D-O-N-E

That's it!

I'm done! 

All my exams are over, I picked up my graduation regalia, and I'm ready to walk across that stage.

You can't imagine the relief I feel. It's fabulous. I can't wait to get this weekend started. Tonight my mom and dad are flying in from Texas. Tomorrow my sister and grandmother are flying in from Miami. Friday is the BIG day and then we'll be off to Washington D.C. I'm so excited. I've never been and I can't wait to enjoy this vacation with my family. 

It's also our second wedding anniversary on Monday. It's been two years of wedded bliss with my man. Not sure how exactly we'll be celebrating. We'll see what DC has to offer.

Anyway... I'M GRADUATING!

Here's me with my Class of 2010 tassel...it's the one part of my graduation regalia I get to keep. 

(and yes, I cut my bangs...ack!)

25th Birthday Celebrations!

As I mentioned previously, I'm not THRILLED about turning 25...but my family and friends made it much more bearable thanks to all the celebrating.

• WICKED at the DPAC.
• New tattoo.
• Lunch with family.
• Dinner with friends.

I love my life. :-) 

Click here to see photos.

My 25th

Hard to believe I am TWENTY-FIVE years old today. I'm feeling a bit of a quarter life crisis coming on...

At least these images from weheartit cheer me up.

Patty's Wedding

We're back from our quick weekend trip to Miami!
The main reason we were in Miami was to celebrate Alex's mom getting married. The wedding was so much fun. Lots of music and dancing. So I'm here to share a few photos. I'm sure Alex will post many more (he was able to get all the photo files from the hired photographer, so he's going to do something special with that).

Congratulations to Patty & Istvan. May God bless your marriage always.

*click on photos to enlarge

Introducing: Soma Church

After a lot of hard work our new church plant site is finally up. And we have a name! Soma Church.
Why Soma? Basically, it's the Greek word for body, and the Bible describes the church as the body of Christ. But for a more eloquent explanation read this.

I am so excited about our new site and name. It makes all this church planting stuff a lot more real. It's hard to believe that in about half a year we will be in Denver...finally! I am thankful for our team and all the hard work they're putting in to make this church plant happen.

And now we need your help. Along with your continued prayers I'd like to invite you commit to The $20 Difference. With just $20 a month for the remainder of 2010 you can help us do what we need to do in order to make Soma Church a reality in Denver in 2011.
Here's short video explaining what the $20 Difference is and how you can contribute.


Soma Church $20 Difference from Soma Church Denver on Vimeo.

Thanks to everyone for all your prayer and support. I can't tell you how much it means to us.

P.S. Friend us on facebook here.

fashion bloggers

Fashion.
I love it.
I may not be the most fashionable girl out there...but I can certainly appreciate a great-looking outfit. Lately I've been drawing a lot of inspiration from some amazing fashion bloggers. I like these girls because their blogs are not ALL about parading in pretty clothes...there's more to them. Here are a few of my favorite fashion bloggers:

Kendi Everyday

This girl is hilarious. I love all the witty commentary that goes into each blog post. She's fun and makes dressing it up in a small town look easy. Her style is classic and effortless, but she still takes some colorful risks. I would definitely wear every single outfit she's ever posted. Also, all her images are gorgeous thanks to her photog husband. Alex has been taking some pointers. ;-)

Jen Loves Kev

Jen is an artist and fashionista. I like all the different 'Style Files' she posts, as well as her posts on other topics, like 'Last Night's Dinner' and 'I'd Wear That.' She and her husband are silly in love, it's cute to see. Also, she's pregnant now and it's great seeing a pregnant lady work it instead of reverting to baggy t-shirts and sweat pants. There's hope!

Keiko Lynn

This gorgeous girl lives in New York but she's from Florida. She's a thrift queen and has her own clothing line. Her style is so interesting and feminine with a touch of vintage. I love all the dresses she wears...definitely inspires me to ditch the jeans that are a part of my daily uniform. She also does great make up, something I'm not good at, at all.

Compassion International

There are so many children in the world who live in poverty...and it honestly breaks my heart. Alex and I have discussed adoption before, and it's something that we would really love to do someday. We see it as a great picture of the gospel. See 1 John 3:1-2, Ephesians 1:5, and Romans 8:15. We have been adopted into the family of God because of His love and grace. So we would love to accept a child into our family and love that child and help that child grow and mature.

Right now, however, is just not the right time to expand our family. But we are praying continually for God to guide us in this process that we may do things in His timing, not ours.

In the mean time, though, we really wanted to do something to help a child living in poverty. I have heard so many great things about Compassion International, and after a lot of thought and research we decided to take the plunge and begin sponsoring a child through this incredible organization.

Meet Alejandra:

She's 3 years old and lives in Nicaragua. 

I chose to sponsor her because I have a connection to Nicaragua (this is where my family is from) and her name is Alejandra (which reminded me of my darling husband, Alexander). Also, she was just the first one that popped up on the list. It was meant to be. :-) Is it weird that I love her so much already? I hope that one day Alex and I can travel to Nicaragua to meet her. That would be amazing. 

There are still so many children that need a sponsor. Please visit the website and sponsor a child today. It's a small but very significant way to help a child in need.  And if you just can't sponsor a child right now, please pray for these children and consider making a one-time contribution of some sort. 

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