Amanda is alive and I've been busy!

For those of you who have been on the edge of your seats waiting to hear if Amanda survived her hospitalization in February. The answer is yes! I got to visit her in the hospital and have a few good laughs as we reminisced! She's doing Well!

We had a really fun reunion!
The next weekend I had short but sweet time with my friend Nathan! He was in town from San Diego visiting a friend and I got to steal a couple hours of their time together. It was fun catching up and then frantically rushing him to the airport to make his flight!

The next day we had a special visitor here in Texas! Daniel Lipparelli himself! Amanda and I were able to schedule in some time with he and Lauren...it looked a little like this: Mexican food (specifically queso), telling stories, laughing very hard, and playing cards (our pass time in Kenya on many nights). We had a fabulous time and miss him already!

Just this past weekend I had the joy of riding to Austin with my college roommate Chelsea (left) and meeting up with Marissa (right center) who drove in from San Antonio. We stayed with Jamie (left center) and all partook in the Capitol 10k this weekend. This was Marissa's first race ever! We were so proud of her! It rained almost the entire race, but we sure did have a blast!

Here we are last year! The costumes may have changed, but the smiles have remained the same! This has quickly become a tradition that we look forward to keeping.

Here are our ducks pre-race! We got so many compliments on our very 'timely' costumes. The goggles were a big help with all the rain, and we heard the 'rubber ducky' song from Sesame Street more times than we could count!

My Aunt and Uncle took us out to lunch at Shady Grove, one of my favorite Austin restaurants, after the race. I've been attending this same lunch for the past 6 years after the Capitol 10k. It has become one of my most treasured Austin memories!


My job continues to be a huge blessing in my life! I enjoy serving families at the hospital and love getting to know and work with a great group of co-workers and colleagues. Since my last post I have officially become a 'Covenant Member' of The Village Church and am looking forward to serving as a mentor of sorts for young adult women who lead small group Bible studies in my area. Perhaps the most exciting thing happening in my life right now are the two new relationships I've been building with my new mentor, Sharond, and our other mentoree Meredith. They have become a staple to my calendar on Thursday nights and it seems that God has placed us in this group because He has been plans. It has been exciting to see how the Lord continues to provide for each of us through the other two. Please pray that God is able to use each of us to minister to each other and those around us!

A little Kenya update: Things have settled down quite a bit since the first of the year. Most of the violence has subsided, but almost nothing is back to 'normal.' Hundreds of thousands remain displaced and in need of food, supplies, and shelter. As the government continues to map out their plan for governing, I ask that you continue to keep Kenya and its people in your prayers! Ask that peace would be restored, forgiveness would come easy, and that above all else God would be glorified.

I pray that you have a week full of the things of God! May you be blessed sweet friends!