six months later...

hey there.
it's been awhile.

pretty sure i just needed a break from blogging 
(as unrefined as my blogging may be).
but hopefully i'm back to stay for a while.
a lot has happened since november, so let me get you caught up:


we had a no-present christmas in my family. 
it was so good for all of us.

we did do a white elephant exchange with our extended fam

 













i turned 28 and can't believe it. 
also, my friends spoil me with weekends in wine country.

 














my bff or longer from school came to visit with her sweet fam.

 




















my uncle passed away in january after battling stomach cancer. 
it was a hard time for all of us.

 



















i took a little jaunt down to socal.

 



















became a wound care certified nurse. my geekiness continues to flourish.

 














my sister got engaged! crazy. can't believe we are growing up.

took another quick jaunt, but to yosemite this time.

went to a giants game during the opening series.

went kayaking in monterey

 



















went to morocco and road a camel. i mean, why not?

such a crazy six months! 
i am so grateful for the hard times and the good times;
God is so good through it all.

what will the next six months hold?
no clue.
but this coming season is bringing much change.
sometimes i have serious anxiety about it.
other times, i am giddy about it.
despite my feelings, the Lord is constant.
and i am immensely grateful for that. 
i can't wait to see what the Lord does and how He moves.
His way is perfect, not mine.

southern lovin'

this past week, i spent some time in raleigh, north carolina 
with some pretty awesome people.
we hung out, went to an international fair, 
spent some time at the beach, and pursued fall colors.
i won't bore you with too many words;
i'll let the pictures tell the story...

 my only hint of fall colors in the distance while i sipped chai and spent time with Jesus.

"fake friend" time over some pretty coffee and yummy food.

fun times celebrating culture with these chicks

 first view of the atlantic!

the sky is literally on fire

while the sun is being amazing and doing this,
i turned around and saw this:

 unreal.

later, we all hit the beach for a stroll.

 

i mean, the beach is pretty magical.

chai and chat in person.

so good for my soul.

 

it's  just pretty in the south. 

 fall finally showed its shy self.

 you can say what you want about the SBC,

but their focus on reaching the nations is unparallelled. 
grateful for their influence in my life.

 i got to have one more date with susan, too!

sadly, all good things come to an end
and i was california bound.
but not before one last amazing sunrise in the carolinas.

i am so grateful for this time away!

i was able to reconnect with old friends, make new friends,

and spend some much needed time with Jesus.

well, until next time.

cincerely,

cindy

July: hello and goodbye

is it really the end of july?!
it seems like just yesterday i exploring the wonders of europe.
maybe this month has flown by because it's been a busy one.
here's my july recap.

 went on a life-threatening camping adveture with these ladies.

 last weekend, my freshman year roommate traveled north

to celebrate a very special lady and her newest addition.

not only did we have a great time partying,

we also took deanna to her first giants game!

an amazing weekend with some incredibly special people.

this past weekend was destined for greatest.

it all started with a visit with kimber.

our friendship has been long distance for the past two and half years,

so spending time together in person is absolutely treasured.

friday was my sister's birthday

and what better way to spend it than at the yard?

club level, toms, and corn dogs.

all was well until the "varsity blues" speech on the jumbo tron.

never a good sign at a giants game.

 on saturday, we decided to adventure.

we drove to tiburon in the north bay 

and took the ferry to angel island.

we hiked the five mile perimeter of the island.

a very doable, paved hike on an absolutely beautiful day!

on sunday, laura and i took our sisters out for their birthdays.

it's one of my favorite adult life traditions.

we took the sunol wine train.

even though we don't know much about wine,

it was still a super fun day!

this summer has been fabulous thus far.

europe in june,

stay-cations in july.

i can only imagine the fun that august will unlock!

cincerely,

cindy

three year friendversary

The summer of 2010 marked one of the 
best summers in my 27 year history. 
One of the factors influencing its greatness 
was meeting new friends. 
A couple of us like to celebrate when we met. 
Last year, we slept in a yurt and hiked in Yosemite. 
We weren't sure that this year's reunion would 
happen since one of us is living overseas. 
But we were so grateful that it happened!

Our rules:

1) spend time together

2) do something outdoorsy and adventurous

3) not shower 

Pretty simple, yea?

We met up and headed to Pescadero, 
a quaint coastal town between San Francisco and San Jose.

We explored the town a bit, 
but were sad that the goat farm was closed. 

We made our way to the campsite in memorial park. 
We dominated camp set up. 

 

To celebrate, we headed out on a short hike 
and took some time to explore. 
The redwood trees were amazing!

We spent time catching up,

eating s'mores, and scaring away raccoons.

maybe potentially being scared by them, too. 

it rained overnight, so we forwent the 

longer hike the next day.

we cleaned up camp, had some breakfast in half moon bay,

and spent the afternoon just kickin' it. 

all in all, an amazing time!
grateful for such amazing friends
and can't wait for more potential fun later this month!



cincerely,


*wanna-be rugged* cindy

10 on 10

ten on ten.
ten pictures on the tenth of the month.
it was a..

Artist observing,

300 calories-of-goodness eating,

hanson listening,

new trail hiking,

uncle time enjoying,

cloud loving,

5K reminiscing,

europe prepping,

roman holiday watching,

 and tucker family visiting
kind of day.

grateful for a day like today!

linking up:

cincerely,

cindy