The class of 2008 is great!

Yesterday, I had my first senior session of 2008...it was amazing! Meet Elizabeth...not only is she gorgeous, she's also a ballerina! Oh, if that I had been a ballerina. :) Here are my favorites. Enjoy!

I have another senior session today so be on the lookout for sweet photos!

A bit on the nippy side out, eh Steve?

No one told me it was going to be FREEZING today! Thus, I left the house in typical Texas weather clothes- flats, no socks, a long sleeve shirt. At least I was wearing a scarf. This post is going to be fun and random, so, to quote that guy who always had a cigarrette in his mouth on Jurassic Park, "hold onto your butts."

My upstairs neighbors are being awfully loud. I don't like loud upstairs neighbors, but it's more something to laugh at than a real annoyance. Megan and I always pretend we're going to throw things at the ceiling and yell at them. We have fun with it. :)

Just in case anyone wants to know, there is no women's restroom on the third floor of A-Hall at HSU. I found that out the awkwardly embarrassing way today. I was walking around in a happy bubble and missed the sign that was blaring "MEN." But...as soon as I walked in, I knew something was wrong. This was my thought line that all took place in about 2 seconds: Whoa, they redid the floors in here, when did that happen? Hey they moved the mirror too. It smells funny in here. (Then as I realized...) Oh...my...gosh. Am I in the men's restroom?! Quick! Look for urinals...AHH! (And I was out of there!)

At least no one saw me. 

I never realized how huge a part coffee played in my life. Since going to the dentist and having my revelation about not drinking sugar filled Starbucks, I've been asked to coffee dozens of times. Seriously. Want to go study? Starbucks. Want to get together to catch up? Starbucks. Want to go for a drive? Inevitably we end up at...Starbucks. But be proud, I've only gotten a drink a couple of times. I'm taking good care of my teeth!

Speaking of coffee, I went to Starbucks the other day (and didn't drink any coffee!) and saw my friend Cherith who just had her first child about 6 months ago. She and her hubby are pregnant again! :) :) I'm excited!

Today was my interview for Pine Cove! Oh, it was so good! If nothing else, it was really fun to sit down with a complete stranger and get to talk about what I believe and what the Lord has been teaching me. 

Geez, the upstairs neighbors are being really loud! I want to ask them what in the heck they are doing up there.

Anyway, something interesting happened though, at my interview. I was asked what one of my biggest weaknesses was and I immediately responded, "Pride." As soon as it came out of my mouth I was thinking, Where did that come from? Sure, everyone struggles with pride, but if I had taken a moment to think, I would have said something like, "Oh, my biggest weakness is worrying too much about what others think of me and letting that define me." Which is a big weakness of mine. But instead, pride came out. Fascinating. It's like my insides knew it, but my mind didn't. So I've been chewing on that all day. And I've realized it's very true.

What a long post! I haven't had a post this long in a long while! And I also haven't had a post this random in a while. Did you catch the reference to Homestarrunner.com in the post title? Anyone?

Life is art, and Art is life.

Hi Hi Everyone! Wellp, I've got the first week of school down, and I feel really good about it! I also happen to LOVE the fact that Monday is a holiday. Holidays already, oh boy! The weekend started off good. Megan and I went to Target and found some sweet leg warmers on sale for $3! So we obviously each bought a pair to wear over our skinny leg jeans...yes, I am wearing mine right now. :) Another minor detail of happiness: I had the best night of sleep ever last night!

So, the Lord continues to bless my desires and dreams, and it is all at the same time humbling and encouraging. I wasn't planning on pursuing anything business-wise with photography this year; I was just going to take some time to be in the background, learn, and refine. Already though, people have come to me and I've booked several shoots! How is that even possible? I'm amazed.

On that note, I've been gearing up for some cool senior shoots and my main inspirations have been from incredible fashion and musician photography! I just wanted to share some of them with you. (1.) from the Loeffler Randall website (2.) 1995 British Vogue photo by Nick Knight (3.) Fotografie, Tim Walker (4.) Matchbox Twenty's new CD cover

Hittin' the books.

Another semester has begun at HSU and I am on my way to having one less semester standing between me and graduation. Exciting! It's good to be back though. I love our pretty campus: the trees, architecture, and red-bricked buildings.

I'm in one week deep and can already tell you this is going to be a good semester. I'm only taking 12 hours (which translates into only 3 classes because one of them is a six hour class), my first class every day starts at 1 PM and so I'm getting plenty of morning time to do things I love like photography, running, reading, and playing the piano. I'm not just going to sleep and get lazy! I also rejoined HSU Chorale! Today was my first day back in there and it felt SO GOOD to do the classic warm ups and such. I was raised on choir, so it's been strange to be without it the past three years. My Pine Cove interview is coming up this next week too, so I'm looking forward to that.

The Lord is so good. I'm so thankful for such a great schedule that allows me lots of time to do things I love, things the Lord has called me to. 

Back to college with spring fever already! (and no coffee!!)

I'm back in college mode again! Meg came back yesterday afternoon and we had a grand day of moving back in the ol' APT and organizing! I must admit, I'm super-duper excited about my stellar-ly decorated new room. I mentioned that Meg and I switched bedrooms, right? The only downfall of my new (big) room is that it's freaking freezing! Our sweet lil' heater just isn't strong enough to reach my bedroom or something...cold...anyway.

Last night , since everyone is getting back in town, we had a bunch of dear wonderful friends over and watched "Once" because Meg and I were the only ones who had seen it. Man, it was good to see friends! After the movie, we took a quick trip to Wal-Mart and I finally made it to bed at 3 AM. I might need a shot of caffeine :)

Actually on that note, I've had a revelation! I had to go to the dentist the other day and he was telling me how insanely bad coffee is for your teeth! All that sugar is just asking for cavities. So now, I'm not having a problem saying no to coffee. Amazing! I want my teeth to be healthy and happy, so it's worth it.

Anyway, it's fun seeing friends again, but school hasn't even started yet and I already feel like I have spring fever! Weird. Check out these shoes that sum up my "just-can't-wait-for-warm-weather" mood.

How freaking cute are they?! Check them out at Swell. I'm already daydreaming of sunny skies on the sand! :)

In the Meantime

Happy 100 posts! That's right, Under the Canvas sky rocks 100 posts as of today! Let's go intercontinental to celebrate: a photo from Spain. Sweet.

This year coming up is one of those years where so many exciting things will be going on. When people ask me how I'm doing, I find myself answering with a list of the exciting things that are going to be coming up. I just find that interesting. I don't think it's a bad thing to be that excited about things on the horizon, but there's always this Jim Elliot quote that surfaces in my thoughts every now and again: "Wherever you are, be all there." I've never quite had a year where I'm so excited about the opportunities coming up like this...but in the meantime, I don't want to lose focus on the small, seemingly mundane events. I've been so incredibly blessed by these passions the Lord has placed deep within me. It's so exciting to watch Him prepare to bring these deep desires to the light and give them a place to bless others! But the small things are still here, too. Pray for me, if you think about it, as I try to balance the big with the small. There is value to be found in it all.

Jesus...don't let me get caught up in dreams for myself. Let me be swept away in Your grand plan to further You're name! You've done so much; keep my focus on you, let me give you all the glory. These things you've done are for YOUR NAME...not mine. Lord keep me looking for people to serve in small ways. Help my attitude, countenance, everything Lord, help it reflect You. Such a gift to have "an unveiled face" to reflect your glory!

Two posts for January 9th...and this time I need your help!

If you've ever been on a cruise before, or know someone who has, I NEED TO TALK TO YOU! :) As a non-traveling person, I don't know the first thing about it! And I'm interested! Which lines are good? What destinations are awesome? Is it worth it to get a room with a view? What were your favorite things about cruising?

Leave me some feedback! Thanks so much!