Walking in a Winter Wonderland!

So, the Washington DC area is officially snowed in!

That's right folks! It's been a weekend of amazing coziness! The last time I can remember it snowing over 1 ft. of snow is back in 8th grade when it snowed 5 feet and school was canceled for 2 weeks! Our merry band of friends that live in our neighborhood have been playing in the snow, watching movies, baking cookies, hosting meals...just like a real family.

I'm so grateful for fun friends who live with/near me. I haven't had a fun, cozy weekend like this is years!

Ann Marie and her German Pancake breakfast delight

Three Snow Angels

Good Friends are like good family!

Winter Wonderland

Leaving the Nest

Well...the time has come. Finally!! I have recently gained enough gumption in my life to finally leave the nest...cut the apron strings...etc. The world is my oyster!? Reality has not set in yet. I doubt that it will until I'm sitting on the floor in my new home crying--wondering to myself if I did the right thing. It seems that I follow a pattern at transitional times like this; completely irrational brain takes over and rational brain goes on sabbatical. Pre-life-changing- event my brain says, "Ummm...is this really going to work out? Is it worth the sacrafice? How could you possibly thrive when you have so many weaknesses?" --Gotta hate that irrational devil!
However,in the midst of the chaos going on in between my ears, there is always that quiet little voice that cuts through the noise. Reassuring, peaceful, and hopeful. *sigh*
So...Washington DC it is. Ready or not, here I come! What will I do for work? I have no idea yet. Living off my savings for few weeks. People at my work keep reminding me, "Trust in the Lord and He'll provide." Little angels--that's what all the sweet people are that I'm leaving behind. Angels.
Raise your glasses--here's a toast to new beginnigs!

A few of my favorite things

I love, love, love fresh flowers. It only deepens my love when I know that these flowers came from my own yard. Mmmmmm....how delicious! I just like the way flowers look when they are on my piano next to my new song book. I found this secret treasure of old school "MIA" recreational song books from way back in the day. They have so many good ol' songs that we just don't sing anymore. Instead we listen with ear-buds to Beyonce while run about the errands and business of our lives. Don't get me wrong...it just seems like something is missing. Remember when families or a group of friends used to sit around a piano and sing songs? It just seems more "real" to me--old "MIA" song books and flowers from my own yard. This is the stuff that makes my cup runneth over! :)

Late Spring Peony

        Early Spring Lilacs

Today I was sitting at my desk working on something. However, unbeknownst to me I was making a funny (or maybe I should say ugly) face. You know, the one where I tuck my upper lip under and I look like Buckteeth Bertha! (someone once told me that this is THE ugliest face I make! haha! little do they know!!) 

Well, amidst my unconscious-ugly-face-making-fest good ol' Lester Betz (who is a 80/90ish year old man that lives at the nursing home I work at) CAUGHT ME from across the lobby making this becoming face! Suddenly I snapped out of my concentration when I heard his sweet little voice.....

L:  “Sara. What are you doing?”

Me: “Oh, haha. I like to make funny faces sometimes. I was just tucking my lip under.”  *blush*

L : “Oh. Well......you have beautiful teeth!”  (he shakes his head & chortles to himself as he walks away)

This is the reason folks why I love old men. I need to marry a wonderful guy that has an old fashioned sense of humor. One who won’t point out that I’m making an ugly face and make me stop because I'm embarrassing him. Instead rather he will be kind. Perhaps in place of projecting a degrading comment in my direction he will say something gentle, something kind, something humorous that diffuses my uniquely odd behaviors! And I won't feel silly even though my face might, in fact, be silly. Someone a little like Lester. 

Adventure April : UTAH!

This weekend I went out to Utah for a Mission Reunion. It was so sweet to see some missionaries that I served with. It's like seeing trench buddies. However the most sweetest thing was to see my dear mission president and his wife. I love them so dearly. I hugged them as many times that I possibly could! 

    Me, Pres. Andrus, Jackie A., and Sister Andrus

     Some of my most favorite Elders. Love them! 

My BFF's from the Mission. Jackie Acevedo and Adam Young. 

Another joy of going to Utah was to see my little bro David. We got to go to conference and it was amazing! I'm so grateful to have sat at the feet of our prophet and the twelve. It was such a once in a lifetime experience! 

     Me, Dave, and Dave's girlfriend-Amy at the conference center. 

Heaven on Earth!!

Passin' Time

So, I haven't blogged in eons of time! Don't worry, I'm still alive! I'd like to say that I've been so busy that I couldn't blog...but I think that that would be a lie. Mostly....I'm just lazy. However, here I am. That's gotta count for something. So, just to catch you up and for my posterity, here is what I've been up too for the past transfer (6 weeks) of my life:

#1:Fastnacht Day (Feb. 24th) - This is the PA Dutch tradition of frying dough the Tuesday before Lenton season begins! So here in Central PA we fry up our dough and we consume as much as possible. Yummy!

Marriage

"Marriage is what brings us together today!" This past month it seems like I've been married to my computer. Go figure! I am in love and am obviously still in the honeymoon stage! I can't get enough! However, I am starting to notice the time being sucked from my life. So, here's to beginning a new life! A balanced life. Momentum is up...let's go! I love you little Mac, I really do, but I need some real human experiences and interactions. Don't worry, we're still married...it's just time for a breather!  

Practically Perfect In Every Way :)

On a scale from 1-10 this weekend was a radiant 10! I don't know how it happened! Sometimes the heavens smile upon me and allow for a miraculously perfect series of events to occur. This is the case for my weekend. It felt like vibrant summer within my soul during an otherwise cold wintery weekend!! So here is what made things glorious:

1. Friday at work we had a tea party for my boss. She's moving on to another position. The tea party was a surprise and she loved it! It was delightful to sit with my coworkers and laugh and have a magical tea time together. *There's something special about tea parties*

2.Went to the Washington DC Temple on Saturday and when we were finished the sun was setting and the temple was glowing and it was a glorious sight to behold!



3. Amber and I ate sushi for dinner. Mmmmmm.... My favorite was the "Vegas Roll" (anything related to that city belongs inside my soul)...it was the best roll I've eaten to this date! Biased? Probably! :)

4. Amber, Janell, the McDonald sisters and myself went to the best concert in the world! Ever! We went to see FICTION FAMILY. And for those of you who don't know what Fiction Family is, let me tell you. Jon Foreman of "Switchfoot" and Sean Watkins of "Nickel Creek" got together and created and album! What! Could something so wonderful happen? Oh yes! It DID happen and on Saturday night I got to enjoy this love-fest at a great venue (Jammin Java)! My heart was beyond happy! I firmly believe that artists should try and collaborate as often as possible. There is amazing synergy and magic that occurs when two people take the best that they have and work together to create something new and beautiful...that's how art should continue and grow!


5. Amber and I stayed at Ann Marie's new house in DC. Before we went to bed we all got in our pj's and had tea and crumpets. This was a nice and delightful way to end the most perfect night ever!

6. Going to the Langley singles ward was simply wonderful. It was so refreshing to go be in a singles ward rather than a family ward. It just felt like the "right" place. There's something wonderful about being surrounded by trench buddies...people who are going through exactly what you are going through.

7. Went to the McDonald's sisters for dinner and a movie to close off the sabbath day. We watched "Sleeping Beauty" (which I haven't seen since I was 4 years old) and I realized that my doppelganger is Meriweather the blue fairy. I think that I might dress up as her for Halloween!

8. Lastly AM made us a wonderful dinner meal of pineapple chicken curry and rice. It was balm to my soul. She filled us with dessert (orange chocalate cheesecake bars) and then told us animated stories from her mission. Good times!

....so, all in all, life this weekend could not have gotten any better. It was practically perfect in every way! It was a nice foretaste of what hopefully lies ahead. *happy sigh*

I just finished this wonderful book. It was a perfect gift from my dear friend Ann Marie. Thank you AM for the wonderful little journey it took me on. In some ways I could very much relate to Sophie and her awful curse. In other ways I wish her story was mine. *sigh*  It's a good little read. I highly recommend it...but you don't have to take my word for it! :) 

Juxtaposition

I am hesitantly excited. Infact, I probably shouldn't even be putting this on a blog... however...I need to embrace it....so I will. Here goes. For nearly 8 years now, I've been slightly obsessed with a designer. ORLA KIELY. I simply love her designs. They are retro and vintage all at the same time. And, much like my love life, I have admired Orla from afar and have never made an official move. She's always been too good for me. Too expensive. In the last year I've noticed more of her stuff in high end magazines and that made me happy to know that the rest of the world could love her as much as me!

So, here's where the rubber hits the road: The other day I was moseying amongst some of my favorite blogs and noticed an ad for my sercret crush: Orla. Apparently she is starting an affordable line of stuff at my favorite Meca: Target! Can you imagine the joy I felt in my soul when I found this out!? I can finally be in direct contact with my crush...at Target! This is a good idea. Admittedly, I have also started to have mixed feelings about this callaboration. This means that EVERYONE is going to be in love with my Orla AND they will be able to affordably enjoy her too!

Pretty much, I'm jealous! I know, I know...it's petty. Can you see where I'm coming from? I've had a crush on an untouchable designer for years and years. I've dreamt of a day when I could afford her stuff. Now I can. But somehow the "mystique" that Orla had before is lost. Maybe, I should just be happy. Okay then...I'm happy now. I'm ready to share now.

Farmshow 2009

Question: Why don't people like the Farm Show as much as me? 

Answer: I am a hobbit from the Burg. 

You know how Samwise goes back to the Shire to lead a happy and normal shire-life whilst Froto decides to go off on the ship to some far away magical place? Welp...just call me Samwise. I love my Mechanicsburg. I love my Pennsylvania.  I am finally willing to admit it...There's no place like home. Infact I've always been this way. All my siblings went to pre-school. I didn't. My mom asked me when I was 3 or 4 years old, "Sara, do you want to go to pre-school?" My retort was, "No, I just want to stay at home." There you go. Pennsylvania/Mechanicsburg/402 James pumps in my blood. I can't help it. 

So, it surprised me this year to encounter people who don't like the Farm Show. What? How could this be? How could you live in PA and not love to go to the Farm Show? However, I've learned in my vast years of experience that I can't expect people to see things the way I see them. Just because someone else's heart doesn't burn passionately to see the cow's, gorge on farm food, pet the bunnies, and watch rodeos and square dances doesn't mean that they are not a worthwhile person. It's like Samwise and Froto. They have different paths, different passions, and different plans. I like my shire-life.