busy little bee.

that is what ive been for the past two weeks.

week number one consisted of me saying 'see ya later' to bend, oregon.

it was so incredibly bittersweet.

week number two, this past week, has been busy and full of blessings.

i flew home saturday, spent time with my favorite guy and family, shopped for some essentials on sunday, and moved back into my on-campus apartment on monday. holy moly. talk about rushed, but i wouldnt have had it any other way. training has been challenging but so fun. i LOVE love love my staff and cant wait to start this new school year.

also...

here is a parade of pictures from our internship farewell banquet at a swanky restaurant on the rooftop of a building downtown.

ten days later.

and ten days closer to being back in california.

i only have seventeen days left with the beautiful city of bend, oregon.

i have never experienced something that better epitomizes the word bittersweet.

i have fallen in love with bend: the people who know the true meaning of community, the church that has shown me what a functioning body of Christ looks like and inspired me to focus on and utilize my God given strengths to glorify my creator, and the incredible display of Gods creation that is everywhere. in my eyes, everything about this place is desirable. except, of course, for the fact that it is missing everything i love about california.

this may very well be the most difficult and trying change ive ever encountered in my twenty-one years of life. this is big and quite a large piece of my heart is here in bend, with these people, this church and this place. with the friends i've made, projects ive devoted myself to like [this], and adventures ive embarked on, how could i expect it to be any different.

i know the Lord has a plan for my life, and it is far greater than i could even hope or imagine for myself. im excited to see how things unfold over this next year or so. and in the mean time, i can't wait to get back to the things i love.

i am positively ecstatic to return home to:

a family who supports me

friends who encourage me

a incredibly handsome guy who has more than exceeded every one of my expectations

a school year full of unique ministry opportunities

living in an apartment with three lovely ladies

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23-24

its been more than a week since ive had time to devote to this little guy. not to say that i havent had any time at all, as a matter of fact i've had nothing BUT time. my moments have been filled with wonderful things, such as investing in new friendships, having spontaneous garage sale hunts, playing with some pretty cool kiddos, posing for a little photo shoot, and pouring into my summer project.

since being here in bend, ive heard a term that describes perfectly where i am at in life

sweet spot: being at a place in life where you are perfectly content, in who you are, what youre doing, where you're going, and what you have. all of these through and by the grace of God.

ladies and gentlemen, i am in my sweet spot.

i dont know of a time in my life where i have been so completely and wonderfully in awe of who my God is and the things He is doing in my life. He has given me life and love in abundant measures.

The family I am staying with has been such an encouragement in so many unique ways. Their family dynamics are an amazing example of what a family growing together and seeking the Lord should look like. Almost every night they share how they showed love that day and what they loved most about life. It is something I've now begun to share daily with someone whom I care about deeply, and I hope to continue the tradition.

also...

im really thankful for my dear friend whitney. she is part of my mentorship small group, shares a shift with me at the kilns, and has such sweet and genuine spirit. we have the opportunity to house/babysit this week. last night we watercolored until 1am. it was lovely and incredibly inspirational.

speaking of inspiration. i stumble upon some wonderful things every now and again. like this.

the epic weekend ahead.

includes

a trip to portland and then the oregon coast for some surf, fun, and beach time.

&

a trip to seattle with the high schoolers for some swell bonding time, lots of laughs, a mariners game, and the lovely pikes place.

cannot WAIT.

also...

these are just adorable. stationary makes me so excited.

(source)

personality muscles.

last week i took the strengths finder 2.0 test. now this wasnt my first encounter with strengths finder, but it had been a while.

the first semester of my freshman year at cbu i took a version of the test.

my top five strengths in fall of 2007 were:

woo-woo stands for winning others over. you enjoy the challenge of meeting new people and getting them to like you

command-command leads you to take charge. unlike some people you feel no discomfort imposing your views upon others

positivity-you are generous with praise, quick to smile, and always on the lookout for the positive in the situation

empathy-you can sense the emotions of those around you. you can feel what they are feeling as though their feelings are your own.

communication-you like to explain, to describe, to host, to speak in public, and to write.

a week ago i took the test again, but this time the 2.0 version (im assuming it must be more accurate) and my top five strengths are now:

woo-woo stands for winning others over. you enjoy the challenge of meeting new people and getting them to like you

communication-you like to explain, to describe, to host, to speak in public, and to write.

activator-you are impatient for action. you believe that action is the best device for learning.

positivity-you are generous with praise, quick to smile, and always on the lookout for the positive in the situation

ideation-you are fascinated by ideas. you are delighted when you discover beneath the complex surface of an elegantly simple concept to explain why things are the way they are.

these sorts of tests or so interesting to me. i can definitely see why my number one hasnt changed. but its fascinating how the next four have shifted or changed.

being able to share and discuss these with other interns was so eye opening. it helped me learn why i work the way i do, and why others may not function identically.

thank you strengths finder, thank you very much.

also...

i had the most amaaazzzing experience as i walked to my car after babysitting at one this morning. STARS. like i had never ever experienced them before. i will be star gazing more often this summer.

where to begin.

lets start with the fact that i slept in until noon today. blah, so awful. i hate oversleeping normally, but this was a special circumstance. my body has been fighting off an icky cough for about a month and a half now, so i suppose my immune system jumped at the chance to get those 14 hours of sleep. so, youre welcome.

now for business, sort of. so far my time here in bend hasnt seemed like typical work at all. despite the fact that i am always doing something and have several sweet yet time consuming projects to tackle in these 9 weeks, there is such joy and satisfaction in every moment.

my family. my bend family to be a bit more specific. im staying with brandon and karie. they have been so gracious and wonderful to open up their home to me. brandon's joy and energy are so contagious and encouraging and karie is such an awesome example of what a godly wife and mother looks like. they have already blessed me tremendously. their four kids are undeniably adorable. they have me laughing continuously and constantly keep me on my toes. im sure once we all discover photobooth together i will have plenty of pictures to post.

my job. well to put it simply, my job rocks. i get to work with an incredible staff, a super sweet leadership team, and the coolest group of fellow interns i could have imagined. whether we are all working separately on projects or walking to the old mill for lunch its nice to have them around. my ministry focus being in children's ministry means that i get to do something that is so close to my heart. im working on a project called mission kids, which i will be dedicating a post to soon. linda is my ministry focus leader and when the two of us get together we become an unstoppable and sometimes overwhelming duo of energy, motivation, and giggles. im dabbling a bit in music while im up here, of course, and i get to work on the creation of the antioch church choir. i am so excited for this opportunity, i do have my fair share of choir experience.

other. i honestly and truly believe that i've made some life long friends. i love that im paired up with a super wonderful mentor and two equally lovely group members. im in a ping pong tournament that im sure to lose in the first round. i drive the 'cranberry cruiser' or more fondly known as the 'hubby hunter' which is a dark reddish purpley mini-van. i love it up here, and am praying about moving back after graduation, yikes! i could find a new yummy place to eat lunch at every day. coffee shops/tea houses are my new favorite place to go get work done. monday night craft nights are going to teach me so many new things. i love my new-found love for the outdoors; rock climbing, scaling, hiking, biking, running, river floating, river rafting, kayaking, and monday morning boot camp.

it is such a lovely blessing to have wonderfully talented photographers like marianne here.

smith rock.

my headband from craft night #1

more from smith rock.

more of the beautiful view.

i know im leaving out half of the cool things about this place, these people, and my last two weeks. but this is all i've got for now.

also...

im praying for some wisdom over this next week. so thankful that my God is faithful.