Portland, Ore.

i found a deal on a flight to portland over MLK weekend and decided to visit my cousin, Debbie.

the first day we traveled to Multnomah Falls -- it was beautiful.

little chilly but the scenery was breathtaking.

it was refreshing to be out of the city and into nature.

ithaca, new york -- it's gorges.

Jordan and I decided to take a weekend trip to Ithaca, New York to visit our friend Katie.

Katie, Jordan and I worked together in DC for National 4-H Council as program assistants.

She recently took a job at Cornell University as a coordinator for agriculture in the classroom.

Katie has a heart of gold and an upbeat demeanor that I envy.

She showed us around the beautiful - hipster - organic only city.

When we got into town, we watched the sun set over the lake.

This is going to sound really cheesy -- but as I sat on the rock and looked at the beautiful sunset, I got so emotional. Tears came down.

I had just left DC, life was a mess but I had this sense of peace looking at the Lord's beautiful creation.

Words can't describe how comforting it was.

 The next morning we went to a farmers market.

Uhhh look at these flowers!

Seriously.

Gorgeous.

I wanted to play in them.

 lots and lots of produce, including blueberries.

 Jordan and I tried the apple donuts and slushies.

Yum.

 few more photos from insta.

do you see how big those carrots are in the bottom right hand corner?

 The best part of the whole trip was probably the wine tour.

The Finger Lakes have a ton of wineries.

The wineries are located around the lake, so you find a DD, stop when you want and pay $3 each time to sample about six different kinds of wines.

The scenery was beautiful, the weather was perfect and the wine was tasty.

On our last day, we went and saw the gorges.

"Ithaca is gorges" is a little slogan they use in NY.

Clever, right?

It was a wonderful trip.

A bit stressful at times as I had my final interview for TOMS one day.

My dear friends were so patient and accommodating with my nervous tension.

Love those two and can't wait until we are reunited again.

Arizona

dad and i just got back from visiting family in tucson, arizona.

my great uncle, dennis, is 91 years young.

his daughter, deanna, takes excellent care of him.

deanna is an angel from above.

she provides for his every need.

she is currently battling cancer.

say a prayer for her if you can.

she inspires me to give.

give love &

time.

photo 1: waiting for the plane to take off.

photo 2:  we had a big BBQ with the family.

photo 3: Beyond Bread. Carbs. Nuff' said.

photo 4: twinsies ... #babyhungry

photo 5: deanna makes the best pancakes.  i ate them as i stared at the mountains.

photo 6: palm trees and mountains = love.

photo 7: more mountains

photo 8: the joys of being in mo, ia, ne, and az within a week.

ASB Day 1: Nashville

 on the first day of spring break, our group had a free/fun day.

we walked downtown amidst the cowboy boots & hats.

(giggled at the country twang here and thur)

 

 many beautiful buildings and trees in bloom.

 the country music hall of fame was one of our stops.

all of the gold & platinum records were mesmerizing.

taylor swift's dress was my fav.

 

for lunch we ate at the wild horse saloon.

yummy food plus a big dance floor that wasn't being used.

(they teach square dance lessons in the evenings)

kasha, natalie, and i split this huge margarita.

dangerously good.

 

  

 

later in the afternoon we walked around this gorgeous park and hit up a farmers market.

by 4:00 p.m. we were on the road again headed for our destination: greenville, sc!

Guess what!

I changed my mind about the whole 'graduate early' thing.

I have officially been accepted to study abroad next semester in Athens, Greece!

(Yes, I know their country is going through a lot right now.)

But...I am thrilled.

I hope you are too because I'm always up for visitors!

Go get your passport if you don't have one already.

See you in February, Greece!