Saturday, March 30, 2013

Happy Birthday Dad

Today is my dad's birthday. My dad is awesome. Like, if you look up the word "awesome" in the dictionary, you will find his name there. So today, in honor of him and his birthday, I am going to share some old-ish pictures with you and tell you about him.

 He loves his family. And honestly, he is a really sweet guy. I have always like the poem "Footprints" (read it here) and one day he came home with a key chain for me that had footprints on one side and these words on the other: "My precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only on set of footprints, it was then that I carried you." 

 He's a really fun (and funny) guy. 

 He loves my mom a lot. He made the above arrangement one Valentine's Day for her.

 Whether it's ice skating, hiking, fishing, snowball fights, playing a video game or board game, horse back riding, or really anything else, he's always game to do new (and old) stuff with us kids.  

 He is incredibly supportive. In the above picture, I was riding my first horse for the first time and he was right beside me in case I needed him. He has spent countless hours helping me with algebra and geometry, and has never once complained. He is the type of dad who is very supportive, but lets you be your own person and make your own decisions. 

He has taken me on so many adventurous. To the Czech Republic, to Kenya, to Amsterdam, to Germany. He has given me a love of traveling, and I am not sure if I should love him or hate him for that since I don't want to stay home now.... :)

He isn't afraid of what others think. He loves the Lord with all of his heart, and isn't afraid to share his faith. He is such a good example to me and so many others of what following Christ should look like. He isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but neither is anybody else. 

 My dad is loyal. My dad is smart. My dad is handsome. My dad is funny. My dad is loving. My dad is helpful. My dad is awesome. My dad is adventurous. My dad is sweet. My dad is cool. 
And I am beyond blessed to have him for a dad. 

 So dad, happy birthday. I hope you have a fantastic day, and that in the next year you will continue to have awesome adventurous and grow in Christ even more. Thanks for being my dad. I love you! 

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

21 things I am thankful for today

    

  1. hot pink toenails
  2. sunshine
  3. lush green grass
  4. Sabrina's brown eyes
  5. daffodils
  6. spring beauties
  7. dandelions
  8. daisies
  9. soft golden fur
  10. pouring rain
  11. thunder
  12. grandparents
  13. silly cats
  14. chocolate
  15. running
  16. blisters
  17. the feeling of being clean
  18. flip-flops
  19. sleeveless t-shirts
  20. blue skies
  21. white, fluffy clouds

Monday, March 25, 2013

Happy Birthday Grandma!

 Today she turns 78 years old. But she is not old. In fact, she is one of the youngest "old" people I know. She walks anywhere between 2 and 5 miles a day on our dead end road. And by "walks" I mean I-have-to-run-to-keep-up-with-her-type-of-walk. 

She used to be a nurse. I remember playing nurse at her house and she would fold the hat thingys (for lack of a better word) for me and my cousin. I thought that was pretty much the coolest thing ever. 

In 1956 she married my Grandpa. Theirs is an amazing example of what marriage should look like. 

She is incredibly hardworking. I don't think she even knows what the word "rest" means. If she isn't working inside, then she is working outside. I think she thrives on being busy. 

She loves her kids and grandkids, and they adore her. 

I could literally go on for hours telling stories from my childhood and telling you how amazing and strong she is, but I don't have time. So instead, I will just say this. Thank you, Grandma, for being such a wonderful role model for me and so many others. Thank you for being you. Thanks for being my grandma. Thank you for helping to give me a wonderful childhood. And thanks for putting up with Grandpa and showing all of us kids what marriage should look like. 
You are my hero. 

Happy Birthday, Grandma. I love you! 

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Thankful Saturday

I love reading my cousin Lindy's blog, "Life With Open Hands". (Go check it out here) I especially love her "Thankful Thursdays." So much so, in fact, that I decided to do something very similar on here. But mine probably won't be every week and they probably won't be on Thursdays. But I will still be telling you of the things I am thankful for that particular day. So. Without further ado, let us begin.


  • new makeup products and tools



  • rain on the barn roof
  • sleeping in
  • watching Duck Dynasty while eating breakfast
  • running four miles
  • flowers




  • getting almost everything done on my list for today
  • projects completed
  • a clean (rearanged) room
  • pictures that turn out worse than you hoped but better than you expected (I was going for the whole drops-of-water-frozen-in-mid-air look. Okay for a first try I guess.)


  • being able to text your brother whenever you feel like it
  • feeling like you have a lot to do but not being overwhelmed by it
  • a girl-afied bathroom


  • a warm house
  • endorphins
  • my dog's brown eyes
  • God's love
  • laughter
  • daffodils and puppy calendars



  • The End. Have a great day folks.


    Sunday, March 10, 2013

    my latest and greatest buys

    I went into town the other day and (surprisingly) didn't buy much. But what I did buy was well worth the money. 

     I have needed a black sweater for....a long time. This one I found at Walmart for $5. Great deal, right? And while it doesn't look that great in the picture, it is actually super cute and comfy.

     I found these Brash stilettos for $20 at PayLess Shoes. And after wearing them all evening to the Spring Formal last night, I have to say that they are probably the most comfortable high heels I have ever worn.  
     I love the sparkles!! They just make me happy :)

     I was in desperate need of new foundation, and I got this Maybelline for $5.94 at Walmart. So far I am super happy with it. It goes on really nice and light, seems to stay on (all day) very well, and it doesn't make my face feel like it is coated in paint. 

    After I went for a run in the rain last week and wore my black sweatshirt, my mother strongly encouraged me to get a bright running jacket of some sort. I got this Danskin Now for $9.96 at Walmart (surprise). I. love. it. It's so light and comfy and pretty! 

    I also got two bottles of nail polish (which I neglected to take a picture of), some eye shadow applicators, and a bottle of hair gel. Over-all, I am happy with what I got and how (relativity) little I spent. Now I just have to figure out where else I can go in my sparkly stilettos....

    Thursday, March 7, 2013

    5 reasons why having a running partner is a good idea

    When my cousin's wife first texted me to see if I wanted to start running together, the first thought that crossed my mind was "I am going to die. She used to run marathons before she had kids. I am going to die."


    We just started running last week and have run two times so far. And I have only almost died once. That was on our first run. Note to self: do not try to keep up with an ex-marathoner. Yesterday we ran 2.8 miles total (ran 1.4, walked for a tiny bit (aka, like 2 minutes) and then ran back). I was really, really happy with that. It took me 32 minutes, but I am not going to complain about it. I finished and that's all that matters.


    Having a running partner is a.ma.zing. I would highly recommend that if you have any interest at all in working out (or working out more), get an exercise partner. Here are my top 5 reasons why.

    1) It's fun. You can talk to them, you can swap stories of how painful the day after a workout was, you can talk about nutrition, etc, etc. 

    2) Your ego gets involved. I would have never gone and run that far if Jordyn hadn't been there. I would have been like, "eh, nah. I am good at half a mile". 

    3) They make you go. Having a workout partner (and a set time that you will do your workout) makes sure that you actually get that workout in. You know that you need to meet at a certain time at a certain place, and that they will be counting on you. There is no way that I would have gone running yesterday if I hadn't known that Jordyn would be at my place at 11 o'clock to run. Why? Well, the weather was........kinda nasty.  And in nasty I mean rainy and windy and cold. 


    4) They help change stuff up. Changing up your workout keep both your mind and your body from getting bored. However, sometimes it gets boring to change a workout for yourself. So having someone who can bring new routines in is a great help.

    5) They keep you motivated. Jordyn finished her run before I finished mine, and then she came back to run the last little bit with me. And she assured me that it's not how fast you run, it's that you finish. 

    And that, my dear friends, is why having an exercise partner is a great idea. 

    Friday, March 1, 2013

    sunshine, a clean dog, and spring beauties

    Aaaaaaahhhhhh. I love days like this. The sun was shining, I wasn't overwhelmed with school work (or maybe I just wasn't letting it overwhelm me....), and I got to spend a lot of time with my dog. What could have been better??.........forget I said that. A lot of things could have been better, but hey! that's not what matters right now. What matters is that these pictures aren't gonna get captioned by themselves, so I better stop yacking up here and get to work. 

    When you find something cuter then that face, let me know.

    She looks like she is teething on it.

     Happy face. Aka, normal face.

     One time she carried two tennis balls around in her mouth. It was comical. 

     Hey Sabrina? Stop being so gorgeous, okay? Thanks.

    I love this picture. I don't even know why. It's just kinda cool.

     She looks like she's plotting my death and is excited about it. Now I am worried.

     Don't hate me just because my dog is cuter then yours is. 

     At the moment that I took this picture, I was literally drenched. Drenched because I had just gotten done giving my dog a bath, and she seems to think that cuddling against my leg will somehow make the whole bath experience better. Oh well. At least she is clean now.

     The first spring beauty of 2013. Life is good folks.