Inspired to paint...

During worship/church today I had the urge

to come home and paint.

Wasn't quite sure it was going to work out

(esp. since we have family in town)

but I'm glad it did!

The weeks are so busy,

it's a real treat to get to slow down

and have a quiet afternoon...

and feel like painting! ♥

Here's the other one I did...

(It helps if I do two at a time

otherwise I lose my momentum

waiting for the paint to dry... :)

you will receive power when the Holy Spirit

comes on you... -Acts 1:8

Day 1: Arrival + Baseball... (Sat.5/29)

the family is starting to arrive...

John & Giada's big day is just a week away!! ♥

for their first night in town

we went to a Pelican's game! :)

Harmony (Fri.5/28)

ran into melissa and harmony at walmart today

wow.

Judd-gathering [#1]... (Fri.5/28)

Chip & Coleen Judd have invited us to hang

with a few other select-couples

at least monthly through the summer...

Our first get-together was pretty great!

Definitely looking forward to more.

Thankful for the hang-time and for the

investment they're intentionally making in us!

Jill-time... (Tues.5/25)

nice to get to hang with Jill and Laila..

(Carly was at her grandparents')

sweet, sharpening friendship!

final farewell... (Mon.5/24)

fun times.

sad to see them go, but excited

for the opportunity that lies ahead for them both.

S&J's triple celebration.. (Sun.5/23)

both birthdays + going-away party

at Logan's...

sad but fun celebrating them!

quick trip to Charleston... (Sat. 5/22)

busy day in downtown Charleston...

we got to see the Jordan twins again

which was wonderful!

Sam & Jason were there at

the very same time too,

which was pretty great!

Day trips with Jeremy have to be

one of my favorite things ever!

We ate at Vickery's,

walked down to Market Street

for to-go dessert from Kaminski's,

and then headed over to N.Charleston

to hang and stay with the Libbon's...

more fun pics from the day

Veggie lasagna... (Fri.5/21)

we decided to treat ourselves with a nice big meal

to last us through the weekend and into the week...

sweet date night cooking, eating, and relaxing together. ♥

S&K Brewsters-date... (Thurs.5/20)

getting in some more QT before the Florida-move...

5 days left at this point...

hair cuts... (Wed.5/19)

good times in Haircut Karen's garage

gettin the curls cut... ♥

Tommy Bahama's girls' night... (Tues. 5/18)

girls' night with Noreen and Stacy..

I guess I get too caught up in the moment to actually take a picture during dinner...

So, Instead, I give you the paper to-go bag.. :)

Had a great time with these two
catching up over the best $5 (happy hour) appetizers at the beach!
...definitely look forward to more! ♥

new lock... (Mon.5/17)

It's so great getting to live above mom & dad,

but we definitely felt like we were missing something without this guy...

helps with the autonomy if nothing else I guess... :)

twin Jordans... (Sun.5/16)

Tuller (Baby Boy Jordan)

and Ada (Baby Girl Jordan)...

precious bundles of life

and sure gifts from above!

so excited for these cousins and dear friends!

if you're a prayer, please pray these preemie twins

will grow and grow and become strong in full health.

they're in Charleston -at MUSC- for now

and should be released sometime close to their

long-term due date (around the first week of August)...

We Were Trying for One (their blog)...

in case you want to follow them too... ♥

....as far as my blog goes,

April may never get updated (it might)...

but, thankfully I caught May while it was still fresh

in my mind and camera... hope you enjoy :)

uneventfully wonderful... (Sat. 5/15)

no photo necessary.

we stayed home

and relaxed

and it was great!

baseball datenight (Fri.5/14)

Decided on a MB Pelicans game for date night.

(and a very good choice it was)

our home team didn't take the win,

but thankfully they were playing the Red Sox minors...

we decided it was win-win either way :)

kitchen table... (Wed.5/12)

yep, that's the real thing.

a great fit and a perfect match.

...and a sweet night with the parents-in-love...

we made angel hair pasta with alfredo clam sauce

and garlic bread

and chocolate pudding for a treat

we looked at honeymoon photos

(which I still want to post!)

and even made time for a few rounds of Rummy...

sweet moments.

beyond thankful. ♥

farewell friend... (Tues.5/11)

not really accepting the fact that sammie's leaving

...picking up and moving to FL...

following love and a nursing-dream.

oh man I'm going to miss her

and these face-to-face coffee-dates!!!

New church building + Mother's Day... (Sun.5/9)

have you seen our new space?

(sweet panoramic made possible by the new Kodak M580!)

Mother's Day was great...

we did announcements (me)
& music (J)
both services,

lunch with Mom & Pop Alford,

some J&K cooking-time

(we made veggie lasagna, & salad for our moms)

and then got to enjoy the best hang time with both of our

families at once!!

love that the A's and the G's get along so well together.

we are certainly blessed!

Sweet Saturday Goodness.. (Sat.5/8)

our first ever Creative Saturday

(that we need to be sure to repeat often!!)

he drew, I painted...

and we made sure to enjoy the process

more than care about the end result.

(difficult for us, but a worthy goal!)

...AND we moved the breakfast table out to the porch.

(to make room for the dinner table J has in storage)

this was a very good move.

as if all that wasn't great enough,

we got to join our favorite Judd-duo for a

double date night at the Marsh Walk...

good times with these two.

appreciate the easy conversation

and goodness of their friendship! ♥

datenight at the beach... (Fri.5/7)

one of many great date nights.

Huntington beach

fresh strawberries

(from-the-field fresh)

and our current reads...

(and a little bonus-shut-eye:)

we sure do have a lot to be thankful for!!

today's faces.. (Wed.5/5)

field trip with LWE at Barnes today...

125 kiddos total!

wow.

thankfully not all at once though.

we basically did 4 rounds of 30+

fun times!

(I knew there was a reason I went to school for Education!:)

Busy but goood... (Sun.5/2)

worship (practice) in our new Vineyard home

el cerro lunch with the Alfords that I love...

..and the jordan twins' shower ♥

(Is there a rule somewhere that says busy Sundays

must follow busy Saturdays??)

Saturdays just got better [with marriage]... (Sat.5/1)

Breakfast: apple pancakes!

(Moma A's recipe:)

morning beach walk...

(with my love, of course)

Cook Family Reunion day (one of my favorite days of the year)

-and a favorite new cousin!

and A-family time! ♥

...what a day!!

couldn't be more thankful for this bunch!

Wedding Photos [by Lynn Daly Photography]

lynndalyphotography.com/blog

album link...

thankful to Lynn (and Reuben & Marc Climie)
for all the masterpieces. ♥

great song...

Your Hands by JJ Heller

Actually the first time I've heard her.

Fantastic.

Just searched her on youtube.com (another first for me!) and this was the first song listed... thought it was certainly share-worthy! ♥

Social Justice: campaign to stop human trafficking

"Justice is a rational pursuit,
a calculated decision
to balance the scales
and ensure that all individuals
are treated with dignity.

Love, however, moves us to transcend what we calculate as reasonable.

Justice moves me to search for answers...
But love takes me to deapths of compassion..."

-David Batstone, president and co-founder of the Not For Sale Campain

Full story of artist and abolitionist Kru Nam of Chaing Mai, Thailand:

www.notforsalecampaign.org/projects/thailand/kru-nam-setting-the-captives-free/