Wednesday, May 27, 2015

The Tullis Family | Newport Beach, CA

My friend Stacey graduated and is now a Dr. Congratulations Stacey!
Her family flew in from other parts of the country to celebrate. Of course, when you get 3 generations in the same place, it's usually time for family photos. They had a beach house for the week so we walked on the sand and enjoyed the beautiful morning.













Friday, May 22, 2015

30 Days No Makeup

If you are not familiar with 30 Days No Makeup, take a look. I stumbled upon this lovely place of encouragement and loved their mission. Plus, I met the ladies behind it and love it even more now. I knew I wanted to give this a go eventually.

I finally decided to take the plunge and strip my face of makeup on April 27, 2015. So right now I am on day 26. I actually thought I was further from the finish until now (and just got a little excited to be done). But I wanted to follow suit and post my no makeup selfie and share my thoughts on the process and the why behind it for me.

So, here are a few no makeup selfies. 
Yes, I wanted to find the best light. Yes, I wanted to minimize my flaws. Yes, I felt a little exposed.
(Bottom right corner: post traffic, 2 broken gas stations and feeling yucky selfie)
Bonus: there is something about the iPhone front facing camera quality (low) that hides some flaws.  Not trying to point out my ugly, but seriously, they look worse in the actual photo. But, this also contributes to some of the problem (also tons of filters, photo editing apps to change appearance, etc) that make us like our real selves less.
This is a good thing to remember when we compare ourselves in any area. Everything isn't always as it seems.

A little bit of the why...
I love that they are calling women to be challenged to see themselves as beautiful - just as they are - despite how they might feel. I am all for anything that is affirming the true identity of a person and encouraging along the way.

I am all for anything that invites us to take a step back from what we've become accustomed to and hit refresh. Not that makeup or other regular parts of life/society are all bad, but with most things a level of dependence comes in and disturbs our healthy rhythms. 

I love that 30DNM is creating a space for women to bare their faces and find self love. And through this, other women find encouragement and hope as they watch the journey of others. My heart breaks most when I see women who feel unworthy, ugly (inside or out) and alone. Here women find uplifting community and a call back to their true worth.

Yeah, let's cheer each other on, not compare and tear each other down!

So, my process.. Here's what I'm finding as I've been in this process:
  1. Committing to anything for 30 days is tough. Some days I want to wear make up just because I don't want to be disciplined to what I've committed to.
  2. I don't regularly wear a lot of makeup and often go without any. But when it comes to outings with other ladies, special events, etc. I feel left out and less than. I don't have anything special happening on my face and I feel dull. I want to keep up. Two birthdays and an anniversary this month have been challenging but not as bad as I expected.
  3. Sometimes my under eyes are puffy and red. I hate my eye wrinkles. My lips blend into my skin. Sometimes that pimple is really ugly. All these times make me want to cover up or spruce up. I definitely already knew this and feel this regularly. 
  4. I feel better if my hair is done well. More than not wearing makeup, I feel yucky if I have let my hair dry naturally (It's an unpredictable beast). If you know me, you know I like to tear myself down a lot in this area.
  5. This process has made me think about the other areas in life we cover up and hide our true selves. Stuff like our emotions that are tough & not pretty. Like I said above, I hate people feeling unworthy and alone. This is so true for the internal stuff and messy journeys. That stuff is so hidden and hard to see. I want those around me to know they are worth knowing, all that messy stuff included. I want to know that for myself. We don't have it all together.. none of us. And that is ok! You are worth it. I am worth it.  
Maybe you think I am weird (that's ok), but maybe you've been encouraged (I hope so).  I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic, similar areas and the influence of those around us, etc. 

Be you, boldly!

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Roadtrip Adventure: Zion National Park

The Grand Canyon was beautiful but we LOVED Zion. It's amazing because you are down inside, surrounded by beauty.

Two days/nights of camping, hiking, photo taking, river swimming, hammocking and resting amongst a beautiful scene. We almost didn't get a camp site - who knew April would be fully booked? For night one we car camped so we could get up early and claim a spot at the available camp ground. It didn't make for the best situation but we made the most of it.

I am not sure there was a better way to spend my birthday.

I am so glad we bought a year pass for the National Parks and I can't wait to go back.



The beautiful drive into the park

Hammock: Check!

Our go to camp meal: Chilli. Prepped at home; heated and topped with goodness at camp.













I have been teaching him my camera ways.. he's getting good! 

This guy. He's handsome, so good to me and such a great adventure buddy. 


Birthday Dinner with a view of Zion


A warm spring day and a cool river bath

Suzy has already gone on so many adventures

Stripes and Polka Dots were an accident and not meant for photos


Until next time, Zion.

Thursday, May 7, 2015

Roadtrip Adventure: The Grand Canyon

We spent just about 24 hours at the Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful drive and crossing through the National Park gate is a great feeling. Oh, and since we we're more than half way to the cost of a season pass, we bought one. So, it's definitely gotta be a year of adventure!

I'd never been to the Grand Canyon before. Have you?
It's pretty amazing. It's kind of hard to take the depth in while you stand on top and look across.
As we drove away from the canyon we had views from new angles. I loved looking down it instead of across it. But each angle and sunrise versus sunset provided a different experience.

We hiked about 1.5 miles down and watched the sunset. A couple passed us who had hiked 43 miles since 4am. FOURTY THREE. That is insane. I told them that it was amazing and she responded with, "Or stupid, feels pretty stupid right now."

I am pretty grateful for sights like these and the variety of creation we get to explore. I have some of my best "simply present" moments with God in beautiful settings like this that He has created.

Alrighty, take a look.