Good Year 2013

I'm always reminded of how filled this year has been when I review it in photos.

[as seen in 2010, 2011, and 2012]

Here's to 2013… A good year. 

A year of brokenness and beauty, a year of abroad adventures, races, mountains, and city risks, 

a year of new community - new church and new friendships - of celebrations and mourning, 

a year of leaving a job to pursue a graduate degree,

and most importantly: a year where God showed me His Hand in my life, 

His plans over mine, His suffering and His glory,

His goodness, faithfulness, and unconditional love...

and the freedom that only comes from life with Him.

Gatsby New Years at our apt. Gold wallpaper, a homemade bar, and photobooth fun :)

Ringing it in with these guys.

Sibs (+ Jillian) ski trip / playtime in Denver 

Spending my days with these dear Kinders...

Teaching alongside my assistant

Deciding to paint out floor… not realizing it would take 3 weeks.

and then, that day it was completed. 

Adventures with Ash… morning coffee, donuts, life.

New Years Resolution to Take Risks made it's first appearance in winter lake jumps.

Birthday adventures for Ash!

Californiaaaaa for Spring Break

Roadtrip to SLO

dreamy days with my Suzy

National Donut day!

Bridesmaiding in Captiva Island, FL

Jackie gets married!

True Life: We live in Wrigleyville
(actually it's Lakeview, but it feels like Wrigley sometimes…!)

Teachers go dancing

Spring adventures with Mikey!

My best friend bros

Family time

Backyard dinners at the Lily

Steph gets married! Celebrating with best friends Chicago community :)

The last weeks with Sonj before she moved to Seattle

The Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup!
And we celebrate with free drinks + bread at Little Goat

Milwaukee half marathon! Finished in 1:58!

Summer in a backpack

Mikey took me up my first 14'er: Bierstadt!

Nights in Wicker Park

Free Spirit photo shoot

These 2 good friends come to Chi!

Jenny celebrates the fourth in Chi!

2nd annual Americake!

Camino de Santiago: walking 790km across Spain for a month

Celebrating my 27th in Santiago de Compostela with my best Camino friends

Returning to Chicago… and Jessica back to the Lily! (before she left us again…)

morning hangouts with Bets

Backyard summer dinners

Chicago river with friends

Nights that end in Karaoke

Starting graduate school at Wheaton College

Ester + Matt get married!

Life in Chicago with my bro

Fall Junto dinners

Being a graduate student

Apple picking with our community of friends

Thursday night prayer group with the 10 best women I know

Celebrating Ashley getting into nursing school at Rush

Roadtrip to Dayton

a weekend with Jenny!

Puppy Sitting… an experience we might not try again.

Fall weekend in Waupaca with our best friends

cozy cabin mornings with such good people

Friends and Flannel

Fall adventures with Britt

Halloween with the Kennedys

Putting the fur to use as Margot from Royal Tenenbaums

Backyard pumpkin carving parties

Fireball Country karaoke for Todd's bday

Odds game bets & a November lake jump

School field trips

celebrating Nate's bday on the curb with pie

Chicago Public Library days

Being students in the lily!

We are fur owners

Mikey comes home! Adventures around our suburban 'hood

Christmas Tree times

Co-leading the Kids Experience at Soul City Church Christmas Store 2013

our winter Gala season

Mikey proposes in Denver! and Daniel and I surprise :)

Galavanting around the city in search of perfect Christmas gifts

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Purchasing an animal for NYE photobooth…
and subsequently owning Louie for 3 days.

 

Black & White NYE at the Lily!

Ringing in 2014 with our best friends.

and a tribute to my Papa… In celebration of his life on earth, and new life in heaven.
He is the clearest and truest picture of the Father's love for me, and I am who I am because of my Papa.
He will be missed in 2014 - and years to come - but his legacy lives on through each member of our family.

I love these guys… and now they have a Christmas alb!

{ thank you Mikey for keeping me In with all things music… }

Season of Fur

With eager dedication to her quest, Ashley pronounced one Saturday a commitment to seeking a fur coat for 75 cents at the thrift. With an added ounce of fortitude in the wee hours of the morning, she returned with nothing less than one mink coat, which she gracefully whisked off the Salvation Army rack for a grand total of... 75 cents. And because it was August, we displayed this model of Ash's obvious spiritual gifting on the hallway coat rack to welcome all Lily guests. 

Sometimes Ashley loses Odds Games and has to wear her fur to church...

It was no less than one week later when Ashley decided to put her fortuitous thrifting to work once again, as she escaped the Lily in light of searching for yet another 75 cent fur. Convinced the previous fur find was an act of coincidental grace in the life of Ash, I used all motivational strategies to dissuade her from the impending disappointment looming over an unfulfilled mission. It was to her benefit that she ignored such nonsense advice, because two hours later Ashley returned with yet another fur… for 75 cents. 

As noted last weekend:
There's a reason people [and animals] wear these things.
Turns out, they are really really really warm.

Our coat rack now greets Lily newcomers with a frivolous display of two real furs, while the secret of thriftiness is hushed with an intended air of fanciness. 

Memories of our very first Lily Christmas linger in mind: taped-together burlap stockings adorning artwork that was garbage-picked from our alley, which hung beside the free craigs-listed couch… Christmas 2011 with Betsy set the tone for the true culture of Lily Life. Three years after that first Christmas in the Lily, I am reminded via the medium Fur of what it means to live in our home. Amidst the interchange of both seasonal and permanent guests, parties and conversations and life lived with roommates new and old, these two furs represent the common ground that unites all who have experienced the in's & out's of Lily Life. In the absence of in-unit laundry or a garbage disposal, the lack of a dishwasher or more than one bathroom, it is clear that our apartment is far from fancy… yet this is not something we simply put up with, rather is the defining factor of what we love most about our home.

our furs found friends.

So although there has been talk of converting the furs into decorative pillows or perhaps winter blankets; we've toyed with the idea of selling the furs for flights to Paris or Rome, and laugh about using them to hang as interactive art on a wall… I know deep down these furs will forever remain exactly what they are: a commitment to Lily Life past & present, making memories as roommates in Chicago in our 20's, and perhaps an attempt to feel a hint of fanciness amidst the reality of our graduate-student/career-searching/penny-pinching lives. 

Fur makes for a Halloween costume as- Margot from the Royal Tenenbaums
… the shoulder pads have since been removed.

Someday, we might live in apartments with granite kitchen counters and evenly-aligned door frames; we might have doorknobs that open doors when turned and walls without cracks or holes, but for now I am content knowing this is exactly who we are... 75 cent fur coats and all.

The Few Great Things

"You don't have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, perhaps just one, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by one great thing."

:: John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

Lily Home.

In only a few short days I will be finished with my first semester of graduate school. And though I'm in the wake of finals, confronted with the pressure of reviewing material and feeling the never-ending strain of papers to be written, I am thankful. While it seems that one goes to graduate school to attain knowledge for cognitive growth, here at Wheaton College I find it to be more than a degree that leads to a career; more than a means to an end. This season is dedicated to formation, not destination. It is here that I am learning to submit my life to costly grace, to articulate my theological views, to wholeheartedly pursue my passion, to see the Image of God in all people, to let my philosophy of ministry guide my life, to live and die for He who is bigger than myself. It is acquiring knowledge of Him that transforms my love for Him; it is holistic growth that encapsulates all that I am and all I want to be. He called me here to see more of Him, to learn what I am created for, to rest, to let that which I know and speak be that which I live. Not to know many things, but to let my life be mastered by the One Great Thing.

Christ: the Light of the World, the baby we celebrate this season who is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Christ who came to earth to be our Savior, to point us to the Father, to proclaim the grace, joy, and peace for all nations.

Rush & Wheaton. Grad life is better when done together.

Even now, as I hunker down in the library covered by books, a research paper only 1/8 finished, and the frenzy that comes with running off to my first final, I am in awe of God. He brought me here to give me this gift. The gift of seeing Him more clearly in Scripture, be mentored by professors, and to mold me in compassion and love for his people. 

This is His work. How privileged I am to join Him here.

Snowy days, alley days. Finals, I'm comin for you.

Golden Hour

One of the highlights of being a student this year is knowing that I am writing and library-ing and researching and theologizing alongside my little brother, Mikey, as he studies at Denver Seminary. Together, we seize any opportunity to nerd out over original sin, orthodox doctrines, and on which branch of the conservative/liberal spectrum we fall. Mikey encourages me to dig into Scripture for Truth, to represent Jesus with authenticity, and to regularly revisit the glory and beauty of the gospel message. Don't you just want to join his church someday??! I do :)

But what I love most about my brother is that in addition to his exploration of Jesus through intellect, he has the most adventurous, creative, fun-loving, goofy spirit I know. On any given day, I'll receive study break texts with songs or quotes or vids to watch, and his Instagram is filled with camping, biking, and video excursions. He lives for making memories, whether in the form of Odds Game dares, drinks at the local bar, or just hanging and watching marathons of Friends.

Over Thanksgiving Break, whilst sitting at the table together studiously focusing on papers and sermons, the most beautiful golden hour streamed in through our kitchen window. So it only makes sense that Mikey and I ditched all things Grad Life to go play in the sunlight as we revisited our childhood streets. We used Mikey's Canon T3i to capture the good ol' life in the burbs with our matching high buns amidst backyards of pine forests & willows.

 

{images edited in LightRoom}

"We stand in awe of the ocean,

The thunderstorm,

The sunset,

The mountains,

But we pass by

A human being

Without notice

Even though

The person

Is God's most

Magnificent 

Creation"

:Augustine

{ Camino 2013 }

Today I remember it's friendships and people who bring meaning to life.

The experience of beauty is richer with someone else by your side

delighting in it with you.

This Hymn.

Continually returning to the truth of these words,

the consistent measure of the melody,

and the gentle repetition of the notes

which turn me away from rush and hurry

to the stillness of God's peace.

Real Life: I'm a Student

While it's true that life is note-taking, library-hunkering, presentation-giving, paper-writing, and reading-for-days…

2nd Floor, Billy Graham Center: The place where All Things Grad Life happen.

Days spent studying at the Chicago Public Library...
definitely more productive when feeling like a professional collegiate.

Heritage study dates necessary.

it's also true that grad life survival exists in weekday karaoke, midnight movies, coffee on coffee dates, and fall frolics...

"fireball country" - birthday surprise 

My only regret, leaving the Katniss costume at home.

The night I fell in love with the lead singer of Lord Huron...

Even in the Overwhelming and Stressful, grad life is just too fun.
There's nothing else I would rather be doing than reading & writing the days away...
And to say that is truly a gift.

These Two.

In a few short days, we will gather around the table to hold hands, consume mass amounts of turkey, and give thanks to God in the company of family. Yet it is not encapsulated within this specific moment that deep thankfulness come into fruition, rather in the anticipation of what's to come do I recognize real gratitude. 

In the thought of these coming days, a joy fills my spirit that marks the beginning of a season of holiday. From now until the end of the year, the wave of the Holiday Season sweeps through our lives, overcoming us with shared meals, cookie exchanges, gift purchases, fancy soirees, and a return to the familiar melodies from holidays past.

Brother 1.

Brother 2.

Knowing that I can look forward to holidays with a sense of expectation instead of dread brings thankfulness in itself. I am thankful that I want to go home, I am thankful I have a family to be with, I am thankful for the laughter and togetherness felt when I spend time with my brothers.

My Baylor sibsteins. These two guys. They are my best friends. The holidays are marked by being together with them… a gift I know won't last forever as life takes its turns through marriages, travels, or otherwise. But for now, the joy that comes from thoughts of driving back to Deerfield on Wednesday, a night of family, pizza, and games, followed by a Turkey Trot on Thursday morning and cooking pumpkin pie in the kitchen with Mom brings a smile I can't resist.

Or perhaps better stated in the words of my dear Papa: "Family, family, family. The rest is bullshit." 

Reminders

fall walks.

"In friendship… we think we have chosen our peers.

In reality a few years' difference in the dates of our births, a few more miles between certain houses,

the choice of one university instead of another…

The accident of a topic being raised or not raised at a first meeting…

Any of these chances might have kept us apart.

But for Christians, there are, strictly speaking 

no chances.

A secret master of ceremonies has been at work.

CHRIST, who said to the disciples: 

"Ye have not chosen me but I have chosen you for one another."

The friendship is not a reward for our discriminating and good taste in finding one another out.

It is the instrument by which God reveals to each of us

the beauties of others."

:: C.S. Lewis

b&r day of fun.

God intertwined this heart with mine at the exact moment I needed it, when least expected,

in the most unpredictable happenstance.

After only a few hours strolling the streets of Madrid with Britt,

I knew she was not just a friend of the road, or a travel buddy, or a random meet-up

She is a friend of the heart.

From Spain to Chicago, this friend has lifted me up, encouraged me, prayed for me, and loved me

far beyond what I deserve.

She's adventured & done community with me, laughed & solo danced in the corner of an empty room with me, and brought unending & consistent joy to my spirit.

And last night, it was only one simple phone call 

that prompted a surprise note from Britt on my windshield

altering my spirit and bringing life in my darkness.

I am so blessed by the creativity of God to intertwine such lovely friends in my life, 

who daily draw me to see more of Him.