Freedom House, pt 2

One thing I absolutely LOVE about DJ's house is all the little random trinkets laying around! There is everything from awesome marble spheres that look as though they were someone's sketchpad...to trendy light fixtures, and crazy architectural angles! Stick-men are mountain climbing the vertical walls, and unique pieces of furniture adorn each room. Everything is seamlessly trendy and chic to the max. The modern sets of hanging silverware, and the beautiful orchids submerged in ultra-trendy vases are the marks of someone well aware of the importance of chic, but interested, as well, in the comforts of home.

Below are just some of the images that I managed to capture last weekend. No, there are no people in them (well, most of them)...but these are generally the sorts of things that catch my eye in a room, even in the midst of the company that fills the room. Details stand out to me...however large, or small...
























the famed David Jay himself!




DJ's AMAZINGLY beautiful, and talented assistant, Crystal. This weekend could not have been pulled off if not for her hard work!
Kenny Kim's awesome brown converse...I'm really jealous! I want a pair!
Gustavo Fernandez and Corey Hage attempting to absorb all the intense knowledge that is DJ.









Kenny, Corey, Andres, and Melanie

mmmm...SUSHI!
DJ!
The talented Mery Donald in all her silliness!
Melanie Merkling, Penny Sylvia, Mery, and Kristin Renee...
Miss New Orleans, Amy Jett.

Gustavo, Melanie, Kenny, Corey and our videoographer for the weekend, Paul Rogers.
Corey and Andres

For some reason, I never caught a shot of Mark Barnes, or Regas Chefas! But I surely did not want to leave them out! Sorry I never grabbed shots of you guys! But I know Kenny did....so I stole his intro grids...

** thanks kenny!!!

Thank you all for an amazing weekend of connections and learning and fun! I am so very blessed to know each of you!

Thank you Mike Larson! He (and his super-sweet wife, Rachel) made a guest appearance on Sunday. Mike talked business, hung out, and even showcased his magic "camera in flight" trick!


**all the shots not taken on sushi night were shot with the famed Canon 50mm 1.0...ya know...the one that belonged to Mr. Denis Reggie himself! :) It's still one of my favorite lenses!

Jesus...and Kenny Kim

I know, that sounds just a little bit crazy, but it's true!

First... I love Kenny Kim! hehe...he's a stellar wedding photog from the Chicago area. And, I've had the priveledge of getting to know him through various workshops and such. At the Freedom and Slumber Workshop this weekend, he came not only to glean DJ's amazing business skills, but also to document the whole weekend! Check out his blog for a sweet Showit Web Show of the highlights and crew from the weekend!


**sidenote: i know i said i would get images up from the weekend, but i haven't quite gotten there yet! AND i plan to introduce you all the amazing photogs i had the pleasure of hanging with! So it's coming! I promise!!!


Second....but most important, I love Jesus! (sorry Kenny, but really, He beat you out on this one! :) )
He is just so incredible! Tonight, I made dinner for my mom and dad and Zach. (Zach and my Daddy spent the better part of the afternoon and evening being very manly...they were on a hunt for firewood...and seeing as thought a 75ft eucalyptus just fell on someones car, there was plenty of wood to be had, if you wanted to saw it up. and, of course, they did.) My Grammy gave me the most amazing cookbook ever! (I can't think of the name at the moment...) But it's ALL French! The recipes all sounded so wonderful, I had to get started right away, to get through all 120 of them! :) Anyway, I made Coq au Vin, served it over pasta, a homemade dijon viniagrette dressing for the baby lettuce salad with pecans, crannies, and red onions...roasted asparagus and broccoli with browned butter and parmesean...crostini with an olive oil ans herbs de provence topping, and strawberry shortcake with homemade whipped cream for dessert! (it was pretty tasty if i do say so myself!) Anyways, after dinner came dessert and the Laker game. Shortly thereafter, my parents went to bed and Zach and I laid in front of the smoldering fire for a little while (...this has a point about Jesus, I promise!) We talked about life, and work, and us, and all sorts of good things, but in the midst of it all, after a momentary lapse in the conversation, he prayed. Out of no where he began to talk to God as if He were sitting right there next to us. Now, I know that to some of you, it probably sounds crazy. But it is an amazing feeling to be falling in love with a man who is so in love with God first. And to show how much I love someone, I do things for them...I cook, and bake, and think of random things they might like...hence the exciting French cuisine for 3 of the most important people in my life! I am so very blessed. God has brought Zach into my life (again) and through him, shown me what a Godly, mature relationship looks like. Therefore...I love Jesus! :)

That's all for tonight! Maybe tomorrow I'll get around to uploading those photos. Sweet Dreams!

Freedom House, pt I

Hi all!

I'm working on a new website, so bear with me while I get it up and running!

In the meantime, this weekend, I am in Santa Barbara hanging out at the Freedom House! :) We're having so much fun! It's such an awesome opportunity to connect with these 10 photographers from all over the country! It's amazing to learn from each other and from a master like DJ. The weather is gorgeous, rainy, and dreary, but the sun has broken through the clouds over the ocean...the view is astounding! I'll post some pics tonight...but here are a couple iPhone pics...

here was sunrise this am! I was WIDE awake....everyone around me was snoring...lol


and a few hours later....the gorgeous views!


be back for more later!

...but i do love you.

i love this song! :)


Coyote Ugly Soundtrack Lyrics

LeAnn Rimes - But I Do Love You Lyrics

I don't like to be alone in the night
And I don't like to hear I'm wrong when I'm right
And I don't like to have the rain on my shoe
But I do love you, but I do love you
I don't like to see the sky painted gray
And I don't like when nothing's going my way
And I don't like to be the one with the blues
But I do love you, but I do love you
Love everything about the way you're loving me
The way you lay your head
Upon my shoulder when you sleep
And I love to kiss you in the rain
I love everything you do, oh I do
I don't like to turn the radio on
Just to find I missed my favorite song
And I don't like to be the last with the news
But I do love you, but I do love you
Love everything about the way you're loving me
The way you lay your head
Upon my shoulder when you sleep
And I love to kiss you in the rain
I love everything you do, oh I do
And I don't like to be alone in the night
And I don't like to hear I'm wrong when I'm right
And I don't like to have the rain on my shoes
But I do love you but I do love you
But I do love you but I do love you

...wow...

I don't even know where to begin! I honestly believe I just had the most romantic night of my life! I'm still breathless!



Zach and I managed to score some sweet last minute tickets to Wicked tonight (with the help of some AMAZING friends!Thanks guys!) We weren't positive we were going to get them, but in order to be available for them, we needed to be in LA around 6ish. So, about 4 we finally hit the 57 to head to LA. With the uncertainty of tickets at hand, we figured we would have dinner, and yet another adventure if plan A fell through. Throw a little rain into the mix, and there could not be a better night for adventure!

Deciding on Italian, and eager to try somewhere new, we settled on this fantastic little restaurant on Sunset between Argyle and Vine, it was called The Fabiolus Café. Fab-i-o-lus indeed!!! It was wonderful! The ambiance was perfect, the wait staff attentive, and the food delicious! And to top it all off, the Tiramisu was some of the best I've had. (although, I must admit, the inch-thick layer of cocoa powder on top made it slightly messy to eat.)

Sitting just inside the window, we were trying to time leaving the café perfectly with the pattern of the rain. However, the moment we stepped outside, we realized looks can be deceiving. It was completely pouring! Huge drops! As soon as the light allowed, we dashed inside the Bean for safety, and to find a little warmth in a cup of coffee. Realizing the rain was not planning on letting up anytime soon, we made our way back to the Pantages to wait for Donny, Lindsay and the crew. It was probably only about a nine or ten minute walk from the Café to the Theater, but in the pouring rain, it seemed like 20! All the way back we giggled and laughed and enjoyed the water that drenched our neatly done hair, perfectly pressed shirts, nice jeans, and black leather shoes. It never rains like this in Cali! and I LOVE IT!!!! :)

We watched the show from the ranks of about 100 Jr. Highers, and I must say, it was as good this time as it was the last. I am fairly certain I stop breathing during "Defying Gravity." It's so incredible! Zach had never seen it, so occasionally stealing a glance at his expressions reminded me of the unadulterated delight in being a part of the sights and sounds of the story of the wickedness for the first time. He loved it! I'm so very thankful he is excited to do things like that with me! Musicals, symphonies, orchestras, and theater make life just so much richer! The arts add another dimension to the boring technological day-to-day. **sorry...tangent! O:) **

Anyway, leaving the theater, was almost as difficult as getting there! As far as the wetness goes, at least! We made it to the car, quickly shed our outer layers and settled in for the drive home. Driving my car in the rain is not nearly as comforting as driving the truck, but it gets so much better mileage, we took it anyway. Needless to say, the ride home was a casual pace, but singing at the top of our lungs to the soundtrack, and conducting the imaginary orchestra of taillights in front of us with a "wand" made it pass oh so quickly.

We pulled into the driveway, finished the song we were listening to, and I was asked to put my shoes on....

*time out* here's the setting...it's midnight, we just were privy to an amazing display of talent and music, a story of love and friendship, so our moods are romantic and giddy... (zach lives on Main street, and it is exactly as it sounds...quaint! a few small, old homes line his cul-de-sac...all of whose inhabitants were fast asleep), it's POURING rain, the orange glow from the single street lamp reflecting off the shiny asphalt is the perfect frame for the huge drops of water splashing in the road.

...So, we did what any normal person would do...head to the middle of the street hand in hand, of course! Standing there, water dripping off our brows and noses, we danced. He picked me up and spun me around as though I was weightless. AND he sang to me! O:) I really do not believe it gets any more amazing than that! In that instant, I could not have cared less that the water pooling on my black heels was being absorbed my pant legs, or that my mascara was more than likely halfway down my face, or even that my hair was plastered to my head. I felt like I stepped out of a Hollywood set...It was as if we kept expecting someone to yell, "Cut!!" It could not have been more perfect! Thank you Zach!


Besides "Defying Gravity," I'm pretty sure "As Long as You're Mine" is my favorite song....here is a taste of the lyrics...

ELPHABA:
Kiss me too fiercely
Hold me too tight
I need help believing
You're with me tonight
My wildest dreamings
Could not foresee
Lying beside you
With you wanting me

And just for this moment
As long as you're mine
I've lost all resistance
And crossed some borderline
And if it turns out
It's over too fast
I'll make ev'ry last moment last
As long as you're mine

FIYERO:
Maybe I'm brainless
Maybe I'm wise
But you've got me seeing
Through different eyes
Somehow I've fallen
Under your spell
And somehow I'm feeling
It's "up" that I fell

...i'm sorry!

I know, it's been a while since I've written. And for all 2 of my loyal blog readers, I'm sorry! I'll try and catch up early next week. In the meantime, (while I'm exhausted from only 2 hours of sleep last night), I want to tell you about my day.

Zach is the high school pastor (technically director, but I call him "Pastor Boy") @ RDFC. Every year, for as long as I can remember, the winter retreat has been a weekend in Mammoth. Full of snowboarding, great food, awesome devotions, and wonderful memories, this trip has always been a huge success. This year, however, the timing didn't work out for a full length trip to Mammoth, so he instead planned a day trip to Big Bear for two different groups. He was going to take one group boarding @ Snow Summit, and Mandi (the assistant director) was going to take one group sledding. The sledding group wound up much larger than the boarding group, but it was a wonderful day. We were stuck in traffic going up the mountain, and coming back down, but we made the best of it. The slopes were jammed, and with none of us really in the mood of injuring ourselves, we hit the intermediate run. It was a perfect day to board in a t-shirt, and the snow was awesome.

But what I really wanted to write was how much I've missed this part of my life. The ministry part I mean. Growing up at a church where I was so involved in everything going on, (from teacher kids Sunday School, to singing in praise bands) I completely took ministry for granted. It never really occurred to me that it was a priveledge to be a part of someone else's life. I knew I was blessed to have some many amazing people in my life, and I wanted to be that person for other people, but I forgot how much of an impact one person can really make on a kids life. Watching Zach interact with the few kids we had on the trip made me realize what I'd been missing since I moved to college. I am beginning to remember that rush that you feel when you KNOW God is very possibly using you as a tool to bring kids closer to him. It's not a self-gratifying rush. No, it's really more of a "wow, God is amazing...He would even use someone like ME..." rush. I've been unwilling, as of the last year or two, to really allow Him to use me to make a difference in someone's life. At that point, it was more of the "I'm not good enough for God to even want to use me, unless He's desperate" mindset. Well, that was stupid. Of course He isn't desperate! DUH! And no, I'm most certainly not perfect; I've made mistakes, I tabled my walk for a while, I would even say I've made some bad decisions, but He still wants to use me! I had this overwhelming feeling today as I was flying down the slopes....it was that still small voice that completely drowned out the shrieks and laughter and crunching sounds of the board on the snow. That tiny feeling that God could, will, and maybe already has used me to help make a difference in someones life. It silenced all the distractions of a busy mountain resort, and even all the distractions running through my thoughts were quieted, however briefly. It was, in reality, only a second that everything else seemed distant, but I could have sworn it was the whole run.



"Jesus, please use me to create in a child a hunger for you. Help me to be the tool that will be able to make a difference in someones life. Not for my glory, but for Yours."

...the sound of raindrops

As I lie in bed, editing photos, chatting with people here and there, surfing the net for the latest gadget or program, I hear nothing but the tap-tapping of my keyboard, the whirring of my laptop fan, and the amazingly perfect sound of rain flowing from my rooftop outside my window, into a puddle below. I love the sound of rain! Rain makes me happy. Giddy, like a little girl. Everytime it rains my spirits soar, and I am reminded of how much I am in love with life. Strange, don't you think? That the weather pattern that so many people dread, and become depressed by, makes me so lively!? Hmmmm, maybe that's a sign....a sign pointing me to a rainier place...such as...oh I don't know...Seattle? ;) (maybe someday) Anyway, point being, I love the rain. Its kinda spiritual on some levels. It's that whole concept of our slates being wiped clean by His forgiveness, which becomes tangibly evident when the heavens open up on us.

On another level, I can stand in the middle of a street, umbrella-less, being drenched through my clothes, and consider myself the luckiest girl in the world (although I must say, it is more fun when the person you love is with you!). And that is just merely for the sake of adventure! The smell of wet concrete makes me smile, and the clear days after the storm are wonderful. I love to go hunt for puddles to splash people with, or gutters-turned-rivers to float paper boats down, or go off-roading in the mud after a storm, or take a walk in the rain down an empty street, or sit under an awning and people watch. Perhaps I would not love it so if I lived in it daily, but I think, even then...I still would appreciate the cleanliness that follows it.

ok, enough romanticizing the precipitation, I am going to fall asleep to the sound of God's creation being washed clean. Goodnight everyone, sweet dreams!


**Rose parade pics, are coming....I promise! I just need to narrow them down a lil more...

...a few days late

I know I promised these pictures a few days ago...but things came up. So...here are a few of the hundreds of Rose Parade pics that were taken...

It was highly entertaining to have a {Zach and Brittany}x2 hanging out together! :)

this is, however, the wrong Zach, with the wrong Brittany!!!

That's better...
I mean, I love the other Zach too....but thats different :P


Courtesy of Zach...
Sweet old VW bus
people with messages like this just drive me crazy! SERIOUSLY!?!
HAPPY 2008!!!
The remnants of the midnight celebration on the street...

SUNRISE!!! I love sunrise....there is something so incredibly peaceful at the start of a new day..
thank goodness starbucks was open til 2am, then opened again @ 3am!!! it definitely helped ease the pain of no sleep!
Could not have been a more beautiful day!
Peddling his wares...I wonder if he made money on those banners?

cotton candy!! only one of my favorites things in the world! and of course, being the attentive one that he is, Zach got me some!! yum!our neighbor...
I like planes...and these weren't as impressive as the stealth...but still pretty cool...


you can't really tell here...but this new anchor's outfit was CHARTREUSE! a nasty shade of it, at that!!! it was kinda ridiculous!
The people who create the "flower-by-numbers" effect blow me away...check out the detail! its amazing!
...and all with plant life!
I have a thing for reflections...check out the whole row of tubas being reflected by these guys!
my favorite float of the day...or one of them at least...it was western themed!! and the bad guy jumped off the hotel!

the court trumpeters!! so cool...I wish I could play a trumpet like that!!!
more mind-boggling detail and accuracy...
more reflections...
this guy was a crack-up...an "old-fashioned" firefighter...

wow...
A "pingu" for my sweet Paige...
Gorgeous flowers...I guarantee that the calibration on your moniters does not do them justice...

more reflections...look at the colors!

mmm....i love old architecture. soooo beautifully classy....


It was a wonderful night, and day! My new camera was a dream come true, and the weather could not have been more beautiful. The company was alright too, I guess! (totally just teasing guys!) I have hundreds more pics, but figured this was plenty...maybe I'll make a gallery of some of the other ones!

I wanted to write about church tonight, but I'm exhausted...it will have to be tomorrow.

Gnight!