the longest shadows ever cast.

summertime is upon us.

the sun is rearing its big, beautiful head.

i have a glowing white line on my shoulders from my sundress straps.

i don't think i have seasonal depression.

until the sun comes out.

and i'm so much happier.

i'm barefoot.

i'm playing.

i love sunshine.

i love summer.

oh, and i love death cab.

this semester has flown by. it is april. in 26 days, i graduate from college. and then i'm done with school, forever. (unless i go back for my masters degree some day. it's not in my near future.)

one of my besties had a baby on the 18th of last month. the day after st. patty's day. also my mom's birthday. he was 9 pounds 6 ounces, and he was beautiful. and so was she. we are growing up. 

i threw 2 showers recently. one was for misty and baby lukas. the other, lauren, who we're marrying off june 20th. yes, we are growing up indeed. maybe i should be a party planner instead of a nurse. i seem to be getting a lot of practice. 

i spent spring break in arizona. not the warm, sunny one. flagstaff, the one where there was still snow on the ground. and i drank arizona iced tea. not in arizona. in california on a layover. i hate california. but i still had fun. spending time with one of corbin's besties was...a ride. :) i drank a lot of french press coffee. i ate at the best pizza place, breakfast place, sandwich place, and coffee shop in flagstaff. true story. they had awards.

and now it's april. i had my last spring break ever last month. misty has a baby. lauren moved into her new home, which in 2 months she'll share with eric. i've been fingerprinted for nursing and i'm filling out paperwork, sending in forms, and studying for boards. we're growing up. and it scares me a little.

oh. and my cat's still trying to kill me. but sometimes she's nice.

wine country.

yamhill county is full of beautiful countryside.

and rich soil, good for growing wine grapes.

so you should check out this sweet set of photos.

...

go to nytimes.com.

and then search for yamhill county, OR.

third link down is a slideshow.

check it out.

special attention on slide 6.

:)

Punxsutawney Phil

today is groundhog day. 2/2. good thing it's not in the year '02, as those three symmetrical numbers would throw a certain superstitious friend of mine into a bit of a whirlwind. nonetheless, today is the day where we find out how much longer winter is going to last. a quick note on that, by the way. why does seeing his shadow indicate a longer winter? it seems to me that the shadow would be indicative of the sun being out, which would speak to spring's near arrival. i don't know, maybe i'm crazy. ps, would someone tell that man to put down the poor groundhog?

anyway, phil saw his shadow this morning, which means we are in for another six weeks of winter. and yet somehow, i cannot quite believe it. nevermind the freezing fog that was still sitting dormant over the fields this morning on my drive to newberg. the sunshine is too beautiful today, shining bright over my shoulder through these big windows outside the nursing lab. i'm casting my very own shadow, but it is one that speaks of warm days and cool spring nights, and of delicate flowers erupting from the soggy ground and cherry trees bursting forth with delicate pink blossoms.

move over winter. spring is upon us.

grace enough

i was reading 2 corinthians, and chapter 12 verse 9 reminded me that God's grace is sufficient because His power is made perfect in my weakness. each time i fail at life (and it seems that i've been doing that a lot lately) i hide in shame, as though i have failed a God whose grace isn't enough. i keep waiting for the time when He says, "that's it, you've had your last chance. i am tired of fixing you, and i am running out of get-out-of jail-free cards to give you. you're on your own now." 

but instead, each time that i fall because i cannot do it on my own, i learn more of God's grace. i am only now learning what this verse means. the weaker i am, and the more i fail, the more God comes to my rescue, takes me in His ever-loving arms, and fixes me. i have freedom to mess up. if i didn't it wouldn't be love. this i have always known. but i am learning something new about the character of God today. i am learning the layers of this verse. the more i am in need of grace, the more i learn of the wonders of my gracious God. and i stand speechless.

rediscovered

so whitney told me the other day that i am a terrible blogger.

my most recent entry was in august of last year.

so i am inclined to believe her.

for those of you who have missed me, here is a recap.

in relatively chronological order.

i turned 21.

i walked into my senior year at george fox.

i discovered how much i drive when i commute from canby.

i starting dating a wonderful guy.

i was asked to be lauren's bridesmaid.

i conducted social experiments.

i did a 144-hour preceptorship in a critical care unit.

i learned how to put chains on my truck.

i got to feel a tiny foot kick in misty's tummy.

i listened to death cab to ring in the new year.

i got an attack cat...who mostly attacks me.

i sat in a hot spring.

and now...now i am in both the beginning and the end of two beautiful stages of my life. i walked onto the george fox campus a couple weeks ago, ready to start fresh a new semester, and realized it would be the last time i did that. i am formulating resumes and searching for jobs. i am studying for state nursing boards. and i am reveling in the sweet relationships i have built over the last four years.

summertime and the livin' is easy

so, i got online the other day. and i realized it had been over a month since i'd done just that. is was beautiful. despite the fact that most of my summer has consisted of being chained to mac grill in a button-down shirt and tie, it has been a beautiful time nonetheless. if i've been absent from your lives, sorry about that. here's a recap on my life in the last couple months...:)

enjoying some sweet fireworks. not on the 4th of july, but close enough.

misty days at twin rocks. it doesn't get much closer to heaven.

cheese factory + lemon blueberry pie ice cream. mmm.

epic tank battles. my tank kicked that other tank's ass, if you were wondering.

hanging out with jon's mules. i think this one is lou.

seaside closed my favorite bakery. yeah. it was a sad day.

rodeo season. beautiful.

the moment my baby nephew became taller than me. :(

and last but not least...

this is mowgli. looks sweet, eh? ALL LIES.

so...welcome to my life. i know, pretty exciting.

i cannot do it on my own

i got a job at macaroni grill. i'm supposed to start on saturday. but then i got this call last night telling me that upon realizing this is father's day weekend (apparently that one snuck up on them), my orientation would be pushed back a week. ergo, i find myself unemployed and broke for yet another seven days. luckily for me, it is just in time for some beautiful weather. a fire lit under me, i undertook some good old fashioned spring cleaning. here's my mind at a glance as i liberated my flower beds from the unneccessary weeds stealing vital nutrients from the soil...

.i have grapes, berries, veggies, flowers, and a whole host of wildlife (both invited and not) on 2+ acres. i am blessed. for realsies.
.a greek salad is not a greek salad without tomatoes. i don't care if i do get salmonellosis. i'm eating my damn tomatoes.
.there's not enough spontaneity in my life.
.i've been feeling extra green of late. i'd blame jess, but i haven't been around her that much... which also makes me blue.
.a warm, smog-free day is incomparable. if you haven't breathed northwest air, i'm sad for you.
.i haven't had a coffee shop drink in 5 days. whoa.
.my spiritual life is in a sorry state. to say the least.
.sometimes, all it takes is a song. thank you, shawn mcdonald.

i lay myself at your feet

asking you, won't you meet

won't you meet me

i cannot do it on my own

i cannot do it all alone

here i am, oh, tonight

with my arms open wide

won't you come inside

won't you come inside, god

come and fill this heart of mine

i'm in need of you

of your touch, of your life, of your love

i need you

i need you

cold tangerines

i went to the beach yesterday with my mum. it was beautiful. and refreshing. and exactly what i needed. the weather was surprisingly cooperative, once we got past about otis. i went for a walk down the beach, and was so busy loving the feel of the wind blowing my hair every which way that i completely missed the giant wave coming up behind me until it was in fact rolling inside of and over top my shoes and had the bottom 4 inches of my pants soaked. but i didn't care. that's how beautiful it was. i wish you could have been there with me. it was too much for just one person to enjoy.

and then i went walking some more on a little trail. you know that time, right at the beginning of hiking season, when the trails are still slighty too soft to be walking, but those who love nature traverse them anyway, because it's worth it to see all that's been hiding for the long winter? it was that time. glorious, indeed. i realize i sound like a thesaurus for the word great, and in doing so i apologize. but it has been some time since i have felt this feeling, so bear with me.

isn't it fascinating what efffect something as small as a buttercup can have?

so, then i got to put my lumberjack skills to good use. not really, of course...it's difficult to feel tough when you're chopping kindling, but that's alright. the fire built, i settled in to wait for some good s'more-making coals. having found a nice flat rock while it was light out, i was all set to melt my chocolate pre-marshmallow and have a better-than-average s'more, thanks to the simple genius of a good friend. the only logical thing left to do was sing ring of fire. mom looked at me funny, but i thought it highly appropriate, given our yuppy (pardon my non-p.c. term) round fire pit.

this morning, i went climbing through the roots of my favorite tree. it's been my favorite tree for as long as i can remember. see, there are these trees that get their start growing on the stump of their predecessors. then, when the stumps rot away, the new tree's roots are left standing. ergo, my playground. yep. that's my story. no five dollars necessary.

so in the middle of my revery and internalization this weekend while i wandered the beach and wilderness, i also found my way into a bookstore, where i was challenged by a book with these words:

"i want a life that sizzles and pops and makes me laugh out loud. and i don't want to get to the end, or to tomorrow, even, and realize that my life is a collection of meetings and pop cans and errands and receipts and dirty dishes. i want to eat cold tangerines and sing loud in the car with the windows open and wear pink shoes and stay up all night laughing and paint my walls the exact color of the sky right now. i want to sleep hard on clean white sheets and throw parties and eat ripe tomatoes and read books so good they make me jump up and down, and i want my everyday to make God belly laugh, glad that he gave life to someone who loves the gift."

....i bought a pair of pink shoes yesterday.

pepper in some unemployment

at 10:15, my alarm clock went off.

at 10:18, my phone rang.

adam, at chili's, told me not to bother with the shower i was about to take, the makeup i was going to put on to make myself presentable to my guests, or the twenty-minute drive i was about to make to work. effective immediately, hillsboro, beaverton, lake oswego, issaquah, bellevue, and wilsonville chili's are closing. the servers who showed up to work that morning got quite the surprise. so did our manager, matt, who's also out of a job. but apparently that's the way you run things when you own eight major stores.

at 11:30, matt called to tell me he still didn't know anything.

but i could use his cell number to list as a reference.

since, you know, chili's doesn't exist or have a phone anymore.

...sweet.

ode to the lewis ladies

so, the year's almost over.

but we couldn't let it go out too quietly.

and so, here was my day.

first, there was the prayer labyrinth.

complete with communion and intercession candles.

and then we decided we wanted to go to the montage for some good eats.

with the boys.

corbin donned the traditional face paint.

and to cap the night off, we went for a dip in the icy waters of the willamette.

sans attire.

when the towels come out, the clothes come off...

ladies, you will be missed.

miss new booty.

two girls?

KNEES BENT ASS OUT.

two dollar big macs.

na-na glide.

shari's.

and the rest.

...yep.