Goodbye 2010!!

2010 was another great year for me and my family.  August 9, 2010 I had my first wedding anniversary and it was a great year of new beginnings.  I graduated with my masters degree at Washington State University.  GO COUGS!  I met amazing friends and got even closer to older ones.  Rudy had his first birthday and we celebrated with friends and family.  My sister moved back home :).  Spent last year's new years with my family and grandparents and it was pretty eventful.  Sean and I moved from Pullman, Washington to Moscow, Idaho (big move, about 8 miles).  Sean's cousin Danielle, got married.  Sonja, my best friend got married in December 2010 and I was the matron of Honor.  It was a great Texas-Swiss-Oregon wedding.  We celebrated mom's weekend in Pullman, WA for WSU.  My two aunts, mom, Sean's mom and sister Amberly were all involved in the festivities.  We traveled to Long Beach, WA for a vacation and also with my girlfriends to Ocean Park.  Sean and I went camping in Idaho with friends.  Sean took over leading our care group through our church (Bible Study).  Sean and I started volunteering for the children's first through fifth grade Sunday school.  Sean and I celebrated our birthdays in July and November turning 24.  Overall, it was a busy year filled with classes, work, homework assignments and projects, love, family, friends, and fun.  I hope to make more meaningful friends and get to know our old friends even better.  Below are some pictures of 2010:

  

  

Sonja and me at her wedding reception.

Sonja and Zack for their first dance.

Mom's weekend at Jay Leno

My mom and me.

Sean, me, Danielle, and Amberly at Danielle's wedding.

At WSU Graduation.

Rudy blowing out his candle.

Rudy, wearing his bday hat.

Sean's 24th birthday.

The girls at the beach: Melissa, me, Ashley, Allison, and Jess.

Rudy with his halloween costume.

Rudy and my carved pumpkin of Rudy.

I hope everyone has a great New Years and I will post my New Year's resolutions tomorrow.  Be Safe and enjoy the remaining moments of 2010 with good friends and family.

Family Fun at the Beckman Ranch

When it snows sometimes people want to sit inside sipping cocoa and snuggled inside a warm blanket watching a movie.  Well, today, the Beckman family went to their ranch and went sledding!  Brad fed the cows, while Rudy thought he could intimidate them.  It was such a beautiful day, looking at God's amazing creation.  Boy, am I sore from sledding or wiping out!  Below are some fun pics and some artistic pics of the ranch.  Enjoy!

Rudy with grandpa Beckman, wants to see the calves.

really trying hard to get in.

Rudy thinks he is a tough guy.

Scaring the cows away.

View of ranch area from the top of the sliding hill.

The ranch house.

Grandma Vicki with Rudy.

Auntie Amberly

Sean and Rudy sledding.

Oh no, wipeout!

Journey into a woman's heart

I have heard of the book Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge that unveils the mystery of a woman's soul.  I am not a girly girl at all and have heard horror stories from this book.  Girls have told me that they have read it in one night and could not put it down, drinking tea and holding a box of Kleenex near.  That is not me.  I am completely the opposite.  I love wearing sweatpants (even out in public) and hate wearing makeup unless I know I am getting my picture taken.  Don't get me wrong, I love looking pretty, just hate all the work it takes.  I even bought Captivating in January 2008, because I knew I had to bite the bullet and read it one day.  It has taken me over two years to open it up willingly.  I tried sometime last year, in my first year of marriage to really understand who I am as a woman in God's eyes, but stopped either because I was too busy, or did not want to take this heartfelt adventure.  I am still trying to figure that out.  I am not against the women who love being in the kitchen wearing an apron, I eventually want to love cooking and getting in touch with my feminine side.  I just hope this book can reach me where I am at, and that ultimately, God can change my heart and show me how being a woman is a wonderful thing and to embrace all that God has in store for me.

So, I will be brutally honest about my journey through Captivating, and if I offend you, I am sorry, but I want to be real to get the most out of this process.  I also bought, Captivating: A guided journal, which I think any woman should buy to accompany the book to really dig deep!  I encourage anyone to try out this book and journal with me and to post their responses along the way.  Even if I sound bitter right now, I am truly excited to take a journey with Jesus and to talk about the insides of my heart.

Alright......so here I go!!!!!

I do not want Christmas to be over....

I love the Christmas season!  It makes me feel like a little girl getting all giddy for Santa to come!  It is such a magical time.  Even though, Christmas is over, I am going to post some of my decorations because I hate taking them down.

Rudy getting excited about putting up decorations!

My sister Ashley visiting!

Made some mochas to get excited about decorating!

Sean decorated this wreath!

Getting pumped about the snow outside!

Our fireplace

Our little family 

Helping my parents with their Christmas lights