True Friend

These past couple of months I’ve really been looking at MY life, MY relationships, MY goals, MY focuses and all the other MY’s =) yeah I really just wrote all that…haha  But none of these compare to my sister=)

What’s a true friend? I know all the normal things someone will rattle off in response to this question. Ummmm a true friend is always there. A true friend makes you laugh. A true friend will answer the phone as early or as late when you call. (and I could go on and on)

But seriously is that a true friend. This is my definition of a true friend? Someone who isn’t afraid to tell you when they think (know) your wrong. Someone you don’t have to say a word too and you’ve both spoken volumes. This is the kind of friend I have in my sister.

She turns 23 today!!! She’s as beautiful inside as she is on the outside.

Dear Christina,
In childhood we did not understand the gift wrapped up in a greater plan. Time has taught us about the bond of love, and through that love we have chosen friendship. We have learned together, sharing the good times and the bad, and no matter what, there has always been love. You are my sister always, my friend forever.
Love you to the moon and back=)
Your sis <3

breakfast with two lovelies

A “I miss you and hope to see you soon” email resulted in a spare of the moment, girls breakfast, date at Ann's Restaurant. Yummy pancakes (yeah I’m actually starting to like them) and chocolate milk. Don’t judge me=) we all have a kid in us, somewhere…amiright??? And it was so good!!!!

I’ve known these girls forever (check this afternoon I spent with them) We went to the same church for a few years when we were all younger. And then it was more I was about the age they are now and they we’re well, younger than that. So I spent a lot of time playing and talking to these sweet kids and we’ve just kept in touch every since…via letters and emails. One day I turned around and I was reading an email from a teenager. An email full of all the fears, joys and big questions in life. It was like they grew up over night and the best part about it is that they’ve grown into life long friends. Girls I can share stuff with. Girls that actually give me helpful advice for my world. Girls that when we get together it’s like we just hung out yesterday=)

The atmosphere here was so homey, pleasant and happy at this restaurant. We stayed for a good hour and a half. (and that may be a modesty guess) Our food appeared in the perfect amount of time, from a very sweet waitress…in jeans. (Another reason to love this place) And while we ate we could enjoy the view of the beautiful Franklin courthouse from our window.

We all agreed that we are going to have to get together more often. And even threw around the idea of trying to make this happen once a month…and maybe even try a different Franklin restaurant each time. Finding time in my busy schedule will definitely have to happen…did I mention that I love these girlys?? 

So here’s to many more breakfasts together!!!!

 

Shipshewana with Christina+Ally =)

At the last minute Ally decide to join us…and you always have a good time when she’s there=)….and she paid for lunch and dinner. she’s the best oldest sister in the entire world!

She had never been to Shipshewana before, I hope she had as much fun as I did. It was probably to best trip up there so far. Lots of laughter and fun sister conversation.

My cob salad…it was AMAZING!!!!Forgive me – for I have sinned!This is us…so much fun!Then I saw this cart……and she jumped in=)

It was so much fun! thanks Ally for taking these of her and me=)

by the way…spontaneous would be a word I would use to describe Christina…

Have a great weekend!

~Photo-a-day~ June 18-June 24

This week was so eventful from the ‘get go’. (I don’t know what ‘get go’ really means, but I’ve said it right along with all my family for well – my entire life) I went to Shipshewana for a Doctor’s appointment on Wednesday and for this trip I dragged my parents along…haha. WE HAD SO MUCH FUN!!! I was able to spend the entire day alone with both of my parents. this almost never happens anymore. We had such a good time, shopping, eating and (my favorite) people watching=)

I actually left my schedule book behind this weekend, as I headed down to a little town in southern Indiana, near French Lick, with the most dearlin’ name of Birdsong. (actually if you blink as you drive through it, you might miss this bitty town all together=) It was so freeing not to have my schedule with me, I didn’t HAVE to do anything…I felt lost that Friday evening without it and the next day a tiny bit, but I soon got over it and just enjoyed myself=)  I went there to visit a girlfriend who I met at work last spring. For some reason we clicked and have kept in touch, ever since she moved down there last winter. It was great to spend this much time together!  Four wheeling, hiking, great food, and a fun conversation was my weekend in a nut shell.

What was your weekend like?!?!?!

 

Day 169

~today I…~

today I went to Shipshewana with my parents=)

Day 170

~groceries~

Day 171

~upside down~

adorable beagle hound puppy…born just days before this picture was taken=)

Day 172

~jewelry~

yeah I forgot…so I just looked back through the pictures I took and whala I found this one of Katie’s earrings=) sometimes you gotta’ do what you gotta’ do=)

Day 173

~sister(s)~

my best friend…missed being with her so much this weekend, even though my time with friends was a blast=)

Day 174

~happiness is…~

happiness is watching new life begin, baby wrens - in our raspberry bush

Day 175

~hug~

=) I absolutely love this lady!

Happy Wednesday!!!!!!

And please tell me which photo(s) you like the best=)

 

Bahamas Cruise (part 2) …the ocean, beach, and sun

Standing on the beach – toes in the cool sand. Listening to the waves crash. The salty air blowing my wet hair. The bright sun shining in my eyes. Sparkling “blue” water as far as I could see. Seagulls overhead crying to each other. I had dreamed of this moment…the moment when I saw the ocean. I had only read about this in books and seen pictures of the ocean…but my thoughts had not even come close to the beauty and magnitude of what lay before my eyes. Water forever…the waves never stopped. I could have just stood there all day and never gotten tired of looking.

Are you ready for a ton of pictures of the ocean? =) I had never seen it before and was completely blown away with what I saw so I took pictures…

A LOT of pictures=)

This the Miami Bay as we were leaving port on February 9th. This was my first view of what life near the ocean is like…and I tell you I could move into one of those houses tomorrow…=) It’s completely beautiful! 

So blue…it’s an almost unnaturally blue. Breathtaking.

We didn’t find many shells…that was my only disappointment of the trip. You go to a beach and you find shells right?!?! Oh well we found a few small ones, that’s better than nothing. not really.

Stepping into the ocean for the first time…it’s so salty. Crazy I knew it would be but didn’t know that it would be this salty. So when I went under the water I did what I always do, opened my eyes. Yeah I didn’t do that again.

That’s the cruise ship behind me…we came over to this Island on the Tender that day. Normally we just ported and walked off the ship onto land…it was cool doing it this way though.

Here’s the Island as we were leaving…see the light house in the middle of the picture?

On Nassau…we went on a tour and one of our stops was at this peer. It was very windy out there…if you can’t tell by our crazy looking hair=)

The lighthouse…as a child one of the first books I ever read was about a girl and a lighthouse. I’ve been completely infatuated by them ever since.

those tall buildings to the left are apart of a “twin” island of Nassau. Paradise Island. Now if I was going to move to the Bahamas I would move here, absolutely beautiful. A true tropical paradise. 

Since I’m an early riser I got to see the sun rise over the ocean every morning. This was by far the most beautiful sunrise ever. Nothing compares…well maybe over the hills of Indiana….yeah that’s definitely more beautiful=)

Look at that reflection in the water…at night we’d go out on the deck and stare at the moonbeam on the water. The night sky over the ocean is stunning. I don’t have the lens to take pictures of the moon yet, I was really wishing for it then.

This is the beach on the Grand Bahamas Island. The most beautiful of the three we visited.

Coral

We both took off running into the water right before this picture. She accidently wore her sunglasses in. I lost my earing, the waves just pulled my one out, so I included the other one…what the use of just one earing?

My favorite picture of us two…she had already put her shorts back on. She just stood on the shore and waited, waited and waited for me to get through taking pictures. And she never complains…that’s another reason we’re best friends.

Selfy=) she’s going to kill me, but hey it was on my camera.

I wrote in my bubble letters in the sand. The waves would wash it away and I would have another clean place to write. It was so much fun. I know I’ve said that a bunch, but it really was=)

Waiting on the waves, then they cover our feet, and away they go.

I left my footprints in the sand!

“Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone.”

That spray of water is so cool…don’t you think?

The foam…

Let’s take a break from ocean pictures and look at Christina…lol…the salt water made our normally straight hair curl. I was in heaven=) I love these pictures of her!

We walked for about three miles down this beach, barefoot. We talked and walked, it was by far my favorite memory from the entire cruise. Plus we really needed the exercise after all that food on board…

Is there a more perfect picture?!?!

This little guy was running out to the ocean, waiting on the waves, then turning and running away from them as they came rolling in. So adorable.

I love this. She just stopped in the middle of the path and was cleaning her feet off, so she could put her sandals on. I was apologizing to the people who were going around her. One elderly couple laughing said they were just glad to be able to pass anyone=)

Leaving the Grand Bahamas Island…my last view of the tropics.

Too many pictures of the ocean? I know, I know…=) And that’s not even all of them.

We had such a great time in the water and on the beach. It was pretty chilly the days we were there and windy so we didn’t do a whole lot of swimming, as I had hoped. But nothing could beat the ocean view.