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[Currently drowning in pathophysiology and staring out the window thinking about the etiology of my current malaise...]

Please don't let this cheesy photo fool you- I was even more excited hiking through the Zion Narrows in Utah than my thumb and wide smile could express. During my last week of summer freedom a few friends and I squashed ourselves into a rental and drove to Utah. Between work, school and events we gave ourselves 4 days with a loose plan to see 3 of the National Parks and travel time worked in. It was an amazing whirlwind of hiking, hilarious camping, running from flash flooding, nautical twilight star gazing and the most awe inspiring views of God's creation cramped into a modest 3 days. 

a stormy welcome from Zion our first night

drenching hike to the Emerald Pools to kick off our time in Zion

unforeseen thunder + lightning + torrential downpour = night 1 dinner eaten in rental 

Day 2 hiking the Zion Narrows // running from flash flooding

river hiking can be tiring..

Day 2: First glance at Bryce Canyon at sunset

Day 3- Bryce Canyon : home of the hoodoos

Day 3- catching sunset at Cedar...followed by star gazing sprinkled with shooting stars

Day 4- One last look at Cedar before heading home

A magnificent break being fully immersed and still in nature (thank you canyons for making phone reception nil). Coming into another semester of nursing school with my head and heart in the right place- refocused and refreshed. 

Now back to thinking about electrolyte imbalances...

lots of love 

hello goodbye

Hello strangers! It has been quite some time since I last posted and I apologize but life has been throwing me this way and that way for the past 2 months. Sadly I am out of time to update you all right now because I am going to Thailand again! Literally I leave in an hour...oops. Being called back to Thailand by God and leading this team has been such a journey of personal growth and we haven't even left yet! To keep updated with me and the team visit : http://fcbcthailand2013.blogspot.com/ !

Well it was lovely sharing a whole 10 seconds with you all but I really must finish packing now. goodbye for now!

lots of lovee

birthing knowledge

Who taught you everything you know? I admit that I don't know much. If the universe was a box then I know the amount of a dot within that box..if at all. However I do know that almost everything I know is from my mom and my grandmothers. On Sunday we got together to celebrate my mom and the other mothers in our lives by showing love the best way that we know: cooking for them.

A meal for the sweltering heat based on the fresh produce of the season and trying to keep it light. Oh and our insatiable love for cheese. yes we are mildly lactose intolerant.

fresh strawberries and cherries

spinach and strawberry salad with candied walnuts

our favorite brie with crackers appetizer

potato, spinach, and mushroom fritatta

homemade sangria

ratattouille tart

Recipes will come later because these dishes are too simple and delicious not to share! But back to the main event: family

Thanks mommydearest for teaching me about everything from the science of cooking and baking to the reason why we worship such an amazing God. In the midst of our food coma after lunch we talked about what it was like to birth 4 children, and if I didn't appreciate her enough before I most definitely love her now. Happy Mother's Day to the greatest woman in my life.

lots of lovee

SPRUNG

Happy Spring! I love this time of the year because everything is blossoming, the weather is getting warmer, and its the last uni quarter standing between me and summer. As much as I enjoyed the chill factor of last quarter I am very happy to be in spring and to have had a chance to recharge my batteries over spring break a few weeks ago.

In honor of the break I took some time to visit a friend and road trip up to San Francisco to spend a few days of pigging out, shopping, and good ol' bonding time. Here are some highlights:

 can never resist a sweeping mural (remember this wall)

 Some of the best soul food in the heart of the Tenderloin District at Brenda's. Not to mention hands-down the most delicious crawfish beignet I've ever had.

 beautiful weather & a beautiful friend at the Union Square hearts

 seeking food coma rest and refuge at SFMOMA

"oh you blend in with the wall!"

Ending off the trip with pear ginger agave sorbet & mexican chocolate ice cream in a black sesame waffle cone from Tara's and gorgeous creation on the drive home

Despite grim weather reports we were blessed with clear skies and ample sunshine, which almost tricked us into forgoing coats...until we remembered: this is NorCal. Thankfully I have been practicing the art of "layering" which helped to keep the chill at bay only to have gusting winds blow right through me. Thank goodness I gained a solid 10 pounds in those few short days...not. More pictures of my adventures in SF on my Instagram.

The trip was a success and one that I would gladly do again but the perfect end to my spring break was Good Friday and Easter celebrations. Renewing my spirit always satisfies more than anything no matter how much I eat. With that in mind I am sprung for this season and pumped for what lies ahead.

Have a blessed week!
lots of lovee

YUM Jar {DIY gifting}

I am not creative. I am not proud to admit it but this is a truth that I am willing to share with you all. At the very least I am an excellent copy-cat with the smallest capability to tweak something to make it "my own". My view is take what you have and make a gift without having to buy more, but really it adds more love/luv/ruv when it is handmade with care.

 Everyone can make these albeit quick&easy gifts without too much stress on the brain. Also, like everyone else, I keep mason jars on hand under my bed at all times. Most likely I am alone in the world in this practice then step 1 for you would be go get some mason jars! Honestly, you can put anything in a mason jar & give it as a gift. I happen to love cooking, baking, and snacking so I made my YUM jars, as I like to call them. But I have also seen cocoa mixes, pie, and small trinkets packed sweetly as gifts as well. If you follow my Instagram then you would have seen the image above of homemade chili roasted almonds that I gave as gifts. Another one that I did recently for some neighbors were mini cranberry chocolate chip scones YUM jar.

Make little tags out of brown paper bags to give it a more rustic feel or use luggage tags to write a small note. Tie a ribbon or some rafia around the top. Put a bird bow on it. Voila! Simple, easy, thoughtful DIY gifts for those creative individuals. Let me know how yours turn out!

lots of lovee

rainy thursdays

A little over two weeks ago I was in a car accident. It was a dark, rainy Thursday evening and I was driving home from school. The story is long and painful to retell so I will just say that there are hardly ever a time when sitting in a car is completely relaxing for me now. Whether it was the other guy's fault or my own, it takes 2 to tango. After the accident I thought a lot about the choices I made before it happened. Why did I drive on that street home that day? What if I had gone home right after I had ended work and not lingered? Would I have okay if I had stayed at school longer like I had originally planned? ...and then God said to me " what if you had died? what if the other man had died?"

A small accident but I am rethinking the aspects of my life that I am truly grateful for. My pastor preached recently about verbally giving thanks & not just thinking praises in our minds. Salvation is bright and shiny to me once again. The urgency of life's timeframe has never been more evident. I know I didn't post a typical thanksgiving foodfestblackfridayshopping post, but the thing I am most thankful for is God's never ending grace and mercy. I am alive to eat too much, laugh with friends, and see my family all together.

To Him be the glory, Amen.
lots of lovee

great excuse

Halloween is such a great excuse for 1. eating lots of candy 2. dressing in costume for $2 burritos at Chipotle and 3. putting off studying during midterms

lots of lovee

almost there..so long ago

KYOTO. We were almost back to Kanazawa from Fukuoka, and a transfer of overnight bus to day bus dropped us in Kyoto for a few hours. The trip feels so long ago what with the interruption of fall uni quarter beginning again, but I can still taste the amazing matcha ice cream and feel the humid heat in my memories.

Summer is officially gone and fall is here. My SoCal bones are shaking from the chilly weather change and I can only remember humid, hotter days in asia...sighh...until we meet again next summer.

Good vibrations to those in midterms right now! Have a blessed week pondfronds :)

lots of lovee

Layover in Osaka

Next up on the journey to Fukuoka included a short layover in Osaka. We arrived in the early morning and our overnight bus wasn't leaving until much later that night, so we decided to do the usual Osaka bits: mess around, shop, eat okonomiyaki & takoyaki, shop more, etc.

The highlight of the layover and possibly the whole trip was the final hours before we left spent unwinding at Spa World Onsen. If it's not apparent from my facial expression, we love onsen and this was the most amazing onsen experience I have ever had. This 8 story building/hotel is complete with an outdoor swimming area, water slides, separate mens/women's floors, an arcade area, and a floor just for eating. Are you in awe yet? Good.

After 5 blissful hours in the onsen we caught our overnight bus and headed over to Fukuoka. Moral of the story: if you're gonna have a time gap somewhere, have it in Osaka.

Have an excellent week!

lots of lovee