my forever friends.

i have so many lovely friends and they each have a unique, important place in my heart.
but some of my friends are ones i just know will be there forever. it's like we don't even have a choice anymore. we're friends forever. 
we're actually less friends and more sisters. we share our real siblings and parents, depending on whose state we're in. 
two of my life friends are brianna and elise. i haven't seen them in a while and since i miss them i thought i'd share them with you.


brianna

brianna has some great sass. i love that she will tell you exactly what she's thinking always. and the sass just makes it funnier!

bri's a princess. i love it. she's slightly (or really) high maintenance and she owns it.

brianna is beautiful! not why we're friends, but it's true!
and she's adventurous. all these pictures are from when she was studying abroad in france spring semester.

she can't eat things either. in europe her diet was different. but here she has more allergies than i do and she is the best at commiserating with me over what we want to eat but can't.

one of the things i love most about bri is the way she loves. she is hardcore and all in. when brianna loves you, you're good to go. and bri and i are attached at the heart. our emotions are on the same roller coaster and that is so comforting.

elise

elise is basically a chameleon. a california girl
when she's here. but she's an idaho girl when she's there! i love how well she blends into wherever she is!

elise is outdoorsy. she encourages me to hike and do other things i wouldn't normally do. like go swimming. and climb through caves?

elise is my other half. she's always logical, calm and relaxed, which is typically the opposite of me. and she is also always right next to me.

elise is so fun. she'll play little kid games at little kid parties and enjoy it.

elise is a hero. she's in the air force. she gets up early to learn how to make a bed aaaand she works out multiple times a day. and she's going to save lives on airplanes when she grows up.

elise is a sleeper. she will literally fall asleep anywhere. in heritage. at the beach. in class. under her bed. in the botanical gardens in washington dc.

i love my friends. they're forever and i'm so thankful for them!

daddy's girl.

i am definitely my father's child. we have the same sense of humor. the same thoughts. the same intonation. all my looks come from him/his side of the family. without a doubt we are related. when i was little my mom called me markita. because i'm just the little girl version of my daddy.


some of our pictures..

just chilling at the lagoon.

a few years later...

lots of years later.

high school graduation

last easter

we have more pictures. but they're not on this computer, and i don't want to try to find them.
thanks for the thousands of soccer practices and games, dance competitions and shows, and fashion advice daddy!

going away.

since i've been home from south africa/swaziland (which is a long time. about 10 months.) i've wanted to go back. and it isn't even because i had the time of my life there. i didn't. but i just felt like we were doing such great things for god's kingdom and we were so clearly focused on doing his work while we were there. it's something i miss.
god calls us to be his hands and feet, and help whoever we can when we can. and on that trip i really realized the magnitude of the people who need help and that we have the opportunity to serve if we take it.
but i've learned that it isn't just ours to take. it is ours to take in god's time. and that is something i've struggled with for months because i'm a problem fixer. i know there are people in swazi i could be helping if i were there. probably more significantly than the people i'm helping while i'm home. but that isn't what i am being called to do right now. and for a long time i couldn't figure out why. but the other day the college leader at church, chris, told me he was excited to see how god was going to grow me and my passion for him while i'm waiting to go away and do more of his work. and it made sense finally. 
god isn't punishing me by keeping me here. he is giving me the opportunity and time to develop my strengths and strengthen my weaknesses. and grow in my relationship with him while he creates me into the person he has made me to be. and when it is time for me to go away and love on his children, i will be able to do that. but for now, while i'm learning, i get to love on his children here. what a blessing that is!

and one day, i hope to be back here. to love on them and give them cookies again!

and help little ones like these get off the streets and know they were created by such an amazing god, with a specific, perfect plan for their life.

sunshine and summertime.

after being back in california for nearly a week, i can say that sunshine actually can be used in the same sentence as summertime. it's been beautiful here, and i am even more thankful for the weather after experiencing summer storms while i was in idaho.
they were kinda fun though. we spent [endless] hours on the couch catching up on say yes to the dress and eating everything-free foods.


here are some pictures to hopefully make up a quick review of the past few weeks..

our view from the living room window. we got really used to this scene. it was hailing during this but the flash made that impossible to see.

part of the ridiculous hike brittan took us on. that had no path. really.

my favorite animal at the boise zoo. i forget what it's called but it looked like a little rabbit dog. it was so funny!

our view while we were wandering slightly lost in the oregon countryside. love adventures with elise!

and before we left for the idaho adventure..

senior banquet at ipc with my favorite senior girl. love my maddy! and that we look almost like sisters finally!

i love these girls to the moon!

the real sunshine and summertime!