Reminiscing

Michael and I, 2005?
Dancing at the Trail Dust, 2004?
Prom Junior Year


I must admit I am one who loves to travel down Memory Lane with friends, and I do it often.
My time in Washington was filled adventures and lots of laughs, and of course reminiscing fun times in Europe this Summer. We spent times in old book stores, antique shops, Pike's Place Market in Seattle, hiking around, playing monopoly when it was too cold or dark to play outside, and of course hot-tubbing contemplating life.
Our "Quarter Life Crisis" group got together for dinner one last night while we were all in town, and I am already so thankful for these new friends!
It was such a blessing, before I left town, to hang out with Miss Katy Sims, such a dear sweet friend. I was so glad to hear she is now living back in Austin, but so happy for her experience this summer working for Feed the Hungry in Phoenix and her 2-month assignment in Bolivia. Isn't it such a neat way God works in our lives, for us to have friends through whom we see Him working?
After only being in my home town a couple nights, I have already done some good 'ole reminiscing with high school friends...Last night was filled with lots of laughs with Michael, Grace, and Sam.
Though I can get in these high-gear-busy-adult-working mode, it is nice to spend time around a fire with friends who knew and loved me in my loud-attention-craving elementary days, the awkward middle school days, the too-cool-for-school high school days, and the stressed out college days.

Lately

Lately, I have found myself more thoughtful, mostly due to my International Internship application with Young Life...I don't know why, but every time I am asked to write "my story," I have trouble, why I don't just save it on my computer, I don't know.
I am very excited about life and where it is possibly heading, as I keep my fingers crossed about certain things. I'm taking a break, however, from figuring out my future, when I go to Seattle next weekend! I'm told it will involve night skiing, hiking, and staying up late around a bonfire contemplating life. Needless to say I'm pretty pumped.
I had my first Christmas get together tonight, which involved some creative cookie decorating, mabye the worst movie with Ben Affleck, but more importantly hanging out with new friends. I'm so excited about having relationships with these sweet girls!

White Sisters

These girls were so much fun to work with! Sarah and I went abroad together this summer studying photography, so when she asked me to shoot them I was so excited! We walked up and down 6th street, and poking our heads in some alleys and playing in traffic. Haha it was challenging getting the crosswalk shots in 5:00 traffic, but here is my favorite, along with some others...

Koch Family Portraits

What a styling family! The Koch family is so sweet, and as you can see by the pics, they are so fun! We walked and drove around Austin finding some fun spots for their Urban Portrait Session.

Miss Riley

This sweetie has been in my care the last 4 days, we have so much fun together. She is at an age (9 months) where she is constantly mimicking. She crawls everywhere, can stand on her own, and took her first steps in front of me! We go on walks, where we listen to JOURNEY on my iphone...she likes to sing along as she is flirting with the runners that pass us on the trail. Here are a couple pics from our last play date!

November Portrait Day!

This November Portrait Day was a success for sure! Lots of families came out and we had alot of fun. Here are some favorites from the day...

Resting

Today I heard on the radio that only 5% of people in the U.S. take time for themselves, and most, (I forgot the actual statistic), feel guilty about it. Well, I must admit I am in the minority of this one. I regularly lay in my hammoch listening to Pandora, go on walks, hang out in book stores, or buy myself Central Market Roses.
They also made a neat application. They talked about how God doesn't ask us to rest, but commands it, and how sometimes we act like toddlers, refusing to admit we need rest, but becoming more and more fussy until we finally pass out, or are forced to rest.
Well it looks like this is one lesson I havn't had to learn the hard way :)

Oma and Macie

Such a great, relaxing, and productive weekend! They were all such troopers shooting engagement, bridals, and these cute pics in one weekend! Macie Claire is as sassy and cute as ever, and had us laughing all weekend! I was introduced to the Fort Worth Stockyards (awesome!) and enjoyed a great steak dinner! Jumping on the trampoline, roasting smores, or reading books, I came back to Austin so refreshed and excited to go through thousands of pictures :)

Silly Sisters

Another sweet day babysitting, this time for a family that I haven't seen in 18 months. And when the youngest of the 4 is, well, 18- months old, that's a big change :)
I played outside with these very imaginative playful girls on the play ground for a few hours, and they had me rolling on the ground the whole time.
As we walked from one side of the playground to the other, one of these precious girls says under her breath, "...I'm the prettiest butterfly of all" haha totally random, she is sooo funny.
As I swung her younger sister, she would sing, "Give me an 'underdog' so I can ride the pony with my chocolate bar to the fairy land where I will see Momma Mia...", this went on non-stop for about 10 minutes...again, I was trying to contain myself.

Fall Portrait Day

This previous Portrait Day went very smoothly, in spite the weather! I met some new families, and am very excited about the next one, November 14th. I'll leave you with some of my faves...

Hearing a tone while reading

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd.
I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep.
And I have other sheep that are not of this fold, I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.

Blessings

First, I'll start by saying I'm typing while wearing this festive burnt orange nail polish on, well on one hand, I'm not very good painting nails left-handed.
I have been blessed so many times this week through my position as a regular babysitter. Though sometimes I babysit because I'm stressed out financially, it is also one of the greatest sources of my Joy.
This week I was able to take a very creative and personable 3 year old to her "nastics" (Mommy and Me Gymnastics). So fun, she would hold my hand as she carefully would walk across the beam, and then run, jump, and fearlessly swing on the un-even bars. We drove home, accompanied by her imaginary friend, singing songs we made up about "nastics" and the lunch we would have. Very cute. Her mom later texted me that her daughter mentioned me while saying prays before bedtime.
Later in the week, while babysitting for another family, we mastered the "Where's Waldo" book and managed to play duck-duck-goose with only 2 people. What a sweet boy :)

My current top 10

I've sat here for the last hour trying to put it into words what I've recently learned/am learning, and can't seem to do it. I need to reflect some more. I hate that, not being able to articulate. I'm reading this book I found on a coffee table while I was babysitting, and am so glad I did because based on the cover I probably wouldn't have picked it up at Book People. Yes, I judge books by their covers.
So for now, I will leave you with my current top 10, not that that has anything to do with anything :)
* Reading this book, The Fulfillment of all Desire, on my hammock. But I need to take more notes because my mind obviously doesn't work on it's own.
* Having Christmas movie marathons. I watched Home Alone and The Grinch this week. I love getting ready for Christmas even before Thanksgiving. I was babysitting last November and we were having a dance party to Christmas music. The dad walked in and told me that was not ok before Thanksgiving, but he forgave me.
* Running outside, but not Town Lake on Saturday mornings.
* Editing photos in Caffe Medici
* Babysitting. I taught one of the boys I regularly babysit for a new song this week that made him laugh alot, and how to count to 10. I can't wait to be a mom.
* Sliding on my floors with my socks on.
* The "In Good Company" soundtrack
* Discussing philosophy with my mom, though neither one of us really know what we're talking about :)
* Job possibilities, both with people I love and involving things I love to do, pray for this!
* Traveling down memory lane

With no official full time commitments, I find myself playing playing on cs4 alot alot, this being my latest :)
With my recent return to the states, I have found I have turned over many new leafs, leaves? I like to run in the morning, I've been cooking, and am actually trusting God with my future, no matter how uncertain it is.
I feel like my thoughts are going very fast but in two oppostie directions. One being, going back to prague semi-permanently maybe through a young life internship, while the other side is getting really excited about getting my photo business going full time.
I'm praying very much fo discernment, and I'm so thankful for the Peace I have while I wait on clear direction.
It has been so great catching up with friends, seeing how the kids I've babysat have grown, getting plugged back in at Church, and seeing how Austin Bible has grown over the summer.
STUCK Bible study starts this Tue night!!

Jewish Quarter

We had a guest speaker yesterday, and on our schedule we had planned to go to the Communist museum afterward. However, our speaker announced he was on his way to a wine tasting, so with the permission of our professor, we joined him and rescheduled the museum tour :)

We went to the Jewish Quarter today, which consisted of 3 synagogues, the Jewish cemetery, and a memorial in the Jewish Museum. We had a great tour guide Michelle, who helped us with the history dating back hundreds of years before WWII, and how the horrible treating of the Jews was no new thing.

The Cemetery is not very big at all, but has 15,000 people buried there, in about 5 layers. The tombstones are obviously very crowded, with about 12,000 accounted for. We learned about the Jewish Faith, and the similarities and difference with Christianity, which was extremely eye opening for me. Though Michelle, our Jewish tour guide, was talking to our whole group, I would usually find myself standing near the front and asking so many questions that it almost turned into a one on one conversation.