Happy Birthday, Sister!

Happy Birthday to my little sister!  I am so grateful for my sister.  She has been a great, hilarious, and trustworthy friend for all of my life! And, an early congratulations  for her up and coming graduation from Penn State University next week with a B.S. in Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management!  Happy Birthday, Lauren! I love ya and I am proud of you!

Happy Birthday, Mom

Today is my mom’s birthday! Happy birthday to an amazing woman for whom I have endless appreciation! I am so ridiculously fortunate to have been raised by such an loving, supportive, caring, warm, selfless, trustworthy (the superlatives could continue on) mom! Happy birthday, mom! I love you and am truly grateful for all of the ways you have impacted me!

Marriage

I saw this quote by Julia Child on a friend’s tumblr today.  Made me smile and appreciate (even more) the relationship I have with my wife, Christy Rose.  It’s a blast being married to her, my love and my best friend! I wouldn’t want to spend my life any other way!

                

Wedding Reminiscences

Yesterday, I was feeling nostalgic remembering Christy’s and my wedding day.  It’s hard to believe that we’ve been married for nearly two years.  How great it’s been!  Anyway, I glanced through all of our professional wedding photos (taken by Bob Lambert, a photographer in State College, PA; I would highly recommend him!) and remembered what a fun time we had July 11, 2oo9 celebrating our marriage with all of our friends and family.  Here are a few of my favorite shots!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter, friends!

I hope everyone had an excellent day of celebrating with family and friends!

Thanks to the Lord for sending his Son for us!

 

In Christ Alone- One of my favorite hymns!

Run, run, run

I’ve always wanted to run a marathon.  Only one, though.  So, I am going to start training, and if all goes well, I will be able to run the Pasadena marathon next…April, I think.  I have been slowly starting to build my running mileage.  Since the race is still a long way off, I am going to take my time and enjoy the training process.  Hopefully I will be able to whip these old bones back into some modicum of fitness.  I think it will be really fun!  Anyone care to join?!

Catalina Island

This past weekend, my dad-in-law, wife, sister-in-law, and I took a day trip to Catalina Island.  It was a lovely venture.  Situated approximately 22 miles off of the coast of Los Angeles, the enchanted island welcomes visitors into a quiet village full of unique and colorful buildings.  Surrounding the village are miles of beautiful, mountainous hiking trails and pleasant beaches.  While I do quite enjoy life in Pasadena, it was really refreshing to escape the bustle of the city for a day and to enjoy a slower pace.  I’d definitely suggest checking out Catalina Island if you’re ever in the southern California region and are looking to explore!                

“Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I’ve really been enjoying this quote.  Trying to make it a more common theme in my life.

Tickling the Ivories

I appreciate music.  Playing it, listening to it, and occasionally writing it…I love it all. Over the past year, I have been attempting to play the piano more frequently.  For about nine years, I took weekly lessons from a wonderful music teacher at my school.  As time passed, my ability to read sheet music waned, and I resigned to playing little “dittys” that I created.  Recently, though, I decided to challenge myself to begin revisiting some classical pieces.  This is my current project:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2LcJTqwVug

It’s incredible to think that Beethoven wrote the Moonlight Sonata (and many other pieces) after he became deaf.  Take a listen and enjoy some Beethoven!

words on a page

About a month and a half ago, I decided to begin reading.  One of my life goals is to be “well-read”, and it became glaringly apparent that this goal was not going to be fulfilled without proactive help.  So, one afternoon I meandered over the the Pasadena Public Library (a stately old building and truly what library should be like) and began my search for some classic literature.  Although, I was uncertian as to what novels I would select, my interest in British literature guided my way.  These were my finds:  The Picture of Dorian Gray  (Wilde), Jane Eyre (Bronte), Pride and Prejudice (Austen), Wuthering Heights (Bronte).

Really, I was inspired to begin reading by a visiting scholar.  He was presenting a talk at Fuller and said something to the effect of, “One cannot be an achieved writer without being an avid reader.”  Basically, this guy accredited his success as an accomplished writer and professor to his love for reading.  I thought what he said made a lot of sense.  In the future, I don’t know if I really want to write all that much; however, I want to prepared if the opportunity ever presents itself, I suppose.  So far, I’ve made it about halfway through Wuthering Heights.  It’s a fantastic read.  The plot is thick and complicated, and the vocabulary is superb.  The wit and thoughtfulness embedded in the story makes me, at times, chuckle out loud.  After Wuthering Heights, I am looking forward to moving on to Jane Eyre.