current state with everything that's going on:

Disoriented. Well, at least know I know it's a good thing ;). 

4. Here is one of the pictures that I took of one of my best friends, Becca, this past week:

You can see the rest here: Life With [ED]

Have a great weekend! A few more final projects, a lot more moving, and i'll be more sane by my next entry--hopefully :). 

A Series of Sweet Surprises

Summary:

Spring break.

Sweet friends.

Sleepovers.

Starling Diner.

Summery-weather in the springtime.

Sand between my toes.

Sassy, silly little girls.

A series of sweet surprises, indeed. I'm on my final spring break as a student for a while. Although I still have work, i'm doing what I can to make it feel as "spring breaky" as possible. Long Beach is a great place to be for such an occasion.


[An aside: This is my sixth year in Long Beach, and it's a place that has earned a sweet, sweet spot in my heart. I love the character, I love the people, I love the memories that I've made here. Some things have come to an end, and many things have been birthed here. Today was just a reminder of all of those things.Cheers to you, Long Beach. Thank you for being a momentous memory bank for me.]


In the midst of running around, laughing, watching kids lose themselves in their land of play and swim in mud-like sand, I found myself so, so thankful for the sweet life that I'm getting to take a part of right now. 


Here are some pictures of my friend Katy's kiddos. Friends clad in bathing suits and spending time together during the springtime made for a great environment in which to snap some shots of these sweet girls (who are growing up way too fast!). They are such reminders of what it means to be beautiful and free: 

 [The picture below CRACKS me up--I just hear thumpin' runway music playing whenever I look at Soph struttin' her stuff!]

A no-complaints Wednesday. I hope yours was just as great :).

Caley and Jordan

Six years ago, Caley met Jordan at friend's birthday party where he was DJing up a storm. Apparently Jordan wasn't just smooth with the beats because they have been together ever since. With that being said, they're making it official this coming August!


Caley's sense of humor and Jordan's cool-as-a-cucumber attitude made them a joy to work with. It's undeniable that they love each other, love laughing with each other, and have an ease with each other that's contagious. 


Here's to the future Mr. and Mrs.
[Can we say future cute kiddos??]:

Just in case you're wondering, 

those are Caley's Jimmy Choo's that are making 

a peek-a-boo appearance :)

  

 This might be one of my favorites of them:

 No, I didn't tell them to pretend to play tic-tac-toe.

 It was totally their idea :). 
Oh, and I think Caley let Jordan win.

Thanks again, you two, for letting me take your pictures. I can't wait 'til August! 

Natalie.

We were roomies. Now we're neighbors. And for the last few years, we've both gotten to share some significant life stages with each other. I love this woman, and we thought that her soon-coming graduation made for a good excuse to go to take some pictures (and to hang out!).

She exudes a life of love and has a smile to die for, and i'm certain those are evident in the pictures you're about to see:

The Adventures of a 4-Year-Old and my Microwave.

What is this, you ask?

This, friends, was the result of some creative exploration.

My friend lovely friend Rosina  and her husband came out to Long Beach today for a sonogram for their third bun in the oven. Since the appointment was near my neck of the woods, she asked if I could hang out with her two kids for a little while. Personally, I think they're some of the cutest kiddos i've ever laid eyes on, so I was more than happy to watch them for a bit. We watched Toy Story 3, they helped me grind and brew some coffee, they colored, and I loved listening to all of their little anecdotes. The highlight, by far, happened while I was drawing with Abby. I heard the microwave go off, and I asked Caleb if his pretend food was done cooking. He looked at me and said, "No, iss my cawh." I don't know if he was in the mood for some hot wheels action, but the terrified look that came across his face when the beeps came was priceless. Bye bye, car. It was melty mayhem. I tried so hard not to die laughing in front of the two kiddos, but man did I have a good laugh with Rosina and Benny when they came to pick them up. Now Caleb knows that a microwave is only for edibles--not for his favorite cars.

Just for fun, I decided to take some pictures of them while they were playing and entertaining each other. Aren't they too cute for words? 

 [ The kiddos helped me make coffee :)They wanted some proof, so they could show off to their mama ]

I know, you're probably ooo-ing and aahhh-ing about how ridiculously good looking these two lil ones are. I had so much fun, and I think it would be safe to say that they did too :). I can only imagine what kind of memories are going to be made once baby #3 comes around.
Rosina and Benny, you are great parents with some equally fantastic children. 

Hodge Podge Friday: Life isn't about compartments.

So what's Hodge Podge Friday's, you ask? Well, let me tell ya. It's going to be a project--a mixed bag of goodies. You'll never know what you're going to get, but I hope that you'll leave with something you can take along for yourself :). You'll get anything from a mix of new recipes, a new DIY project, some random or not-so-random photography, musings on life, musical recommendations, etc... 


Friday posts may have no rhyme or reason to them, but I'm going to embrace that. One of my goals this year is to do what I can to break away from a compartmentalized life. Life isn't about compartments--it's about experiencing it in whole. Who's with me?

Stay for a little while, stay for the whole time, it's your call!

Come along now:  

#1: Roomie Pizza-making Date

I love my roomie, but we hardly get time to hang out. Our schedules are polar opposites of each other's. She gets to see her man during the week, and I get to see mine on weekends, so that adds to our shortage of hang time. We set some time aside to make some delicious pizzas. I was too hungry to take legit pictures. 

It's too bad I can't take pictures of what my taste buds experienced:

[Butternut Squash and Rosemary and 

Pesto Salad Pizza (If you want this recipe, leave me a comment!]

#2: My Roomie loves Terrariums, and so do I!

She works down the street from the LA flower mart, 

so went nuts with succulents, stones, and our vases.

See?

#3: Don't take for granted a good chocolate chip oat cookie recipe.

Here's why:

It took a lot of willpower not to eat these 

little beauties for breakfast (Ok, I had one). These are best a little warm, so eat them fresh or throw them into the microwave for a few seconds.

What You'll Need:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1/2 cup butter or margarine (a stick)

1/2 cup granulated sugar (I always use a little less than what the recipe calls for)

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup rolled oats

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease 3-4 baking sheets.

2. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into mixing bowl. Set aside

3. With an electric mixer, cream together butter or margarine and the sugars. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy (TIP: If your butter isn't room temp, slice it up into pieces and microwave for 20 seconds)

4. Add flour and beat on low speed until well blended. Stir in rolled oats and choc chips. Drop heaped teaspoonfuls on baking sheets, spacing dough about 1 inch apart. 

5. Bake for about 15 minutes (depends on oven power) until just firm around the gue but still soft to the touch in the center. With a slotted spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.

Makes 60

Recipe taken from Cookies by Hilaire Walden

#4: On a Mission: Collecting

I love going to thrift stores and finding super deals

on super things. Well, i'm collecting amber or yellow-colored glasses, vases, etc. Why? Well, stay tuned :).

 These two are my newest finds.

#5: The Feed Store, in Long Beach, CA.

 If you live in Long Beach, CA, checkout The Feed Store on Retro Row. It's the newest, vintage-thrift store whose proceeds go to providing food and other necessities to those in need. They have everything from clothes to home goods.

I found some cute doilies to craft with: 

 #5:Know that you're loved and have the capacity to love others.

There's a Love that's beyond words, beyond feelings, and beyond your wildest dreams. It's not fleeting. It's eternal. It's hopeful. In it there is joy and peace.

"Oh, how He loves us."

Thanks for comin' along for my first Hodge Podge Friday. I hope you come back and visit really soon. Have a great day :).