Showing posts with label Costa Rica. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Costa Rica. Show all posts

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012.

1. What did you do in 2011 that you'd never done before?
I took 22 college hours all at once, became a missionary intern for the Quiocho Family in Costa Rica and graduated from college!
2. Did you keep the new years resolution you made last year?
I decided not to make any last year and I think that worked out rather nicely for me.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yeah! Alejandro and Yendry gave birth to Deikylnn. Jason and Connie gave birth to Rowdy.
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not this year.
5. What countries did you visit?
Belize and Costa Rica.
6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
I struggle with loving everyone no matter what. I want to learn how to do that. - This has not changed since 2007. That still stands. Also, I would really like to have a big girl job that I enjoy.
7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory?
New Years Even with Laura, Lori and her friend, Gina. The random nights spent playing board games at Otter Family Game Nights. It's not really a particular date, but all the nights spent at Chelsea's house doing WILgroup Bible Study and discussing life together. Disciple Bible Study with the "counselor" group. Brambling in Belize. All the Fall 2011 Monday nights doing Journey to Christ and then driving Bri Wilson to ASC. Tons of time watching trick shot videos, hanging out with youth and baking for StudyBreak Cupcake. All those moments spent at the Rio Frio community playing Sorry, hanging out with little children, having sleepovers with Angie, cooking, sharing stories and life in general, laughing and worshiping alongside each other. My last night in Rio Frio - the dinner with everyone and the sleepover with Angie and Kristina. Graduation day.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Graduating from college.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Can not knowing what I want to do for the future count as my biggest failure?
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yeah. We're still not sure what's going on with that.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
Costa Rica Internship!
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
What?
13. Whose behavior appalled you the most?
Like I'd really put that here.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Travel, Food & Gas.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Costa Rica!
16. What song will always remind you of 2011?
Kristian Stanfill - Like A Lion and pretty much anything from Passion.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you
a) happier or sadder? happier after the holidays.
b) thinner or fatter? thinner without a doubt.
c) richer or poorer? poorer for sure.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Study the Bible and talk to Him. SLEEP/RELAX (in the spring)! Study! Job Hunt.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
I'm not really sure.
20. How did you spend Christmas?
I spent Christmas eve with my Aunt Polly, Uncle Jim, parents, and Lori eating chicken tetrazini and opening presents. Christmas day was my parents, Lori and I and Jason with his wife and kids. We hung out around the house, ate a big meal for dinner and opened some presents.
21. Did you fall in love in 2011?
Nope.
22. Did anyone close to you get married?
Alejandro & Yendry! Ben & Jessica! :)
23. What was your favorite TV program?
Wizards of Waverly Place, Haven and FRIENDS.
24. Do you hate anything now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Nope.
25. What was the best book you read?
I read the first of the Yada-Yada Sisterhood series and loved it. I also read a series about a girl that didn't know what she wanted to do with her life and so she became a baker. I feel like that may have been a beginning catalyst for my baking fall semester. I can't remember the name of the books, but they were actually about that. I mainly read and adored reading blogs though.
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Kristian Stanfill I guess. I already knew about him though.
27. What did you want and get?
Joy.
28. What did you want and not get?
Jobs.
29. What was your favorite film of this year?
HP7 - the ending, Kung Fu Panda 2 or The Muppets.
30. What did you do on your birthday?
Otter Family Game Night with a few extra friends that turned into broomball at the church.
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Knowing what 2012 would look like.
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?
Vintage, classic, detailed, layered, comfort, styled.
33. What kept you sane?
God, youth group, Kathy Kothman, The Quiochos, ASC girls, Kali Myers, A&M UMC, road trips.
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Carlos Whittaker.
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
I can’t really think of any at the moment.
36. Who did you miss?
I miss my friends in Costa Rica.
37. Who was the best new person you met?
I'd have to go with the Quiocho Family and all the people that we met along our summer journey. Also, getting to know Zac Gilts, the A&M UMC Youth Dream Team and some of the A&M UMC counselors better.
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011:
These are from 2010, but I never published my 2010 New Year Questionnaire: Plan B. Be flexible and it will all be okay. (Summer study abroad falling through). Just because you started it a long time ago, doesn't mean you are tied down to it. (Crazy Love Bible Study). Do what you love and be with who you love because those around you and what you are doing will affect you, especially your attitude towards life.
& For 2011, there is: Listen to others. Everyone is interesting even if they don't believe it themselves. Help them find it if need be. (Costa Rican Internship). The roots of my faith aren't really what I originally thought. (Spring 2011 WILgroup). Investing time in people will never be a waste of time. (Fall 2011). With God's help, you really can do anything, even 22 hours of classes. God really does care about the little things. (Spring 2011). Days without laughter, are not truly lived. (All year long - Costa Rica SAPC B Team, especially).
39. Quote a song title that sums up your year:
Roaring Like A Lion - Kristian Stanfill

my Life Changes for the year two thousand and twelve are as follows:

1. Grow in Christ's Likeness- become a Godly Woman
- it's like a John 3:30 thing where,
"He must increase, but I must decrease."

That is it for the resolutions this year. I don't want to be "tied down" to others, even if they are fabulous or needed.



& A Different Way To Remember '11:
45 of the most powerful images of 2011. 15, 20 & 45 are my favorites.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

217. 218. 219. [220-222]. 223. 224. [225-233]. 234. [235-237]. 238. 239. [240-242]. 243. 244. 245. [246]. 237. 248. 249. 250! [251-256]. 257. 258. [259]. 260!

It's been about a month since I've been back from studying abroad in Costa Rica with the Quiocho Family. Being back is still extremely weird to me on many different levels. A lot of things have happened in the last few weeks. I've gone back to college and begun trying to readjust back into my 'old' life. It doesn't seem to  really be fitting back together. I'm in a major period of transition from college kid to adult and I'm not a fan of this change at all. Also, I am completely lost as to where my life is leading to say the least.

I realized that I never finished updating my pictures from Costa Rica. In addition to that I have become a slacker on my Project 365 as I have become incredibly horrible at remembering to take photos over this past month. I'm not sure why exactly that my photo taking has decreased, but it is finally starting to increase back up to the daily photo which is good. I'm guessing that the slacking is probably due to a lack of desire, which is what I seem to have for many things that are happening around me right now...

 twohundredandseventeen. unseenbeauty: colorwaitingtohappen.

 twohundredandeighteen. unseenbeauty: beingabletoseevolcanoarenalfrommyroom.

 twohundredandnineteen. unseenbeauty: vacationdayswithfriendsthatarenowfamily.

 twohundredandtwenty through twohundredandtwentytwo. Sad no photo days.

 twohundredandtwentythree. unseenbeauty: smilingisalovelanguagefromtheLord.

 twohundredandtwentythreecontinued. unseenbeauty: thepoweroffriendships.






twohundredandtwentyfour. unseenbeauty: tearsareauniversallyunderstoodlanguage.

twohundredandtwentyfive through twohundredandthirtythree. Sad no photo days.

twohundredandthirtyfour. unseenbeauty: beinghomeandenjoyingfamilylifetogether.
twohundredandthirtyfive through twohundredandthirtyseven. Sad no photo days.


twohundredandthirtyeight. unseenbeauty: timeisplentiful.

twohundredandthirtynine. unseenbeauty: sweetfunnyClydeboy.
twohundredandforty through twohundredandfortytwo. Sad no photo days.

twohundredandfortythree. unseenbeauty: greatfacialexpressions.

 twohundredandfortyfour. unseenbeauty: learningtoenjoysalads.

 twohundredandfortyfive. unseenbeauty: deathtotheoldlife.
 twohundredandfortysix. Sad no photo day.


twohundredandfortyseven. unseenbeauty: beingbackatcollege.


 twohundredandfortyeight. unseenbeauty: havingpeopleandsituationstomiss.

 twohundredandfortynine. unseenbeauty: knowingthattearswillcomeanditwillbeokay.

 twohundredandfifty. unseenbeauty: confusionandblurrinessinlifeisnotthewholereality.
twohundredandfifyone through twohundredandfiftysix. Sad no photo days.


 twohundredandfiftyseven. unseenbeauty: learninghowtoimprovise.

 twohundredandfiftyeight. unseenbeauty: experimentingwithnewrecipes.

 twohundredandfiftyeightcontinued. unseenbeauty: gettingreallygoodatbaking.
twohundredandfifynine. Sad no photo day.

twohundredandsixty. unseenbeauty: obtainingthatmuchcovetedaggiering.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Words... about Costa Rica.


Check out Ted & Gracie's August newsletter and read about basically what I did this summer. Yes, there's been pictures but this newsletter actually has words. Haha.

Ok, it seems weird to not post a picture, so enjoy this sweet picture of my friend, Eposi, jumping rope at the school in Finca 1. :)

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Costa Rica Update + Fun Things

I'm here on one of my last nights in Costa Rica trying to process that this whole thing is over. Well, I say I'm processing, but I'm really waiting to leave for our Mother's Day Church Party. Tomorrow, here in Costa Rica, is Mother's Day. I will wake up and say goodbye to my Costa Rican Mom, Gracie, and return in Houston to say hello to my Mom. It's so strange to think about and draws tears to my eyes, so I try not to.

I did break down last night. Cristina and Angie spent the night last night with me. We had the big room with all the bunk beds to ourselves. With 4 bunk beds, we decided to crawl (all 3 of us!) into one bed to spend our last night shedding tears and laughter together. I wouldn't have changed my last night with them for anything. Before bedtime, we had a bunch of the families over for some games, dinner and goodbyes. It was wonderful. This morning, we trekked around the neighborhood for a bit, cleaned up the house and had lunch at Alejandro and Yendri's before heading back to San Jose. I still can't believe that I'll be in Houston this time in two days and not waiting to head back to Rio Frio.

So, to not think about it, let's talk about something less well, SAD!
I read blogs late into the night a few weeks before I came to Costa Rica delving into photography, design, typography, fashion, etc. etc. Here are some fun things I found through those readings:
=========================================================

First off, my heart longs to canoe. Second, how great would it be to see through the canoe?

I hate to see things like cassette tapes fade into the past. Making it into a MP3 player? Yes, please!

Icebreaker games can be so hit or miss. Icebreaker nametags though make me actually kind of want to wear a nametag.

Who knew your face could be a blank canvas? Mustaches and beards as art is cool.

How cute is the kid in the rocket ship? Adorable? Yes, that's what I thought.

Sticky notes, you have become so fun. Floppy disks, apples, tweets? Fabulous!

I love traveling. Clyde does too. I'm sure he's too big for this, but he does need an airstream.

This cracks me up! Guess no one will be stealing my sandwiches anytime soon...

Who says knowledge can't be mapped out? Especially by nerdy kitties that make everything better?

USB Drives either seem to be the ugliest computer accessories or the most interesting. A roll of film USB makes me smile.

Sometimes cheesy things are, well, cheesy. Sometimes I love them. Have a ball this summer!
Link
Last summer, I transformed a lions tail into a leopards tail. These could have come in so handy.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

209. 210. [211]. 212. [213]. 214. 215. 216.

twohundredandnine. unseenbeauty: newfriendscomingtovisit.

twohundredandten. unseenbeauty: backpack,chacosandkindle,allagirlneeds.

twohundredandeleven. Sad no photo day.

twohundredandtwelve. unseenbeauty: bananasinthebackyard.

twohundredandtwelvecontinued. unseenbeauty: funnysituationforgordo.

twohundredandthirteen. Sad no photo day.

twohundredandfourteen. unseenbeauty: familygamenightwithrummicub.

twohundredandfifteen. unseenbeauty: discoveringgreatnewreads.

twohundredandsixteen. unseenbeauty: silentmoments.

At least this week I've been consistent with my inconsistency of taking photos. Somehow I've made my Project 365 into a Project Take A Photo Every Other Day. Hopefully that will change this week.

These past few days, I made some new friends and worked countless hours on my COMM 485 paper over social media. The good news though is that my paper is done! It possibly has the longest works cited ever though. It was supposed to be a 12 to 15 paper and despite it ending up to be much longer, the works cited ended up being 15 pages in itself!

In other news, I got to visit the clinic this week. No parasites here! :)

Thursday, July 28, 2011

192. [193]. 194. 195! [196]. 197. [198]. 199. [200-205]. 206. [207]. 208.

onehundredninetytwo. unseenbeauty: fittingin.

onehundredninetythree. Sad no photo day.

onehundredninetyfour. unseenbeauty: gorgeousflowersatsoccerfield.

onehundredninetyfourcontinued. unseenbeauty: discoveringnewthingsonAlejandro'sproperty.

onehundredninetyfourcontinued. unseenbeauty: preciousbiker.

onehundredninetyfourcontinued. unseenbeauty: life.

onehundredninetyfive. unseenbeauty: learninghowtomakenewfoods-patacones.

onehundredninetyfivecontinued. unseenbeauty: besttwistergamesofyourlife.

onehundredninetysix. Sad no photo day.

onehundredninetyseven. unseenbeauty: learningtodolaundry.

onehundredninetyeight. Sad no photo day.

onehundredninetynine. unseenbeauty: prayingovernewfriends.

onehundredninetyninecontinued. unseenbeauty: enciendaunaluz.

twohundred through twohundredandfive. Sad no photo days.

twohundredandsix. unseenbeauty: seeingthelaundrypiledisappear.

twohundredandseven. Sad no photo day.

twohundredandeight. unseenbeauty: gettingtodiscovernewcoffeeshops.

I didn't seem to have my camera on me much these past two weeks. We had the BIG Team in from Arizona. It was a youth team and although it was fun, it really made me miss my youth group in CS. I'll be back there soon though!

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

160! 161. 162. 163. 164. 165! 166. 167. 168.

onehundredsixty. unseenbeauty: Bellaandsoccer.

Gracie'sphoto. unseenbeauty: breakswhilecleaning.

onehundredsixtyone. unseenbeauty: bedtime.

onehundredsixtytwo. unseenbeauty: organizationsthankstoDr.Chele.

onehundredsixtythree. unseenbeauty: listening.

onehundredsixtythreecontinued. unseenbeauty: family.

onehundredsixtyfour. unseenbeauty: facingyourfears.

onehundredsixtyfourcontinued. unseenbeauty: universallanguages.

onehundredsixtyfive. unseenbeauty: caughtiguanas.

onehundredsixtysix. unseenbeauty: laughablemoments.

onehundredsixtysixcontinued. unseenbeauty: newtoothbrushes.

onehundredsixtysixcontinued. unseenbeauty: firsttimebrushingwithanewbrush.

onehundredsixtyseven. unseenbeauty: beingreallyclosetowildlife.

onehundredsixtysevencontinued. unseenbeauty: coffee.

onehundredsixtyeight. unseenbeauty: selfexploration.