Tuesday, August 31, 2010

bread of life {10 days}

Jeremiah 6:16

"This is what the Lord says: “Stop at the crossroads and look around.

Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it.

Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls."


i have been "chewing" on this for a few days and really love it.

STOP. LOOK AROUND.

OLD. GODLY.

WALK.

REST.

yum.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

i take pictures {11 days}

this weekend i shot a wedding in WA.
this is my favorite photo of the day:

sometimes i take pictures. :)

Friday, August 27, 2010

new hair. {13 days}

in case you are just dropping in on this {countdown}, let me explain; i love birthdays... a lot. i also, have a strong opinion that they should ALWAYS be celebrated to the utmost! Naturally, my own birthday falls into this category, except more so :)

i also LOVE countdowns...on August 15 i started the 25 days until my 25th countdown, and commited to writing a blog post everyday until then!!! the day after i am headed to Southern California to RELAX on the beach with my brother and his Fiance... so this countdown is really for a few things! :) :) :)

now for today's post... i cut about 6 inches off my hair and added some FUN and FUNKY color...


(please note this is a cell phone picture so the colors look different in real life, but you get the idea)

Thursday, August 26, 2010

his plans are brilliant. {14 days}

Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

i don't know anyone who doesn't like this verse. if there was a faceb**k page for this verse and you could "like" it... i'm sure there would be a million fans!

i have been thinking a lot about the last 4 years of my life this week... looking back at all the things i have or haven't done. remembering the struggles, the joys, the pain, the fun and all the people i have met. this is the conclusion i have come to:

His plans are brilliant and His ways are amazing!

four years ago i was working a dream job, i was living with my awesome family, i had a "free" car, very little expenses and was super happy! i would like to say i was content, but that would only be half true. While i LOVED my life and LOVED everything i was doing, there was a longing inside of me for more than i knew. Somewhere deep inside of my heart i knew my life had only just begun and there was so much head of me.

in a matter of 8 months everything changed. i bought a car, moved, changed churches, rented my first place, left everything i knew(loved), my income was cut in half and my expenses doubled. My heart was full of dreams and desires, hopes and wishes, prayers and eagerness to accomplish all the Lord had for me! I had vision for where my life was and where it was going, i was certain of somethings and questioning others. I plans, dreams, goals and visions i was sure would happen.

looking back i would not change a thing! not many of the things i thought would be are, but i am so thankful they are not. i have experienced grace so amazing, love so deep, pain un-bearable, hope as high as the sky, loneliness like a dessert in a drought and faith that builds a foundation.

i have lived in 6 houses, with 13 different people, i have had 3 jobs, i have driven over 75,000 miles, i have jumped off a cliff and broken my foot, i have had 1 broken heart, i have gained 2 sisters, i have lost a brother, i have loved and been rejected, i have loved and been loved, i have hiked a few mountains, i have learned to love running again, i have had 3 "favorite" coffee spots, i have swam in the Ocean and danced on a dock, i have floated a river, i have dated, i have taken thousands of photos, i have had 4 cell phones, i have lead and been lead, i have preached and been taught...and so much more.

looking at it all and remembering SO many moments of crying out to God, wondering what in the world he was doing, i can, with confidence say this:

His plans are brilliant and His ways are amazing!

i would not change how things have happened. i would not take back the tough decisions, i would not wish for less tears or more giggles... because in it all, my God had a plan and a purpose, a way that was more beautiful than i saw or could have grasped. for this i will always be thankful and celebrate.

brilliant i say, brilliant!

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

meeting some heroes. {15 days}

today i am super excited to meet some of my photography(& life) heroes!
meet Gary, Courtney & Joelle:

Gary & Courtney (click the link) have inspired me for a few (i think 4) years to be more creative and dream BIG in life and photography! I consider myself a regular to their blog and website, kind of like some people consider themselves regulars to a specific coffee shop....or maybe more so... either way, i love gleaning from more experienced photographers, especially ones who ooze LOVE for the craft and LOVE for travel (see we have more than 1 thing in common)!!! They lived in Bend when i first got here, and for a long time i was hoping and praying to meet them... and then i did (they sat at my table at Red Robin)... and then they moved to the sunny skies of So. California... SO, needless to say i was super stoked to find out they were making a trip up to Bend and am SO THANKFUL to be able to steal a little time with them!!!!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

january 24. {16 days)

i was 24 years, 4months, 14 days old and sitting on my bed thinking about being single. (honest much?) i was pondering the guy friends i had in my life and the "what ifs" and "possibilities"... i actually wrote out a list of guys and the pros and cons of possibly dating them. I know i sound a little crazy, but it's the truth.

i also found myself reflecting on a conversation i had recently had with my "phone friend" Dean... He had told me that when i started dating someone he was going to "phase out" of my life so that he wasn't the "awkward guy friend who talks to a girl all the time while she is dating someone else". We (more so, I) had established early on in our friendship that i was not interested in dating long distance, and more so that i didn't want to lead him on... he had been so gracious and encouraging to me as i walked through one of the most heart-wrenching times of my life. Dean and i had met 2 months and 6 days previous to these reflections and i had unexpectedly found myself looking forward to our long phone conversations...He had somehow become my closest guy friend and one of the few people i really trusted.

as i sat on my bed in the middle of my pondering and reflecting, i realized i didn't really like the idea of Dean "phasing out" of my life when i started dating someone or ever...in fact i didn't really want to date anyone else. if you were in or around my life at the time, you would understand how CRAZY and world shaking this was for me... it was as if something hit me on the head and i woke up to see what had been right in front of me for 2 months and 6 days!!!


today i celebrate 7 months of dating the man of my dreams.
today i celebrate all the God has done since January 24th.
today i look forward to what is ahead with great anticipation!

Monday, August 23, 2010

little me. {17 days}

i think i was almost 2 when this picture was taken.
only 17 days until my birthday and i'm kind of wishing i could go to Chucky Cheese and enjoy a little ride like this one :)

Sunday, August 22, 2010

my rockstar. {18 days}

i stole some photos from faceb**k for bragging rights... this is my man Dean, rocking a concert with Silverline in Yuma Arizon this weekend!


my favorite:
i love what waiting does.
it builds good things.
i waited 24years, 2 months and 8 days before i met this guy
and another 2 months 6 days before i started dating him.

it's been 2 months and 20 days since i have seen him
and since we started dating 6 months and 28 days ago, we have spent 22 days together....
it's all been so worth it.
beyond worth it.

waiting. it builds things.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

happy anniversary {19 days}

theses are my amazing parents. (aren't they cute?)
they have been married for 28 years today!

i love them SO much.

i wouldn't trade them for the world.

for as long as i've known them (24 years 11 months and 21 days) they have been incredible examples of self-less love!

they figured out how to multiply the love they have experienced from God, not only in their marriage, but 12 times over! (that's some awesome math skills)

i wouldn't be where i am today if it wasn't for them.

i am so thankful for how they raised me; from homeschooling to family meetings about modesty. from road trips to camping in the back yard. from laughing like crazy people because of a tickle fight to long stern talks about boys. they did an amazing job!

they always found ways to make life exciting and fun.
i am so thankful.
Happy Anniversary Papa and Mama!!!!!
cheers for all, and many more!

Friday, August 20, 2010

bread of life {20 days}

Isaiah 56:1
"Be just and fair to all," says the Lord, "Do what is right and good,
for i am coming soon to rescue you."

i read this yesterday morning and it made me really happy, but not only happy, but safe. Safe knowing that i have a savior who not only loves me but is also coming for me.

delightful.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

traveling. {21 days}

i love traveling. love it. lots.

my first flight wasn't until i was 16, two months after 9/11/01 and i got slightly sick upon landing...yet, i still LOVE flying and love to travel.

however my love for travel started long before that day.

Diacogiannis Family Road Trips are now a annual or bi-annual occurrence that is well documented on a blog and talked about for months after the fact. Not much has changed since i was a small child... we may have not driven 23 states in 21 days back then, but we had some AWESOME memory making road trips when i was little!

i loved it when we would go camping for a weekend an hour away from our house... it felt like we were REALLY FAR away. i remember waking up at 3 in the morning to start a leg of our trip up to British Columbia to visit my great-grandpa's cabin on a river... mom and dad let us sleep on the floor of the van! i remember so many trips to CRC and knowing we were getting really close when we pasted the pink "barn" (it's not a barn, but we thought it was). sometimes we would bring friends on our road trips... mostly they were high school girls who wanted to experience life with 6 or 7 little people, but to me they were my friends. We also never left home with out Adventures in Odessey. Mr. Whittaker, Eugene and Connie were pretty much apart of the family and i fully believe that on these road trips they fell in love with traveling as much as i did!!!

before i turned 18 i had been to 27 states.

before i turned 21 i had been to 9 countries and 3 continents.

i wish i could say that before i turn 25 i will have greatly added to those lists... i've been to 37 states now, but no new countries in a few years.

before i die my goal is to visit every continent and over 25 countries.

i love to travel. i especially love road trips.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

bats in the house. {22 days}

some of my earliest memories are from august days spent at a cabin on Cour 'de Alene Lake in Idaho.

my parents were engaged at this cabin. most of us kids learned to swim at this cabin. our love (and competitive spirit) for card games was nurtured at this cabin. building sand castles and canals from the beach to the lake were a normal occurrence in my young summers. learning to dive, paddle surf boards, water ski and doing dishes all happened to some great extent at this cabin. the conversation of the last ten minutes of the 7 hour drive to the cabin always revolved around who would sleep in the "nook". figuring out traps for the yellow jackets was always a new and crazy experience. my secret love for furry dogs who howl at the boat is always alive at this cabin.

and then there was the summer with bats.

if my memory serves me well, i can only recall one summer that we had a bat issue. it may have actually only been the one night that i remember so vividly.

Gregg and Jeremiah were the "favored" children who got to sleep in the "nook" that summer. Josh was a baby and slept in the crib in mom & dad's room... which left the "middle room" for us 3 little girls. Carissa and Lindsey were fast asleep as i lay there wishing i was old enough to stay up late with mom and dad. It was a particularly warm August night and the sliding door to the deck was open a crack (screen closed). i could hear the waves lapping up onto the shore and the faint sound of mom and dad playing cards with George and Shirley(cabin owners) slipped through the open bedroom door.

I don't know the events that lead up to this moment, but i remember the moment so well... Dad had come downstairs for some reason and discovered a bat in the hallway... i'm sure he was trying to be a stealth super hero and get the bat out of the cabin before is sacred us kiddos half to death, but in his attempt to shoo it out, it flew into our bedroom... i sat up when the door flew open and in came dad holding a broom. i saw what looked like a large black bird land on the ceiling. i don't remember dad saying anything except "it's a bat." and with that he took a swing and the bat went flying out into the hallway dad followed in pursuit, by this time i heard my mom out in the hallway too, they didn't seem scared or worried, in fact i am pretty sure they might have been laughing! i sat in bed for a moment wondering what to do and if the bat would re-appear in my dark room. i could hear mom and dad doing what they had to in order to get the bat out... i am pretty sure the bat escaped the house un-harmed through an open door.

you may think this is an anti-climatic story with no point and it might be, however i have been reminded of this night twice in the recent months... my dear and amazing Rockstar has 2 sisters who live with him in Minnesota. Charissa has the unfortunate problem with bats showing up in her room and she makes valid attempts to scare them away... i am pretty sure both times Dean has had to rescue her and Giselle from the impending doom of the bat being on a bed or in their room... the stories always have me laughing up a storm and recalling my one close encounter with a bat...some 18 years ago!

22 days until my birthday and today i celebrate fantastic family memories and bats in the house.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

the day i got saved. {23 days}

June 1990.

the Cold War was near its end.
the 1990 FIFA World Cup started.
the Portland Trailblazers were in the NBA finals (they lost).
Universal Studios in Florida opened to the public.
Home Alone was all the rage.

my 6th birthday was a few short months away and Billy Graham was holding a crusade at the Tacoma Dome.

i remember my mom was wearing the color peach and my dad was wearing a teal and black stripped polo shirt. Carissa and Lindsey were left at home with a babysitter and "the boys" and i got to go with mom and dad... i don't really remember knowing very much about what we were going to other than the fact that we were going to the Tacoma Dome and we had been there before for the circus.

i don't remember a lot of Mr. Graham's message. i do remember that there were a few ladies doing sing-language and i had to ask my mom why they were moving there hands so much. i remember there was a band of some kind and i remember Gregg and Jeremiah seemed antsy.

the crusade was about to come to an end and my dad wanted to beat the traffic out of Tacoma... right as we were getting ready to head for the exit what seemed to me like a million people stood from there seats and started walking towards the stage. i remember getting my mom's attention and asking why. she explained to me that it was an altar call and that the people were going forward to receive prayer and give their lives to Jesus. I asked a few more questions and my mind was made up. i wanted to go down there with all those people and give my life to Jesus too!!! My mom explained that i didn't have to go down near the stage to pray or ask Jesus to be the Lord of my life. i seemed satisfied with that answer and my mom stopped my dad, who was still heading for the stairs and exit with 2 boys. I don't remember where Gregg and Jeremiah were for a few minutes... it didn't really matter to me at the time... all i knew was there was a man named Billy Graham and what he said made sense to me and i wanted what all those other people wanted. I wanted Jesus.

mom and dad sat and made sure i understood what was going on and then prayed with me in our seats. i'm sure the moment lasted no longer than 5 minutes, but it will always be engraved in my head.

thanks mom and dad for taking that moment in 1990 that i will remember forever.... the list at the top of this post? well, let's just say the internet makes it easy to find information...i don't remember any of that :)

Monday, August 16, 2010

24 days.

mondays.

before last year i was not a person who either hated nor loved mondays. before last september i worked on mondays, so it was just the start of a work week, i didn't mind being that i LOVE my job. September 2009 rolled around and so did a schedule change. mondays became another day in the weekend. mondays were FREE! i enjoyed the sleeping in for a couple mondays and then something happened...

i have a friend. her name is Stephenie Jayne. She is tall and brunette. Her heart for Africa is awesome! Her willingness to serve is incredible and she listens really well. prior to last september and the love of mondays stephenie and i would have lunch on wednesdays... when the work schedule changed it required a change in our lunching together.

enter monday.

we had lunch a few times on monday and then one of us had the crazy idea to see if we could both wake up early and meet for coffee. amazingly: it worked. (we are not morning people, hence the amazingly) shortly after this switch in routine i realized that monday mornings were quickly becoming the highlight of my week! it isn't because i wake up early or because the coffee is so grand (tho it is) but there is something about sitting down with a friend and talking for an hour (or so) about things that matter; it fills and refreshes. sometimes we sit in the coffee shop, sometimes we sit outside, sometimes we laugh, sometimes there are tears, sometimes there is scones with our coffee, sometimes there is silence! Every time? Every time there is friendship that is real and lasts and sees beyond monday. Every time there is encouragement and joy. Every time i walk away from that coffee shop my heart is full and i am thankful.

i love mondays. today, i celebrate mondays.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

25 days.

in 25 days i will be celebrating my 25th birthday. i'm stoked.
between now and then my goal is to write a post everyday celebrating
something(s) from my 25 years on God's green earth!!
~
today i celebrate my Best Friend Taylor Cailee



Today is Taylor's Birthday. :)
We both consider our birthdays to be National holidays
We also believe birthday countdowns can start as soon as our hearts desire!
I may be 3 years 11 months and 5 days older than T, but it doesn't seem to matter.
She is brave and beautiful.
She is girly and amazing.
She makes normal days great and great days greater!
I am SO thankful for her in my life and am wowed by how God made our lives collide!
Taylor has made my life in Bend brighter, funner, sweeter & more wonderful!

Happy Birthday Taylor Cailee!
love you more than you know!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

your new favorite band.

well at least that's what their Faceb**k says.



this is just a little peek at the fantastic band my man is apart of. He is the drummer and i like him. lots.

make sure to check out more videos and music from Silverline!!! CLICK HERE

Thursday, August 12, 2010

fill in for my rockstar.

due to the fact that my rockstar lives in Minnesota, sometimes i have to have stand in dates for weddings.

last weekend i was so THRILLED to go to my dear friend Joann's wedding and thankful mr. pink puppet was there to keep all the guys away :) this photo is my turn in the "photo booth". :)