Pre-wedding fun

Some pictures from the day before Liz & Julian's "Big Day"

Rehearsal dinner at Strongbows:

delicious food and great fellowship!

Rehearsal:

Fun time; yet, I couldn't help but tear up when she came

down the aisle...

Manicures:

We all met and had such a wonderful time getting our nails done

together. The owner even took our picture for promotional purposes

on his website!

Footprints on my heart

If someone would have told me two years ago that I would someday be in Liz B's wedding; I would have crinkled my head and questioned, "Why?"

Last Friday, however, I had the privilege to do just that.

Liz is someone that I have grown up with; we were probably first introduced in church nursery! We were friends throughout elementary, but when junior high came our paths separated. We hung with different people and were in different classes. We were two very different girls and seemed to bicker more than get along.

Then came college.

We got along fine, and I thought her a very nice girl; but, still we weren't close. In my last semester of college I was a part of the same ministry she was...the Portage bus route. Every Saturday morning (up until the Saturday before her wedding) we would go out visiting and making house calls on the bus kids, then on Sundays we would ride there and back together to pick up kids for church.

We must have spent hours talking on those van rides. Hours upon hours which I now have to serve as great memories. Stopping at the gas station for Liz's healthy breakfast of Mountain Dew and chocolate donuts, answer Jordan's theological questions, avoiding creepy men in the trailer parks, and taking food baskets out to some families for the holidays.

And so it happened...Liz went from being a close acquaintance to being my best friend. She is someone with whom I never tire of talking. We have laughed, cried, and prayed for each other.

To best describe Liz, I would say that she is genuinely sweet. She is very unselfish and one of the most sincere people I know. I am so thankful that God brought her into my life when He did. He knew that I was in need of a friend and Liz has been such a wonderful one! I am so grateful to not only have been able to help her plan her wedding but also to have been in it...

Last week I was able to host a final bridal "party" with some of her girlfriends. I had so much fun planning it; and of course taking WAY too many pictures!

The theme was Hawaiian.

I made tile coasters as a party favor for all the guests

to take home.

Strawberry Daiquiries...mmm, good!

I got the idea for the fruit kabobs from another blog.

Hawaiian decor

The prize table...

Each girl was given a Hawaiian lei.

Me and the beautiful bride to be...

Us girls

The evening was spent talking...

playing intense games,...

eating,...

talking some more,...(accompanied by bursts of laughter and snorts)

playing more games,...

and being crazy!

And so concluded a great evening with great friends!

It is hard to believe that it has only been a week since Miss Liz has become Mrs. Liz, and it will be even harder to think that this coming Wednesday she will be moving 7 states away! Oh how I will miss her...

Congratulations, girl, I love you!

Some people come into our lives and quickly go.

Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts.

And we are never, ever the same.

PS Wedding pictures to follow soon!!

Announcement

On today,

the year of our Lord, 2010,

date: July 2nd,

my dear sweet friend, Liz will walk down

the aisle and start a new life with "her man", as

she so calls him.

Lack of posting has been due to wedding extravaganzas...

Pictures and journaling to come soon;

I must go say goodbye

to the beautiful bride.

What I Love About Her

Today my little sister, Brooke, celebrated her 20th birthday!

Actually the celebration started yesterday at work with the little kids we work with.

They sang her happy birthday and then we all enjoyed eating ice cream treats!

For lunch Brooke and I went to the best place in town to get a

smoothie, and we both got Berry Bonanza...heaven in a cup!!

Brooke's choice of dinner was Mom's homemade taco pizza and chocolate chip cheesecake,

which we all enjoyed immensely.

In honor of the 20 years I have been able to share with Brooke I would like share 20 things that I love about my baby sister.

1. Her chocolate, brown, puppy-dog eyes

2. How she gives of herself in her ministries

3. The way she sings way off key...:)

4. Her generous spirit

5. How deeply she loves; expecting nothing in return

6. Her soft moldable heart

7. Her strange sense of fashion and how she tries to wear jewelery with everything!

8. Her daring sense of adventure

9. Her compassion for the elderly in the Nursing Home

10. Her contagious giggle (usually at a time when we shouldn't be laughing; like in church...)

11. Her take charge attitude

12. Listening to her give speeches

13. Her adorable toes

14. Her dedication towards the kiddies we both work with

15. The way she gets stressed out over papers and projects

16. Her seriousness

17. Her sleek shiny hair

18. Her deep appreciation for food ;)

19. Her strange collection of books

20. How that she is not only my sister, but also my best friend!

Happy 20th Birthday, Brooke, we love you so much!

Anticipation

The package arrived early afternoon...

Within its brown wrapping was contained this book...the one I have been

waiting for for approximately 6 months...

If you don't know me well then you don't really know the significance of this package. You can read about my small infatuation with this author here.

I am now a proud owner of all seven of Charles Martin's books...woohoo! This one was scheduled for release on June 1st and rather than pre-ordering it (as much as I wanted to) I decided to wait until I had a coupon and could get it for a discounted price. So...last week I got a 40% coupon to Borders and you can guess what I used it on!!

Now that I have the book I am going to try to wait until we go on vacation in August to read it. I figure all the waiting and anticipation will make the reading more worth while. So for now I will settle for smelling the pages and reading the cover insert; and, hopefully it will suffice my curiosity!

A Pretty Amazing Guy

I have this Dad...this pretty amazing dad...

He truly is good at everything he puts his hand to. Always has been.

There's basketball, then there's soccer, racquetball, and even bicycling; he's good at it all. I remember when I was in high school track my dad came out to one of our practices and challenged me to a race. I remember laughing with the other girls thinking there was no way my dad could beat me. After all I was the fastest one on the team at this particular sprint PLUS my dad didn't have running shoes on and would have to run barefoot. I'm sure you can guess what happened. He beat me; fair and square he beat me, and not by a little!

But not only does my dad have athletic talent; he also is very handy. My mom will get an idea in her head and my dad always gets it done. Whether it's painting a piece of furniture or a bedroom wall or even finishing our dining table; my dad can do it!

One of the things I love most about my dad is his work ethic. He has always taught me to work hard and to do a job to the best of my ability. I remember two words I was never allowed to say as a child..."I can't"

I must have been around five years old when I got my first bike. I remember my dad helping me get up on the bike and giving me a push. I was riding for a few seconds and then I turned around and he wasn't holding on anymore. Immediately I began to lose my balance and soon fell to the ground. My dad did not stay out there with me and hold onto me, instead he told me, "You CAN do it, Nicole. Keep trying and you will get it down." And with that he went inside to watch me from the window. So, "try" I did; and finally I succeeded in riding my bike!

Father's Day has now come and gone and every year it comes I find it harder and harder to show this amazing guy how much I appreciate him.

Dinner,

Breakfast in bed,

It just doesn't seem to be enough for a man who is more than a father to me...he is my hero-one whom I measure all other men up against...A pretty amazing guy!

Happy Father's Day, Dad, I love you!