Monday, June 28

I ♥ Faces: Pets

Abby

This is one of about 3 pictures I have of Abby, our family sheltie. I got this one while she was keeping watch over my cousin out in the pool. Abby turns 10 tomorrow, so she's slowed down a little, but was next to impossible to capture when she was little she was so fast. She used to chase down tennis balls in the back yard and get going too fast to be able to stop, and roll head over... paws... when she got to her ball. :)

For more pet photos from iheartfaces.blogspot.com click the camera 

Wednesday, June 23

Amanda {15}

Here are some more of the pictures of my little sister, Amanda (14 years old for #14) I took yesterday-






Monday, June 21

I ♥ Faces: Celebrating Teens!

This week's theme at iheartfaces.com is Celebrating Teens. I was so excited to see that teens are being recognized in the upcoming weeks, because I turn 20 this August, and have really enjoyed my years as a teen. Because I'm currently a teen, I have lots of pictures of teens (yay for having photogenic friends!) so picking a shot was difficult until I remembered my photo with one very special teen.










In November of 2008, I went to Pignon, Haiti for the first time on a mission trip. While there, I met a girl four years younger than me, but who knew so much more how this world works. Meet Lissy, who was 14 at the time of this photo (I am18 here). I met her while visiting a local orphanage where she had been living for a little less than 2 years, since she was rescued from a life as a child slave. This girl was barely a teen and had gone through more in her life than most of the adults I know, but somehow she still never stopped smiling. 

The composition of this photo was a complete accident. I went to take our picture in stereotypical teen style (camera held out, hoping to get everyone in the shot) and didn't realize that my camera was still zoomed in from the last picture. Yay for getting a lucky shot!

Tuesday, June 15

Gimbi Haiti


























Today, I have decided to remind myself to be grateful. This is from Gimby, Haiti, in May. I've had a really long day of wanting today (two hours is MUCH more than I'd like), so this is my reminder to recognize how much I have. Because I have SO much. I have been so blessed, and I need to make sure I am thankful for it more often.

Monday, June 14

Mount Vernon June 2010

I got to go take pictures around the "block" (about a mile around, gotta love the country) and ended up with about ten shots I really like. My favorite of the day:

And here are the runners up (click to enlarge):

 


Tuesday, June 8

Running Home

   So I've been meaning to do this for quite a while, not because my life is really all that interesting, but because sometimes I just need an outlet for whatever's going on in my life. That and I think my mom will appreciate it when I'm back at school. But here I go, finally doing it.
   When it comes to the title I took lots of time trying to come up with something witty and cute, but nothing seemed to fit. I considered what I like to do, things and people I love, even thought through my favorite songs for catchy lyrics, but I just kept coming back to this sense of home. There are all sorts of quotes and beliefs about what constitutes "home" and I agree with many of them. Home means so many things.
   It starts in childhood, where home base means you're safe, no one can tag you. It's where you can catch your breath, be comfortable for a little bit. Where, in all the chaos, you can take a break and just sit. But you soon learn that sitting at home base all the time makes tag no fun, you have to stick your neck out and hope you're faster than what's chasing you.
   Life works the same way. You can't stay home in your safe little bubble forever, you have to branch out. Go to camp, go on trips, go to college, just go. Each time you go, the definition of home changes a little bit. It's not until you go that you realize that HOME FOLLOWS YOU. It moves. Home is where ever the people that you're closest to are. The old saying is mostly right... Home IS where the heart is, but home is really what you FILL your heart with. It's like when you were a kid and you got your heart cutout at school and your project was to fill it with all the things you love. You'd write or draw little pictures of your family, pets, a bubble bath, who knows, kids are awesomely random. Those things, whatever you'd draw now, that's home. For me it's holding orphans in Haiti, coloring and watching Disney, holding my boyfriend's hand and throwing my hands in the air, singing praise music at the top of my lungs with my friends at CRU.
     So what if your heart is split? What if all those things you've drawn don't fit in the same space, or like me, you just don't have that many hands? Now we've gone from home being a house to home being a collective of the things that make you feel all safe and comfy, all warm and fuzzy, and sometimes it seems like there's something missing. That's because there is. (insert oohs, aahs and WHHAAAATs here) Here's the deal. THIS ISN'T HOME! We keep defining and redefining what home is all throughout our lives because we're all searching for the same thing- Jesus Christ. He left to prepare for us the home we're all looking for. We're not supposed to be comfortable here because we're don't belong here. We belong with our Father. Run toward Him. Find your comfort in Him here, fill your heart with His love, mercy and grace, and make sure the other things you draw in are leading you closer to Him. While we're here our connection with God is the Holy Spirit. Listen to Him, He's speaking to you. ACKNOWLEDGE HIM! And RUN!
     So there you go. Running Home. Hope that makes a little more sense to you. I'd say future posts wont be quite so... lecturey, but I'm sure there'll be a few. I do promise though that I won't always be so serious! I plan to put up pictures of artwork and trips, and I'm sure LOTS of just plain random life.