the day i turned 30

the number hit 19.

and if you count the two i'm getting for mom and nancy (shhh, don't tell them), we're up to 21. hooray!

thanks for helping me create hope on my birthday. i can't wait to hear more about the beautiful ugandan stories. and the life and hope that is growing there as we speak. how cool that we get to play a small role. that we get to be His hands and feet.

(and if you still want to get a grow card, go ahead. we could hit that 30 mark yet.)

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in other news, yesterday was a blessed day. mostly because i got to spend the majority of the day without my kiddos. (how sad is that? sad, but true.)

kayla and gg velma towed our three kids around so that we could drink coffee and eat avocado omelette's at adam's mountain cafe

and then hike around red rocks canyon.

oh and guess who was hiking around the exact same area of red rocks canyon?

picture taken by friend and photographer www.daronshort.com

yep, the nords. how'd we find them you ask?

let's just say christy has some recognizable pipes. "act natural!"

it was a birthday present to get to hug her one last time before their trek westward today. thanks, God.

we relieved kayla and gg and gave the kids naps while we watched grey's anatomy and modern family.

sydney arrived before everyone was up so we got to sneak out again without much fan fare. we ate a free blta croissant at red robin right before watching soul surfer on the big screen. sure, there were some cheesy parts, but i cried throughout the whole thing. very inspiring. i want my girls to watch this movie when they're big and i want them to have the kind of resolve and faith that this chick has. amazing.

we ended our day at blue star, eating corleone, sipping decaf and taking a memory trip through the harried years of our 20's. the decade of quick, radical, and seemingly non-stop life change.

20 wasn't just a decade ago, it was a whole lifetime ago.