Hey, Hey Ballerina

I'm Listening to "Marvelous Light" by Charlie Hall.

"Resting in Goodness"

I took these pictures of Catherine at Breakaway, our youth retreat. It was just one of those times when I had my camera and she was wearing the right thing and we walked past the right place. Strange how that happens.

Catherine, I always think of you when I hear "Marvelous Light". I love the way you use your voice to praise the Lord. Don't waste that talent that He has given you 'cus I know when I hear you sing, I wanna sing too. Let me challenge you to live this song. Embrace His goodness. Let Him be your all-sustaining power. Let Him be your light. Lift your hands and spin around, Catherine. Praise God with your all. You know these words to be true. You know it in your head. I'm challenging you to know it in your heart. When you know it, you won't wanna stop spinning around and praising Him. He is so good. God is good through all circumstances, remember that. He is your satisfaction, your all. Trust Him, Love Him. He won't let you down. He promises.
Remember that in Psalm 57, God promises to send His faithfulness. That means that when things suck, ('cus they will), when it's definately not going your way, God is still faithful. His plans are better and He won't ever cheat you and He won't leave you. He is always faithful.

I love you.

"Ballerina"

"Ballerina 2"

Wow, The Sun Sets Here, Too!

What I'm listening to: Here Without You, by 3 Doors Down


I admit that I was not thrilled about the spur-of-the-moment trip I took with my family last weekend. 9 hours up to Indiana to camp with a bunch of people I don't know for 3 days didn't sound like fun to me. It's not that I mind driving, I like long drives actually. And I don't really mind camping either especially when there are woods to be explored and s'mores to eat. But in this case, there were no woods to explore and no one to play catch with. There was an awesome tree that I climbed and spent a few hours reading up in its branches. Yes, this trip was filled with lots of reading. 6 books in 4 days, a personal record. But the most beautiful part of the trip was the drive. We came up through the Tennessee River Valley (that would be a beautiful place to camp!) and proceeded to drive past spacious land that was more often then not bordered by a white fence. There were lots of horses to look at, to my delight. I love horses. I miss riding. The falling off part I don't miss so much, but I figure maybe I've fallen off enough to fill my quota. Anyway, the landscape gave me some new dreams to ponder and a couple new story plots to work out. None of that however has anything to do with the pictures in this post.

Ok, so who knew that Indiana could offer one of the most beautiful sunsets ever? I certainly didn't. I'd never been to Indiana before. Dad and I drove about 15 miles from our campsite to find a grocery store. Once again, God surprised me with His beauty by showing me that even a hicktown somewhere in Indiana to which I had been reluctantly dragged, was capable of putting on a show. Amid all the bugs, bordum and uncomfortable sleeping ground, here's the beauty.

"Down the Road A Ways"

"Set"

"Around the Hedge"

"A Sunset In My Mailbox"

And the Award Goes To...

What I'm Listening To: Citizen/Soldier by 3 Doors Down

"Huggable Soldier"

Meet Sean. Soldier Defender Warrior Handsome Gallant Strong Fearless Ready Gentle Affable Funny Caring. All of these words I would use to describe my Christ-Brother.
Sean is headed to the Military Academy this summer and will be joining the Army in a few years. He is our soldier. Sean isn't violent necessarily, but the aura of safety and protection that he carries is what makes him, (to me, at least), a true soldier. Sean is not afraid of our tears. He doesn't mind when we break down. He takes the time to talk to us when something's wrong. He'll listen and he'll give subtle advise but he never presses for details. And one of the things that I think is most important, Sean knows that sometimes the solution to a problem is just a hug.
Sean, I will miss you terribly but I am so proud of you. We've decided that you win the best big brother award. Be strong. We'll be waiting!
1 John 2:14b "I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one."

My Atlanta Sunrise

What I'm Listening To:
Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles

"Quiet"

I woke up at 6:45 the other morning with the (what I thought was brilliant) idea to watch the sunrise from my backyard. Sure, that paper said that sunrise was at 6:58 but what I forgot was that it would still take a while for the sun to make its way through the tall pine trees surrounding my house. But being the wonderfully stubborn person that I am, I sat outside taking pictures of a barely lit sky, waiting for a couple sun rays to greet me. That only took about half an hour. I used to think that you could only watch the sunrise at the beach but here are some pictures of the sunrise in Atlanta.

"And I Say It's All Right"

"Returning Smile"

"Golden Touch"

"Mr. Monet, If You Please"

"Sun, Sun, Sun, Here We Come"

"Here Comes The Sun: Little Darlin'"

A Lazy Friday Afternoon

"Sun in the Sidelines"

Meet Ruthie, my third Christ-Sister. She came over on Friday and we hung out on the trampoline and took some pictures. I loved the way the sun was coming over the house next door and hit her hair and face. While taking these pictures, the thought "When did my baby grow up???" passed through my head. Ruthie has always prized her tee-shirts and shorts over any other item in her closet and would definitely prefer running around outside then shopping the mall. I am incredibly proud of the way she has taken charge of her new world at a new, much bigger school. I have watched her positively explode into a gorgeous, talented, graceful - (yes, graceful! As in, not as clumsy!) - thoughtful and unique young lady of God. Ruthie has always brought joy into my life and the life of our Family. She's very good at picking out the silver lining from a big, terrifying storm cloud. Ruthie is like a golden retriever, she just wants to be happy and everyone else to be happy and come out to play!
Keep growin', Ruthie! I love you!

"Shining From the Background"

"My Personal Smilie-Face"

"Classic: PYT"

"Laughter"

"Ruthie's Eyes"

A Room With A View

"Sunset"

On my most recent trip to Naples I took 412 pictures... 307 of them were of this sunset. It was breathtaking. The Naples Pier is one of the most famous places to go see a sunset and I certainly hope that some of my pictures can convince you why. As I walked up the Pier, I saw a very old couple sitting on one of the benches. They were holding hands and looking out to the horizon. A few paces more and a woman wearing white and a man in dress clothes were leaning against the railing, watching the sun go down. A group of girl friends laughed and stuck out their tongues as they took pictures of themselves with the sunset being them. A mom held her baby daughter who was reaching out with chubby little hands towards the bright orange ball sinking into the blue blanket of water. Then the scene was totally lost 'cus I walked up on this guy who was gutting a really big fish. It smelled gross, not to mention the guts spilling everywhere. Poor Nemo... Anyway, there's something unexplainable about the mood a sunset brings. For me, it was primarily joy. I hope my spot in Heaven has a veiw like that.

"Steffi In The Sun"

"Tender Tide"

"Cotton Candy Sky"

"Pillars"

"On The Pier"

"Reflection"

"A Peephole"

Beauty and the Beast

"Encore Roses"

My high school put on a production of Beauty and the Beast this weekend. It was absolutely incredible! I took roses to some of my friends who were in it. One of my best guy friends played Lofou and was totally perfect! Several other friends were in the chorus and pieces of furniture in the Castle. Another guy friend, who is extremely talented, got picked for the Beast! It was fun to see people I actually knew play the parts. Anyway, the musical was amazing. I love performing and love watching it, too. Here are just a few of the gazillion pictures I took. (As you can see, I have a bit of an infatuation with Gaston... he was fantastic).

"Marry Me, Belle"

"Gaston and Lofou"

"Gaston and Lofou 2"