recent moments of beauty

yesterday cass and i made plans to meet up at this trendy waffle bar downtown for brunch after church, but quickly learned that every other diva white girl had the same idea.  ha.  so, we headed in the direction of como zoo & conservatory, because i've been dying to be amongst any kind of warm/leafy/tropical anything!  we found a random shop called "bagelry" on the way and grabbed breakfast sandwiches to go!  i'm so thankful for this dear girl, and really thankful for those plants.

saturday was my favorite day for so many reasons! paige was in town, sidney came back from her mission trip to zacatecas, mexico, and it was a wonderful sunny 60 degrees!  we ate a really good breakfast together at home and i spent the whole day outside helping my parents with yard work and exercising, and it felt soo good.  going to cub to buy pansies with my mom also stands out to me from the day.  she's such a dear friend.  in the evening, dave came over and we picked up my aunt wendy and headed to red cow for dinner as a bit of a celebration for being together, and that my mom got a new job and my dad passed his realtor licensing exam!  also paige will be gone in michigan for the summer and dave will be in florida, so it felt extra sweet to be all together.  

i love them so much i could cry.  these people are my whole world!  good, Jesus-lovin, giving, kind, funny people and i can't believe they're mine.  i want to celebrate them every day.

when we stepped outside after finishing our dinner, we headed across the street to whole foods to pick out dessert to bring back to my parents' place.  i was so happy walking in the warmth and being with those people i love so much, especially with the sun reflecting on those beautiful buildings!  a man sitting outside of whole foods asked if we were tourists because we were ooing and ahhing at the way the sun reflected the buildings and taking pictures, ahah!  

evening light in our apartment.

^ why isn't holland here all the time??? ugh.  when she left i was like, "where's holland?  she's supposed to be here." ha.  i love her so much.  can't believe i get to call her a dear friend and know her world.

free ice cream on the first day of spring with my roomie and a shot of sid on her work break at panera, the lil queen she is!  can't get enough of that kid.

the most beautiful aft turned 24 (!!!) and she was in town from madison to celebrate.  isn't she stunning?!  so much love in my heart for her.

more beautiful moments to come, every day.  life with Jesus is exponentially beautiful all the time, in the smallest, even hardest, ways.  what a King.