Giving Thanks #73

hahaha....you know the feeling.

Giving Thanks #72

....these are a few of my favorite things!

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One night, in the summer of 2008, my friend Julie & I went on a photo excursion.  We started out at an old abandoned house and were there for hours. Then a storm rolled in....a BIG storm.  We drove to my farm (only about a mile away) and instead of going straight inside, we decided (mostly her) that it would be worth it to stand out in the pouring rain & HAIL to get a cool shot of lightning.  Since there was so much of it, we both agreed to the thought "how hard could it be!".....well.....after completely exhausting our batteries and memory cards, and being comPLETEly soaked through, we had exactly two photos of lightning, neither of which were anything of noteworthiness....but more than those little glimpses of lightning that night, I remember the complete and ridiculous fun we had out there. We BOTH knew we were crazy, and that it really "wasn't" worth the risk out in the storm, but we BOTH didn't care.  We just wanted to have an experience, and an experience we had. That is for sure.  :)

Giving Thanks #69

Jog for the Journey!

Hey friends!! Any of you who are into adoption or jogging, please consider joining this run!  Three of my siblings came to us through this great organization, and by running in this you could be helping other children be able to find a family!!!

https://www.facebook.com/events/372277126167861/

http://www.ecasus.org/Site.NewsEvents.do?action=showBlogEntry&id=14

Giving Thanks #68

I love when you sit down at a piano (or really any instrument you play) and it's been a while....like months and months....and you open up a book to play, and the song comes back to you just a forgotten dream fulfilled. It just fits your fingers and it sounds so beautiful...you thought you'd forgotten, but there it was, just waiting to play itself out. :) makes me happy.

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These buildings are in Timisoara, Romania....where communist dictator Nicolae Ceaucescu decided that he would paint the buildings in bright colored paints, making them look like rich, well kept buildings & in turn a great city/country.....what he neglected was under the paint were buildings that were falling apart, housing people who were barely surviving themselves.  Now, 20 years later the facade has been exposed.

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I love these red flowers.....well.....any red flowers. :)

Giving Thanks #63

....hidden waterfalls.  They were beautiful!  It was such a great little hideaway to relax. But let's be honest. ANYWHERE in Kauai is a good place to relax ;)

Giving Thanks #62

My friend Tanya knew of a great hidden destination, but none of us "really" knew how to get there.  We walked down this path (here is one of the clearer sections) for nearly a quarter mile, until suddenly we reached.......

Giving Thanks #61

The same trip with my brother, we visited Budapest.  One morning we woke up very early, equipped ourselves with coffee & pastries and walked from the city of Pest into the castle district of Buda, winding through the staircases through the old Watertown up into the Fisherman's Bastion....all before the first tour bus bustling with over eager tourists hungry to fill their cameras with photos clouded with other tourists.  We beat them.  :)

Giving Thanks #60

Last Spring my brother & I got a 17 hour layover in the Netherlands, which is where my Mom's side of ancestors came from.  We booked a hotel close to the county that carried my Mother's maiden name, and in the morning went exploring around the windmills & flowers.  Unfortunately we were too early for any tulips....guess that just means I'll have to go back!

Giving Thanks #59

Today I'm thankful for Ice Cream. Not just ANY ice cream, but ice cream made from goats milk that my aunt & cousin milked, mixed with strawberry jam from u-pick strawberry patch and made by my aunt.  All in a night's adventure.

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Giving Thanks #54

You know the feeling. It's more about the look than what someone says that gives you that warm welcome home, and when the look or embrace conveys more than words, that's the best.

Giving Thanks #53

A girls gotta admit, that there is just something about heels.  And wearing them out on the beach is so grand.....even if that beach is only in Minnesota. :)

Giving Thanks #52

On a morning walk through Milwaukee, I was in awe of Lake Michigan....it looked so much like a calm ocean.  Then I happened upon this sitting sculpture....I didn't understand it, but it seemed like there were lots of things to say about it, but my words came up short.

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I love finding flowers that bloom without an ounce of work. It's such a blessing & a great surprise!

Giving Thanks #49

This is the front porch on the home where my father grew up.  Now lived in by my aunt & uncle, this porch is the ultimate place to sit back & enjoy a southern summer afternoon, accompanied by some sweet tea & stories.

Giving Thanks #48

I love reading, and love the stories that one can learn or imagine.....and many times I never want the story to end, but if a book is a HUGE book, even if it's good, doesn't it feel great to reach the half-way point and then pass it? YES.

Giving Thanks #47

Anna is the wife of my brother's biological father in Romania.  Whenever I've visited her, one cannot help but notice that she encompasses the definition of generosity and kindness. Having suffered through communism, losing her husband with young children at home, she married Tyler's biological father to help him raise his three young children after his wife had died.  She has loved her own family, the Roman family and my family with utmost care & devotion.  Right now though, in her 70's, she is suffering from uterine cancer.  She had a surgery but the doctors told her there wasn't much more they could do.  Now she waits for the inevitable, but still carries a smile and hope in the Father who has provided for her every moment of her life and will provide a way through this next trial by healing her either here or in eternity.  A meal from these hands will give you humility because she does this without asking anything in return.  She is the epitome of the person who will give you everything from the little she may have and offers it freely......so worthy of this thanks. Eu vă mulţumesc pentru viata si iubire.

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