holiday refreshment

I hope you had a relaxing holiday weekend. We sure had an eventful one, but relaxing, nonetheless.  We enjoyed having our friends from India stay with us for the long weekend, watching movies and shopping for all of their "kids" at Target :) Georgia pulled out a wonderful win over Clemson, and it made mine and Andrew's Sunday at the lake house with family (who are Clemson alums) even more enjoyable. Then we still had Monday to stay at home with our friends, relax, make homemade pizza, and clean-- which I thoroughly enjoyed having a day to tackle the mess that's built up in our 900 square feet :) Shouldn't every weekend be three days???

          

xo

oh, canada

Looking for something pretty to stare at? Check at the instagram account "Up Knorth." There is a beautiful display of outdoor scenes- I can almost feel the cool mountain air amidst this southern heat (*almost*). I'd have a pretty awesome Instagram, too, if I lived in a place like this (so I tell myself...)

stay cool. xo

this week's wanderlust

I recently discovered a new favorite on Instagram. Maybe I am late to the party, but this lady is now providing me with some serious eye candy. Her photographs are breathtaking, and it certainly doesn't hurt that she's recently been traveling and camping in some of the United States' most gorgeous parks. Take a look for yourself, and enjoy a mini mental vacation as you are whisked away by daydreams of open mountain air and serene landscapes. 

Visit Julia Manchick's blog here.

a word about these past 3-6-5

I can't believe it, but it was one year ago today that we hopped on a plane to move our lives to Haiti. How can it have already been a year? Time seems to have stopped from June until about this past April, because life as we knew it was so different. Now that it's summer again, I find myself thinking of and missing Haiti almost every day. The heat, the smell of gasoline, the busyness of city dwellers as I walk through the streets- it all awakens glimpses of memories of our every day lives there. I remember so much about each day so perfectly, it doesn't seem that 365 days have already come and gone...

find beauty in today

Happy Thursday! There are a lot of pretty things floating around the internet world today, so I will just keep it simple and leave you with some lovely inspiration to aid you as you conquer through your last day to Friday :) 

          

xo

Image Sources: // 1. Flower Power // 2. Pool Side // 3. Little Blooms // 4. Wild & Free // 5. Hair Geometrics // 6. Peachy // 7. Whale Tails // 8. Floral Arch // 7. Egg-celent // 8. Picnic on the Water // 9. Mountain Views // 10. Succulent Love //

back from the beach

Last week, Andrew and I spent several days at the beach in Southport, North Carolina. His grandparents, who live in Southport, left us their home to ourselves while they toured Russia. Here are some pictures below, if you'd like to see...

two new adventurers

Guess where my two baby brothers are visiting this week??!.... INDIA! They left Saturday and I have been a worried and weepy big sister ever since. They have never truly been out of the country (sorry boys, family vacation to Cancun in 2007 does NOT count), and I just feel so proud of my little world explorers. They are with a group that is implementing a kids camp for the week, and you can follow their blog updates here. 

Grayson in the middle, riding the bus to the camp in Chennai

Jacob on the left, waiting in the airport with two of his teammates

Have you ever been to India? It is definitely on my list of top 5 places I want to visit asap, including Israel and the United Arab Emirates. After browsing through pictures on Pinterest, I am experiencing some serious wanderlust. For real, if you need a "daydream" break, simply search "India" on Pinterest. The beauty and energy is unbelievable. 

P.S. I've heard some hilarious stories about the Indian monkeys...

P.P.S. What a chic elephant! :)

P.P.P.S. (last one, I promise.) HA! Reminds me of Haiti...

xo

Image Source: 1. Painted Elephants // 2. Grayson and Friends // 3. Jacob and Friends //  4. Rainbow Door // 5.  Baby Elephant // 6. Looking into the Blue

have a peachy weekend!

The weather has been so warm this week- it feels like we skipped right over spring and went straight to summer. I don't know if I'm ready for this much heat yet! Pollen counts have already jumped from 50 on Monday to 5,230 today (!), so have those tissues ready. What are your plans for the weekend? Hope you stay allergy free and enjoy an ice cold drink outside in this beautiful weather :)

Kristen Bell singing live- so great!

Kind of terrifying... Do you believe it?

Such darling wedding dresses.

Now, this is a taco.

An interesting perspective on Noah.

For all my Georgia peaches.

Would be a great DIY birthday gift for a friend.

Home Inspiration. Can't wait to decorate our next home with all the trinkets I've been collecting.

Wanderlust- stargazing.

xo

Image found here //

a short video from living in Haiti

Last weekend I had a little fun messing around with iMovie and created a short video of our time spent living in Haiti. During our time there, we occasionally filmed moments and interactions for the sake of memory, but never had the intention of actually making anything of them. The filming is shaky and the quality is low, but it's fun to look back and remember bits and pieces of what made up our days there.

You can click this link to view the 5 minute video, but don't forget to make it full screen and turn up your volume so that you can get the full experience ;)

xo

caribbean waters

It's true that the Caribbean is home to some of the most beautiful water- clear, blue, and warm. Often times when I go to the beach, I like swimming in the ocean but get too scared of sharks or jellyfish or crabs or even fish to stay in for too long. The water here was so clear that it erased any mystery of "what lies beneath," and we fearlessly swam, floated, and dove to the depths...

twa jou

view from our bedroom window

One of the nicest things about our trip last week to Club Indigo was that since we decided to go during the week, there were almost no other guests. We had the beach and the water all to ourselves, quiet nights, and no lines during meals! 

Definitely the way to go... 

He's got the whole world in His hands

Earlier this week, we had lunch at the home of some new friends/mentors/potential business partners. They live in a gorgeous, under-construction house in a more elevated area. On the way up, we stopped at this overlook where you can view all of Port-au-Prince. It was beautiful and we could have stayed all day, but were only given five minutes :) We spotted places like the landing strip that is the airport, and some larger buildings we use as landmarks when navigating the city.

Overlooking any city from up above is always mesmerizing, but there was something eerie and captivating about the quietness of gray buildings littering the green hills. It’s all just so… flat. No skyscrapers here! Plus the ocean, the mountains… if you visit us, know that this will be one of the spots we take you ;) 

waterfalls and caves

As promised, here are some more photos of our time in Hinche last week. We had the opportunity to explore a local tourist sight, a waterfall with the name Bassin Zim. We drove down a long winding gravel/dirt road so steep and full of holes that most people driving a normal size car have to pull over and walk the rest of the way. Once at the waterfall, we hiked up the side of it to the top, led by two children "tour guides" looking to make some money. Click the link below to view the pictures from our journey.

taking the scenic route

During the drive to Hinche last week, we were amazed by the beautiful countryside. The most mesmerizing of it all, though, was Haiti's longest river, the Artibonite River (and also the source of the November 2010 Cholera outbreak, unfortunately). We also stopped at the Peligre Dam, a hydroelectric dam completed in 1956, which generates and sends electricity throughout most of the country. Click below to see a few more pictures!

rooftop views

Our bedroom has a door that opens up onto the same level of our host family's roof. It provides the perfect spot for both early morning reading & writing, and catching the evening sunset. Small things like this help us find routine and feel more at home.

saturday morning in the mountains

Yesterday morning we drove with some friends from church to Kenscoff, a town in the mountains of Port-au-Prince...

church in Mirebalais

This past Sunday, the church in Port-au-Prince drove to Mirebalais for worship to encourage the church there at their inaugural service in their new building...