Homer Hiccolm & The Rocketboys

Here are the photos! The Homer Hiccolm Show on Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Well friends, I hope you all had a simply delightful Valentine's Day. As #5 on the last Top 5 post mentioned, I love Valentine's Day! And February 14, 2008 did not disappoint. Let me tell you all about it. :)

First of all, I got to sleep in which equals "YAY!" But I mean, really, what's new? I get to sleep in alot. :) I took the holiday as an excuse to look really cute, which meant I got to wear my new heels all day...wahoo! (Check out the link...if you're looking for ultra classy black heels, look no further than Payless!) Classes were fun and laid back, and around 5 o'clock I headed to Chase and Kassie's where they had prepared a delicious dinner for all of us singles, dating, or whatever your status may be! We started the night off right with some Communion, celebrating the Lord's love above all, and then enjoyed our "love feast." :) I love my friends!

After dinner it was off to the Homer Hiccolm & The Rocketboys concert!! YAY! It was incredible. If you've never heard them, go here and listen! The best part, however, was the fact that I got to be that girl who was smuggling pro camera gear in to the show. :) I had a blast meeting up with other photographers, swapping sick lenses, and walking past all those velvet ropes and "Balcony Closed" signs like they meant nothing. I got some sweet shots! I'd be posting them, but they are not on my computer yet. Kyle Trafton (who helped me SO MUCH as I started in photography) is the BEST for walking up to me and handing me his new $1500 lens. I had so much fun playing with it! So much fun, in fact, that I got kicked out of the balcony. :) I love it!!

Getting to try those new lenses gave me a renewed passion and excitement about photography! Using the same lens for...ever gets a little boring. Great! Now I have another really expensive something to add to my list of "To buy." :)

To top it off, I got to have a stellar phone conversation with my friend Shyla after the concert, AND I came home to a rose and iTunes gift card from my dad! Aw...I love my dad! :)

Much love to you all!

February's Top 5!

It's finally here!!

1. Not to be trendy, but this girl, Yael Naim, is pretty much amazing. Paris-born and Israel-raised, her music is a beautiful mixture of intimate pop and folk. I'm in love with her style! Of course, she's also the new cool girl in town because her song, "New Soul" is used in the ads for Apple's new MacBook Air (which is pretty dang sweet). Check it out here.

2. Simplicity and Springtime. Celebrate the budding beauty by buying fresh flowers. It doesn't take much!

3. It's no secret I love Loeffler Randall. Now I have even more reason to love it! Meet the Mazzy sandal in all it's effortlessly-chic glory. Unfortunately, these were not made for Target. Instead they are priced somewhere between $230 and $340 (depending on whether or not you find them on sale). But if you must have them, try eBay.

4. Designer Romona Keveza makes a statement in the wedding fashion world with her unique lengths and sweet gowns.

5. And finally...Valentine's Day. If you're one of those people who just hates V-day, has Singles-Awareness-Day parties, and think it was just invented just for greeting card companies...I'm sorry, but you, my friend, are missing out. I know, I know. Valentine's Day just has that cheesy ring to it, but think deeper about it. It's a day to celebrate love! LOVE! And not just romantic love either. Open your eyes and be grateful!

And one more: "Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his LOVE from me!" Psalm 66:20

Let's hear it for SUMMER!

Hello all. Yes, recovery is going well :) Today, get this, today I SAT UP almost all day. Let's give a hand clap! And although I can't eat delicious-yet-terrible-for-my-health food like pizza (ha!), I did get to eat pretty normal food today. Let's have another round of hand claps!

Get your hands ready for the biggest hand clap yet: I got the call today, and I am OFFICIALLY WORKING AT PINE COVE THIS SUMMER! Can't even tell ya how excited I am! 

On that note, life is good. And being bedridden and stuck inside for something like 7 days makes a person want to sing sonnets and quote Wordsworth as soon as they get a breath of beautiful, natural, outside air. The sky never looked more blue than today and the sun never felt so fresh. Let's all go grab a chic blanket, our most stylish sundress, and (of course) our Gucci handbags and make like the girl in the inspiration photo of the day!

...Well, I'll be joining you guys in a couple of days. :) Still a little sick here. Until then...enjoy today!

I'm still alive...barely.

Yes, it's true. I got the mystery illness that's ten times worse than the flu. This is the first moment in the past 4 days that I've felt like constructing a complete sentence. I'm still in bed though, attached to my 7-up, kleenex box, and Pride and Prejudice.

Anyway, my brain is growing foggy already, so I'm going to spare you, but I'll be blogging again soon. We've got a Top 5 coming up, a trip to New Mexico that needs to be blogged, and more exciting things like that on the horizon.

Oh and more exciting news: I have an engagement session coming up! The Lord keeps providing. :)

Much love to you all. Think of me and my bedridden self if you drink a 7-up anytime soon.

A Poet Soul

Here's a shot from my 2nd Senior Session last weekend! It was a blast to work with this girl. I didn't feel like posting all the photos, so here's a link to the full album. Anyway, on with the post...get in a calm, reflective mood before you read it :)

There's nothing like a good poem.

Today, just a few minutes ago actually, my professor let our class out early. I had absolutely nothing to do for the next 45 minutes until my next class started and really, wasn't very excited about that. I aimlessly wandered down the long hallway, but stopped suddenly when I passed an open door. The voice coming from the room carried passion as he read the poem I recognized as Gerald Manley Hopkins' "Spring." I smiled as I stood in the hallway, eavesdropping; this was Dr. Brunner, the most inspiring professor I've ever had. Listening to him read the poem was beautifully refreshing to my soul.

It was three and a half years earlier that I had sat in that class, listening to Dr. Brunner teach us how to appreciate poetry and the beauty encapsulated in it's clear words. And today, I'm grateful I caught a bit of it again. Listening in for those 10 minutes changed my entire attitude. And now I leave you with my few favorite lines from the poem.

"Nothing is so beautiful as Spring--

    when weeds in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush...

What is all this juice and all this joy?

A strain of the earth's sweet being in the beginning, in Eden garden."

There's nothing like a good poem. :)

P.S. By the way, here's a happy thought. I slept late today and when I finally woke up, Meg and I went to United in our pajamas to buy waffles. Then we went back home and made 'em! No better way to start the day!

A Very Vogue Valentine's Day

Okay girls (since we all know there are NO guys that read this blog), that V-day is approaching. I don't know what your "status" will be come February 14th, but no matter if you're single or married-- we can always use this day as an excuse to get pretty! Here's my own little personal fashion favs to try:

1. A pearl ring: I've seen these pop up all over the place recently.

2. New heels: who doesn't need an excuse to get new heels? Go for something completely impractical.

3. A cute clutch: like this Loeffler Randall rose clutch from Target!

4. Very sweet accessories: check out what American Eagle sells. They have some of the daintiest, girliest, prettiest jewelry I've ever seen.