Thankful

GRACE

It has been a while since I have blogged, as I am not exactly and avid blogger, shocker I know. But I felt like it was time to do a year...or more catch-up...actually settling for the past few months. It has been a time that has demanded tremendous growth and learning, and I feel like I have lost the touch of grace that has been in my life, and am on track to find it again. I can feel the stress and burdens in my shoulders and true relaxation seems to be a foreign concept, (working on relearning the language). What I appreciate the most are those moments of wonder that have brought those brief glimpses of grace, and this blog is directed to remembering it.

 The Sports Psych Lab Mural; my first "big" mural by that I mean it was 8' X 4'. It was a great experience and was fun for me to give back to the department that has given me so much by way of allowing me to stay at the university and work with an adviser who inspires me so often to be positive, laugh, smile and enjoy life. I truly am blessed to have fallen into this grace.

 

Taking some pics of my sister and her great family was a great joy. In a very jumbled stress, they have provided me with their grace of love, understanding, joy, laughter and relaxation that has been a lifesaver in so many ways.

 My cute nephew Jackson (even when he gives me scowls), he is one of my favorite people to hear laugh and smile. It is truly a grace to watch the wonder and excitement in his eyes when he sees a new leaf, flower or bug when he takes walks with his Aunt Lex. He is truly a great reminder of how to see the world anew.

 My wonderful niece, who is constantly smiling and laughing mixed in wither sass ;) She has so much energy and love of life and doing things. The joy with which she lives her young life is such a great example of how to be in life. I hope she can always keep this joy.

 Carving pumpkins, always a favorite of mine around Halloween, and it was made so much better when I was able to be around family and  try out a new design.

The Great Outdoors and in this case, Neon Canyon, which has been on my bucket list for a while and it finally happened. I have a truly great friend (Lisa) who took it upon herself to organize it and find others whom we could go with (Brandon); I am so grateful for her friendship and for the times she has thrown together great trips that have influenced me beyond description. 

There are so many others who have touched me the past month; some old friends, family, cousins, new acquaintances and others I have witnessed. All have brought joy and shown me great moments of grace. Thanks to all who have touched me and inspired me in the past few months.

Movin' Body Movin'

So it has been a crazy past few months-ish with a lot of movin' aroundMove 1: I moved out of the townhouse I was in to the cute, old granny house I am in now...with a hot tub, that's right...awesome!

Move 2: I moved from the department of Forest Ecosystems and Society to the department of Exercise and Sports Science, with an emphasis in Sport Psychology...yeah, a little bit of a switch, but what can ya do.

Move 2 1/2: Moved my office from FES to EXSS

Move 3: Been movin' the body (aka running) 40 miles a week.

Move 4: Cruised down to Southern Utah (briefly) for a visit in June and did a 23-mile hike in a dayMove 5: Movin' down to the Grand Canyon for ?? to play with fire and helicopters, before school kicks up again in September

Move 6: Movin' towards meeting new peops to play with.

Move 7: Hmm...

Life...

It has been a while since I have posted. I feel like a changed, more solid person. It has been an incredible past few months of growth and I feel very blessed to have experienced all the incredible moments of joy and turmoil.

In December I faced two of my greatest fears in the depths of the cold Alaskan wilderness and came to a greater perspective of life.
I accomplished a goal that I have been unable to attain for the last 10 years and am pursuing others that I have put on hold for too long.

I have experienced and learned to love at a whole new level and have come to a greater understanding of compassion, responsibility, joy, and sorrow. I have had to learn how to say goodbye to my best friend.

Appreciating the good and learning to move with the tides

I have come to appreciate the life I lead, to stand up when I have fallen, and to take the reminders of what matters most in life and most importantly that it is a choice to live your life with grace and...dance.

The Riverwalk in San Antonio

Eyes Open

This is my life...

Since November is the time for turkey day, I figure what better time to write about what I am most thankful for in my life.

I am very grateful for my family and friends, even ones that I don't see as much. It seems there is so much that stays with me.

I am grateful that I am being paid to learn about compassion, leadership and how to help others be the best people they can be in their lives, at least work-wise. I can't think of anything cooler and more rewarding.

I am grateful that I have a mind capable of seeing and understanding the goodness and some of the little things in people, when others sometimes miss it.

I am grateful for having a great environment to live and work

I am grateful for having crossed paths with so many great people that at different times have believed in me and convinced me to never settle for less

I am grateful for all the trials, big mistakes and painful experiences that I have had to go through that have enabled me to become a better person and to feel and truly understand the joy in my life

I am grateful I can go run outside in the rain and truly enjoy the feeling of splashing through puddles

I am grateful that I know I have a choice everyday on how I choose to live

I am grateful for all the bad relationships I have had, otherwise I would never fully understand and appreciate how incredible Nate is and how lucky I am to have him in my life.



I am grateful that I have friends I can go hiking with and have fun moments



I am grateful I can go hiking to places like this

I am grateful for the moments...thanks to everyone who has added to them

Hate Goodbyes, but Love the Adventure of Beginnings

Alright it has been a while since I have blogged and all I can say is that it has been an unbelievable summer in more ways than one. I met and mingled with some outstanding people, who I will always be proud to call my friends and I have never had such a hard time leaving a place, but at the same time I am looking forward to some new adventures in Oregon, seems like the best things in life have that sort of pardoxical dynamic

Me and Nate out on the rim, truly one of the coolest guys I have known

Jackie and I on the rim

This shot was pretty representative of the four of us (we all ended up being pretty great friends)and the adventures we were are about to take on. This is probably my favorite one from the summer.

Gorgeous Canyon hiking up from Phantom Ranch at 5 am

Awesome Crew in the canyon

Pretty cool fire pics

Let the Fun Begin!

Alrighty, it has been a little while, but it is good to be back to the blogging world and see what everyone is up to these days. I started work on the Grand Canyon Helitack Crew in the middle of April and have been through a crazy training ordeal the past few weeks, as well as mixing in some SARS (Search and Rescues) and medevacs (crazy) in the middle of training! But I am loving it down here, I forgot how awesome the Southwest is; This last week we have been training to do rappels out of helicopters (see below) into fires, and yest it is very fun.
Me about to do my second rappel out of a helicopter, around 100-125'

This is some of my fellow crewmembers doing a rappel around 200-225'

Also, here is some footage...

Oh and I couldn't forget that I got hang out with my best friend Lindsay right before I took off to go to the Grand Canyon. It is always awesome to see and remember how amazing your super cool friends and family are (they never cease to amaze me).

Oregonians!

RUNNERS!!

Okay one of the coolest things about Oregonians is that they are so runner friendly; they go out of their way to let you cross the street, they smile and wave! This is easily the most friendly running place ever and Oregonians get a thumbs way up in my book for that!
Grad School!
I don't have any sweet pics of Corvallis, Oregon, aka home to Oregon State...but there is this cool pic of a beaver!!

The visit was absolutely amazing!!! I met with some incredible people who have done so much for others through their work and have greatly humbled me. They are facing some pretty drastic cuts in their department though, because of the economy :( So we will see how everything pans out.

On another thought, I have been having an a great time with my sister and her family. They are awesome people, who let me hang out at their house for weeks on end. It seems I have been at their place at least a few days of each month for the last 4 months!

More good skiing times

I thought these trees all bundled up amidst the snow was pretty cool

Ya know the prettiest time to ski is right at dusk, but then it also gets quite a bit chillier, but of course still worth it.

Hi!

I took a detour and did some snowshoeing with my mom, Uncle Bob and Aunt Linda at Bryce Canyon, which was fun

Mom, Bob an Linda

Can't stay away from the skiing too long, though I love this lookout, which takes a while to get to, but always is always rewarding with its views

I love the fresh snow where no one has been and you are breaking your own trail

Again, one of my favorite times is at dusk for reasons such as this amazing red rock that glows when the sun hits it

The moon was also awesome! This was just a taste of what the night looked like

How I feel everyday I get to touch, feel, smell, see and sense nature around me