Livin' Easy...Lookin' Clean

For all of you who read my last blog and lifted Uncle Dave and the Baker family up in prayer, THANK YOU. I truly believe that God hears, accepts and adores our prayers. While I know that OUR ways are not always His ways and that unanswered prayers are sometimes a blessing, I can't help but feel His hand was in this the whole time and that your prayers have made a tremendous impact on this family. So thank you, dear friends, for your time, love, support and conversation with God.

Because I am not a doctor, nurse, PA or any kind of medical professional, I will not try and butcher the good news with some poor explanation. Rather, I will tell you that it looks like the spots on Uncle Dave's liver are actually a bacteria that grow in most bodies, just not normally in this place. They are not harmful and will cause no problems. Life is soooooo good.

I want to take a moment to write about my dear friend who just so happens to be my cousin, Catie Baker. Through this whole ordeal (and really through life in general) she has maintained an intense, willing and natural faith. She believed that God's hand was in this situation...loving and molding all people involved. Never once did she question or curse His ways (which is so very easy to do). Instead, she focused all of her energy on loving her Daddy. She savored every moment with him, not like it was her last, but as the greatest joy in life...to have the luxury of spending time with someone you really love. She remains, as always, an inspiration to me in my daily life. I just adore her.


***Many exciting events in the last few months....one of these days, I'll get around the blogging about them AND post some fun photos. Until then, enjoy this beautiful day :)

Prayer

Hi everyone,

I write today for prayer. I am completely aware that I may have a total of 4 blog readers (Hi Momma, David, Peeps and Annie) but for anyone else who peeks in every now and then and also for those who may read this in the future, your voice is needed now.

My dear, sweet, inspiring cousin Catie's Daddy, my Uncle Dave has been diagnosed with cancer. Rather than attempt an extremely poor medical translation of my limited knowledge regarding the situation, I have included an exerpt below from a recent email Catie sent to some of our girlfriends.


"My dad, mom, and I went to the doctor's today. He has metastatic cancer that has spread to his liver. The doctor does not know where the primary cancer is located. Other than the findings on his liver, the abdominal scan showed thickening of his sigmoid colon. He just had a normal colonoscopy less than a year ago, so we don't know for sure if the cancer is coming from his colon. His pancreas, spleen, kidneys did not show any abnormalities. His lung imaging is clear also. Our next step medical wise is more imaging and a liver biopsy. The doctor took a sample of his blood today to check for tumor markers. He will also have a sigmoidoscopy to look at his colon."

Uncle Dave is a burning star in a sometimes dreary world. He lives his life with a passion and appreciation that would inspire anyone to dream big, love big, give big, you name it. He loves his family like there is no tomorrow. His daughters, Catie and Cara adore him with every fiber of their being. He is the love of my Aunt Darlene's life. He is the rock. He is the anchor. He is the smile that everyone needs. His goodness, well, its just good...you can't help but feel it. He lives in the moment...he is a blessing to this world.

I ask you to pray for him right now. Pray that God would place a calm understanding over their whole family...pray for clarity. Pray for the doctors who will treat him. Pray that God would continue to reveal his grace through this time of diagnosis and treatment. Pray that their family would have the opportunity to smell the roses, laugh until it hurts, eat good food and listen to beautiful music during this time. Please pray for healing.

Today, I am so grateful that my dear friend Catie was born into this family. She is a beacon. She is strength...really and truly, she is love. She is traversing this situation with the most incredible outlook. Her faith in our God is inspiring. I pray that everyone would know such a person in their life.

Go out and be a light in our world today. Do not hesitate to serve someone who needs you. Do not miss the opportunity to express your love to those in your life. Enjoy each conversation, embrace a little longer. Take a moment to bask in your blessings. Live in the moment...Live in love. Give thanks for this day, for we are blessed.

Cheers,
Hope

Rain, Rain Go Away

Kisses:

*Prayer. This week, I am so thankful for the power and gift of prayer. The fact that I am able to sit quietly, reflect on life's blessings and know that my thoughts are being heard and treasured is so amazing.

*Technology. Albeit sometimes impersonal, it is so nice to be able to stalk your best friends on the internet and receive sweet text messages from those you love. I will, however, always remain a faithful advocate of the handwritten note

*Thank you notes. I know this sounds a little odd, but I actually enjoy writing them. It gives me an opportunity to reflect on the blessings that David and I have received. We are beyond blessed with supportive and loving friends and family who have helped us start our marriage off in style :)

*My girlfriends...please take no offense to this, but I really do believe I have the best girlfriends in the world. Feel free to try yours against mine, but they might not stand a chance. I don't know what I did to deserve such an incredible group of friends, but I could not be more thankful for each and every one of them. They are beautiful, witty, intelligent, compassionate, talented, fun and kind.

Disses:

*Timing Belts. $700 bones done the tube. Definitely not my favorite way to spend money.

*This awful rain. Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for the clearing away of pollen and hydration of plants, but really? 5 days straight? I am in serious need of some Vitamin D.

So, in the spirit of sunshine, I shall leave you with a song

***Rain, Rain, Go Away, Hopie wants to go out and play***

Marriage Moment

So David and I are nearing the 2 week mark of Holy Matrimony. So far, so good. We spent an incredible week in the BVI (more on that in another post) and returned home in time for Mother's Day. Last night, we went on what I consider our first "marriage date". Where? Costco. I should tell you that David and I actually LOVE Costco (I am sure a lot of you do). It is pretty much a wonderland of random cool stuff and bulk food...always entertaining. However, our trip to Costco was not what caused our "date". Long story short, I had been to dinner with my dear friend Alicia and met David at Costco afterwards. After shopping, we had plans to spend some time with our friends David and Annie (more on them later!) and David was starving. * side note: For those of you who know David well, you know how much he loves food and what a great cook he is. You may also know, that in the last year, he has become somewhat of a health freak (probably one of the reasons he weighs 153 pounds ;) ). So, as we are leaving, my sweet husband decides he wants to buy a...HOTDOG. Now, I am not a huge fan of cased meat, but Costco hotdogs are good and cheap! 1.50 for a huge dog and a drink, pretty good deal. So David orders his food, tops it with all the fixings and I find us the cleanest table in the eating area. We sit down and talk, laugh and have a great time (he even shared a few bites with me). After finishing, he gets up to refill his drink. When he returns, what does my sweet husband have in his hand? a CHURRO! I had never had one before...it was delicious...Kind of like a long cinnamon sugar donut. It was sweet because he knew I was still hungry (yes, I had already had dinner with my friend and 2 bites of his food) and because it was super unhealthy and he bought it anyway. We shared the Churro and went on our merry way. It has been one of my favorite memories so far... a simple moment that makes you smile.

Here's to many more simple moments in life :)

Cheers

Kisses and Disses

So, after a small leave of absence, I am ready to tend to my dear blog again. Really and truly, my inspiration for blogging has come from loving others blogs. Because trust me, these blogs are GOOD. Each is different and unique, but perfectly crafted and inspiring. A few of the authors are people I actually know and love. People I have developed relationships with over the past few years and absolutely adore with every bone in my body. The first is a friend I met through my husband, David. His name is Ethan and he is quite possibly the most loving human I have ever met. He is married to an equally incredible woman, Valerie (more on her later). In January, they welcomed their first son, precious Carver James (MUCH more on him later). Ethan's blog is inspiring. I have to warn you, he is CRAZY smart, so sometimes keeping up with him is a bit difficult. However, he often writes about life, love, God and family. His entries bring a smile to my face and remind me how good life can be http://www.thebullog.blogspot.com. His wife Valerie is so witty, creative and kind. If you have a chance, read her blog from the beginning, it details her pregnancy experiences and somehow manages a healthy balance of hilarious stories and endearing moments between her new family http://www.disappearingbellybutton.blogspot.com/. The best part about reading both their blogs is realizing their love for one another and their son, Carver. During our engagement, David and I often reflected on our desire to form a marriage very close to theirs. They are the best of friends who respect and love eachother like its going out of style. All in all, they are just great people.

Next, there is my dear, sweet, funny as hell, enthusiastic and utterly devoted friend, Kara. We lived together our senior year with my other love, Beth. Our days in Pink Lovey (our endearing name for the beautiful triple in the ADPi house) were nothing short of amazing. She is a truly wonderful friend who has blessed my life beyond measure. I should also note that she is one of the hardest working people I know. The result? Her first "Real world, Big Girl, I have money, what should I buy?" purchase...a SWEET camera. The camera came into our lives a few months ago at my bachelorette party and has consistently make appearances at many exciting events. Recently, I have started encouraging Kara to look into wedding photography. It seems so natural for her. She LOVES photography (and is talented to boot), is GREAT with people, works her butt off and is so easily loved by any person she comes in contact with. Just yesterday, she started her first blog. It is somewhat of a photo memoir of her life, pretty good so far and only getting better, I'm sure. Check her out! http://oakley-k.blogspot.com

My Husband, David recently started a blog. He hasn't contributed too much yet, but I am sure there is more to come. The great thing about him? He is smart, witty and deep all at the same time. I guarantee most of his entries with focus on food or adventure (his 2 loves). Check him out, I think he is nothing short of fabulous...Hopefully you will too :)

Yes, this is an incredible long post and you may be wondering where I am going with this. My blog today is inspired by a woman I have never met. Name? Jasmine Star (great, I know) reason for blogging? To inspire others and share her crazy photography talent, check it out: http://www.jasminestarblog.com I have been following her blog for awhile now and have come to love one section in particular, her "Kisses and Disses" of the week. So, I think I shall start my own. Here, you will find my reviews on things and people I love and things that make me gripe (hopefully not too many). So dear readers, without any further ado, may I present to you this weeks Kisses and Disses ;)


KISSES:
*Wedding photos on Facebook! It is really so fun to relive our wedding day through others photos. I think I have looked at the same photos for a week now and am still not tired of them :)
*My conversation with Mary Eleanor yesterday. She is one of my dearest friends and favorite people in the world. She just recently graduated from nursing school and I can't wait to see where life takes her. I am secretly hoping it will be JACKSONVILLE, but I highly doubt it (see disses below)
*My extremely talented husband. That boy can COOK. I have had two incredible delicious meals two nights in a row. I am one lucky woman.
*My wedding present from Kath, Catie and Meg. A BEAUTIFUL story people piece that I have already hung in our house. If you aren't familiar with story people, check them out...amazing! http://www.storypeople.com/storypeople/Home.do

DISSES:
* DISTANCE. I just don't like it. It keeps me from lounging around and laughing with many of my favorite people. Our wedding was nearly 2 weeks ago and I am still going through serious withdrawels from our friends. You see, I have had this great idea for years now, but it hasn't caught on...yet. My plan, you ask? To build a huge culdesac where all my friends can live so we can see eachother everyday and live in perfect harmony. I honestly think that if Meg would move here, we could get the ball rolling.
*UNPACKING/CRAZY BOXES. Its just the pitts. Plain and Simple. From clothes to wedding gifts (thank you everyone:) ), we have A LOT to unpack and in a 1,400 sq ft house, that can be mighty difficult. I would like to have a magic button that organizes my life, wouldnt that be nice?

Work in Progress....how true that is

You know, I've been trying to start this for awhile now. At first, I didn't love the whole idea of a blog......I also questioned what type of person had the time to have one. Then I read the blogs of a few people I adore and started thinking about how many moments in a day are wasted...... wasted with frustration, stress,worry, regret, envy.......many of us miss countless beautiful moments worrying about things we just can't change. We are all a work in progress.....a perfect and broken creation adored by God, our families and, if we're lucky, some lifelong friends. Spending time focussing on the negative brings nothing of worth to our own lives and steals precious time we could be devoting to those we love. So why not use these free moments to do some good in this world of ours and share our thoughts on life, love, food, music and all things captivating?

Tonight, I had the opportunity to sit and chat with one of my very favorite people in the world, Annie Roberts......her friendship is the type of gift that reminds me how much God loves me. Our conversations (or word vomit as we like to call it) tend to run a little too deep, most often revolve around life, love and family and usually end with laughter and eased hearts. I won't go into the details of our time together, but I will say that I am incredibly thankful for her friendship and many other people in my life. I am confident that I have been afforded such dynamic relationships to mold me into the person I am meant to be. I am also blessed to share my life with one the most adventurous, loving and light hearted people that I know. I have no doubt that our path will have some bumbs along the way.....but I am confident that it will be filled with beautiful music, good food, lots of laughs, special friends and countless memories. As I write this tonight, I am overwhelmed by the exquisite relationships that have been placed in my life........I hope that each and every one of you get to see glimpses of God's love through the people you are surrounded by.

Cheers, Thanks for reading :)