sometimes it's nice to look back and remind yourself of the good that the Lord has brought into your life. every year is full of so many blessings...2013 was no different. it wasn't easy, but that doesn't take away from the ups.
^ snow can beautify just about anything.
^ ...it gave us ample opportunities to make snow angels...maybe too many opportunities, like in may :)
^ celebrated this guy's birthday. he's my favorite. plus, it gives us a reason to party in february :)
^ roadtripped countless hours across the country in a lot of directions. (consequently, drank a lot of coffee and listened to a lot of audiobooks.)
^ visited these gentlemen in south dakota for my first time. (wanted to climb across it like they do in "north by northwest" with epic music booming, but couldn't make it happen. shucks.)
^ climbed a snowy mountain and left a glove behind in memorial (and almost stayed on the peak from exhaustion. you should really prepare for these types of things. hah.)...
^ ...with my friend manny.
^ revisited & met wonderful family.
^ drove through a lot of cute little old towns (who doesn't love those?).
^ college friends + andy's. perfect.
^ celebrated my birthday with more family. and ate some awesome cake.
^ [tried to] fly a kite. narrowly missed hugging several trees. (a reason to rejoice!)
^ ate way too much cook-out food and ice cream bars with some lovely friends.
^ thought a lot about texas and how wonderful it is to be texan. :)
^ thoroughly enjoyed spring...once the snow finally melted.
^ couldn't get enough spring color. this is where the sentiment of frolicking originates. how can you not?
^ enjoyed so many rainstorms and fabulous sunsets and trips to the farm. (also was amused by solomon the sheep running around and pretending he was alternately a dog, or a cow, or a pony, depending on the day.)
^ made him pose :)
^ found a REALLY big tree at an old army fort.
^ got one-upped by dan in the tree department.
^ loved these cute little fuzzy ponies. (who can resist a fuzzy pony??)
^ celebrated my beautiful grandma's 90th birthday. (grandpa turns 90 in just over a week!)
^ found this lovely ashley in the ozarks. and enjoyed how much branson always just has its special branson flavor, no matter how much the tourist traps change.
^ celebrated grandpa & grandma's 71st anniversary. they. are. awesome.
^ loved chester, like always. he has turned me into a collie lover.
^ checked another few state capitals and capitols off our list (this quite goldish one is in charleston, wv.)
^ saw a lot of rainbows and remembered that they are a promise of God's compassion and redemption.
^ rejoiced in this.
^ spent the fourth of july in america's oldest colonial town and celebrated being american. which of course meant parades, fireworks, and lots of sousa. yeah, man.
^ explored the first settlement in jamestown (complete with colonial chickens).
^ drove a lot. (and through a lot of tunnels and under bridges.) (for the record, avoid the tunnel under the potomac. if you're claustrophobic...it's no bueno. but i survived. so that's the upside.)
^ climbed a lighthouse. left behind my sunglasses as a memorial. i like memorials :)
^ found this chère amie on the east coast.
^ had a fantastic wedding for such good friends. marriage is so fun.
^ LOVED the coast. as always. love love love.
^ frolicked at the beach and almost fell in the ocean from sheer bliss.
^ checked off a lot more states that needed to be visited. (for the record, delaware was kind of a favorite.)
^ loved the mountains of west virginia on a cloudy morning.
^ drove through the district and pouted a bit for not being able to stop and see some sights.
^ visited guns... and cried a lot a lot. but in a way that you need to once in a while. has it really been nearly two whole years since i heard from him?
^ observed the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknown soldier... and was so grateful for tradition & respect & formality.
^ showed mom & dad around ol' linc and our funny capitol. and ate some stellar indian food.
^ read a lot of great books (manny, too).
some favorites of the year:
- kisses from katie, by katie davis.
- hotel on the corner of bitter and sweet, by jamie ford.
- escape from camp 14, by blaine harden. (this book is about north korea & is mind blowing. you should read it.)
- isaac's storm, by erik larson.
- miss morissa, by mari sandoz.
- theodore roosevelt's darkest journey: the river of doubt, by candice millard. (i probably shouldn't have read this until after i visited the amazon, because now i might be a bit scared of its terrifying and myriad bugs.)
^ saw so many amazing sunsets that i probably took more fotos of those than anything else.
^ loved flowers as much as ever. (i'm such a girl.)
^ entertained dan by taking yet more pictures of my favorite tree at the lake. and feeding the fat white duck that is so different from all the others.
^ picked a lot of fruit. om nom nom.
^ went to cavalry ball with this guy... who had to wear that hat that he just LOVES.
^ went to the wedding of my lovely friend andrea.
^ found more old friends, like my favorite sweet amelia.
^ i think i detect a theme... the bielefelds + andy's. must be something really good :)
^ went to the fair and pet some camels and ponies. and got a HUGE bag of cotton candy. (why else do you go to the fair?)
^ looooooved fall color. i think i'm making up for lost time by being from west texas and equating fall with brown.
^ learned how to make wild plum jam. (jelly? jam? what's the difference? epic goodness is all that i know.)
^ reveled in a harvest that i didn't have to plant but still got to enjoy fresh from farms. (for the record, the watermelon tasted like a cucumber that was a year old, so that was not so bounteous. you can't win 'em all.)
^ got another lovely sister when mike & natalia got married in september.
^ finally got to see my favorite emily again. hannah?
^ symphonied. and almost decided to move into the lied center so i could hear it all the time.
^ flew into spokane via denver during gusty winds across the us. my ginger ale and i enjoyed it immensely, let me tell you.
^ drank a lot of coffee with my little 95-year-old grandma (who has since turned 96).
^ took a lot of fotos of washington. because i could.
^ found this gem from chile of my aunt & uncle playing with their pet monkey and macaw. i'll take a monkey!!
^ took a picture with my grandma for the first time since i was 11.
^ got everyone (dan's parents, siblings, and kids) together in the same room, at the same time, for a picture. miracles never cease :)
^ took pictures with my favorite little sister and tried to position myself to break her fall in the event that such precautions were needed... (they were not.)
^ met the newest person in the sandoz family.
^ got a bunch of crazy mugs for christmas with my family.
^ took a lot of fotos. maybe not as many as i could have, though.
^ went on a wintery walk with these guys (and dan).
looking back over how good my life is reminds me of luke 12:48:
"for everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required..."
i am beginning the new year knowing that my blessings are not for me only. i am praying that i will start to learn this year how to be more of a blessing to others, in much bigger ways than before. and to actively trust God much, much more than before. i think the power of God is often lacking in life because i simply don't ask or expect. that can change.
happy 2014!
