Because....

I miss you

II Timothy 4:7,8
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."

Revelation 21:3-5
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.' He who was seated on the throne said, 'I am making everything new! "

Quarter of a century

I got to celebrate my birthday at home for the first time in seven years! Crazy.
My parents were both very good to me, I got great presents, and I spent time with some old friends that I haven't seen, as well as my best friend Kel. I was so happy that she got to come up to Seattle and spend time there with me for Amy's wedding. She was such a great helper.

My brother and me with our mom. We are kind of pulling silly faces, really were just looking away from the camera. This was at Black Angus, I haven't been there for years and they have fabulous steak and bread.

We always look good together :)

This is Ana, I have known her since high school. My brother actually dated her for some time, but she is married now, to someone I introduced her to! Weird. This is my only matchmaking experience, glad to know it worked out well!

This was on my actual birthday, which I spent with my Dad, Karen, and my two brothers in Seattle. We went to lunch on the waterfront and did a little shopping of course. I am attempting to show off my birthday presents, a cute little Coach clutch from Karen and a peridot\diamond ring from my dad.

I can't believe Michael actually caught my dad smiling, he never smiles in pictures.....he must really love me :)

The weekend after I got home, Kelli and Chad took me out for dinner, kind of as a late birthday celebration. They know my love for Italian food, so we went to Biaggi's at the Gateway. I had the most tasty seafood pasta dish ever!

Thanks for everyone who made my 25th birthday so great!

My enemies are the Enemy

Psalm 69

1 Save me, O God,
for the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in the miry depths,
where there is no foothold.
I have come into the deep waters;
the floods engulf me.
3 I am worn out calling for help;
my throat is parched.
My eyes fail,
looking for my God.
4 Those who hate me without reason
outnumber the hairs of my head;
many are my enemies without cause,
those who seek to destroy me.
I am forced to restore
what I did not steal.
5 You know my folly, O God;
my guilt is not hidden from you.
6 May those who hope in you
not be disgraced because of me,
O Lord, the LORD Almighty;
may those who seek you
not be put to shame because of me,
O God of Israel.
7 For I endure scorn for your sake,
and shame covers my face.
8 I am a stranger to my brothers,
an alien to my own mother's sons;
9 for zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.
10 When I weep and fast,
I must endure scorn;
11 when I put on sackcloth,
people make sport of me.
12 Those who sit at the gate mock me,
and I am the song of the drunkards.
13 But I pray to you, O LORD,
in the time of your favor;
in your great love, O God,
answer me with your sure salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mire,
do not let me sink;
deliver me from those who hate me,
from the deep waters.
15 Do not let the floodwaters engulf me
or the depths swallow me up
or the pit close its mouth over me.
16 Answer me, O LORD,
out of the goodness of your love;
in your great mercy turn to me.
17 Do not hide your face from your servant;
answer me quickly, for I am in trouble.
18 Come near and rescue me;
redeem me because of my foes.
19 You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed;
all my enemies are before you.
20 Scorn has broken my heart
and has left me helpless;
I looked for sympathy, but there was none,
for comforters, but I found none.
21 They put gall in my food
and gave me vinegar for my thirst.
22 May the table set before them become a snare;
may it become retribution and a trap.
23 May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,
and their backs be bent forever.
24 Pour out your wrath on them;
let your fierce anger overtake them.
25 May their place be deserted;
let there be no one to dwell in their tents.
26 For they persecute those you wound
and talk about the pain of those you hurt.
27 Charge them with crime upon crime;
do not let them share in your salvation.
28 May they be blotted out of the book of life
and not be listed with the righteous.
29 I am in pain and distress;
may your salvation, O God, protect me.
30 I will praise God's name in song
and glorify him with thanksgiving.

The wedding

And lastly, pictures of the wedding! I don't have any of the actualy ceremony just yet, my brother was put in charge of my camera, but he didn't take any pictures. Here are a few to share though.

Amy in her dress. This was about a five minute ordeal just to get it on!

A hug from her mom, so precious.

Pose'n it up.

At the reception, the maid of honor toast.

Watching a video of John and Amy

Their cake, buttercream is oh so delicious.

Hopefully I can get some copies of the ceremoney from their photographer to post later. But you get the idea now!

Part two-wedding day preparation

We're just hours away from the big moment, getting ourselves all dolled up and ready.
Here are a few previews.

Amy's pretty mom getting all curled up.

Au-naturel. But still so cute!

Pre make-up, but at least the hair is done. And Kel was so good at taking pictures of all of us.

Amy's pretty princess hair!

Amy's friend Kim who was also a bridesmaid. I loved the way her hair turned out.

And finally getting the make-up done.

Seattle Bride

So here they finally are, pictures from Amy's wedding!
Thursday night was the rehersal dinner, it was held at one of my favorite Italian Restaurants, Mama Stortini's. Here are some of the details....

Just a view of the serving table before we ate.

Amy and her mom, cute!

This is Chad, John's step-brother. Amy and John rode in a horse and carriage from the wedding ceremony to the reception center, so Chad was given a bucket and shovel as their official pooper scooper! His other nickname, thanks to Kelli, is Washington ass. You can ask her about that one if you want.

The bride to be and maid of honor :)

Amy's dad cheesing it up for me with their family, including the cute little flower girl, she was SO good in the wedding!

And of course, the best piece of Tiramisu ever.

Because she is so beautiful

I love you miss Julie.

Unexpected

I do have pictures of Seattle, they will be posted soon.
I meant to put them on a disc this weekend, I meant to do a lot of things this weekend.

I am sure most of you know that Sarah Grosgebauer, my roommate, was in a car accident on Friday. She is out of the hospital now and on her way to recovery. The worst she suffered was a lacerated spleen. Please pray for a healthy recovery for her.
Also, please continue to pray for her family, in the loss of their exchange student, Jeong, who drowned at Causey Dam on Saturday. They are going through a lot right now, and I definitely can feel their pain and loss.

"Low and behold, I am with you, even until the end of the age."