Let it snow!

Christmas time is in the air! I have a hard time writing that because it's come upon me so quickly. However, Christmas Eve is tomorrow!
I just got done helping mom make some intense lasagna and about to sit at the table and eat it all up. Christmas break has been wonderful and much needed. Being able to relax and spend some awesome time with family (without the stress of homework and random schedules to keep track of) has been such a blessing. The last week of school was great--aside from exams. Although, not even exams seem half as bad now that they're over with and the grades are up! I had great final critiques and time to hang out with my friends before saying goodbye! You don't realize how much your friends mean to you until you have to say bye to them for a whole month while you usually see them every day. My friends are great.
Mom wanted me to put an artistic touch to Greta's 4th grade school photos rather than the usual formal, blank wall, forced smile type...this picture is one of my favorites. She's a cutie that's for sure--and a natural model! :)
Along with random Christmas shopping with friends, rolling in snow in nothing but swimsuits (quickly followed by a hot tub plunge of course), a Lord of the Rings marathon, and Christmas cooking, I've been delighting in every moment I get to spend with my dear friends and awesome family.
Have a wonderful Christmas season!...I just finished the book "Crazy Love"...I recommend it. Definitely makes that wonderful night when Christ was born a lot more than a pretty nativity scene.
Later,
Aanna

As the deadlines approach...

Sooo...finals week is not that far off. 11 days to be exact. Sadly, yes, I've been counting. The final art projects are becoming more and more pressing. It's frustrating because I love all of the projects and want to put my all into them....but while having so many time consuming things on my plate restricted by deadlines all while normal life keeps up, it becomes apparent that I can't go ALL OUT with everything. Ah well, such is life.
Yesterday was a day of editing! I was busy in the media lab for hours...experimenting on Lightroom, Photoshop, and other misc stuff. Of the many many photos I edited, I posted a few of the best ones. One is a self portrait and the other two are contemporary portraits. My sister was kind enough to be my gorgeous model for a couple hours and the second one is a project we worked on in class. My professor is so inspiring...I have definitely seen growth in my photography abilities. It's been awesome!
Thanksgiving last week was such a blessing! It came at just the right time as exams are looming before all of us college students. I was able to spend a lot of quality time with my crazy family and extended family and a few great friends from highschool. I ate great food that the Commons here at school can't even shake a finger at, did the remainder of my photography assignments, and had a chance to sleep in (until 11:45 =D )

That's all for now!
Enjoy the snow...and happy December,
Aanna

* guilty face *

Wow...it's been awhile!
Last time I wrote I hadn't experienced a country overseas...visit the Norway website (which I'm pretty sure I still need to update that and let everyone who's left on a cliffhanger that we made it safely back to the US...) for more info on that AWEmazingness! Seriously, one of the best experiences I've ever had in my life. I'm actually getting all sappy just thinking about it...I plan on going back for sure. Learning another language in a foreign country with international students all around me and in the company of my sister was a dream come true. The things I learned are too many to list.
Life has been crazy busy with Sophomore year. It's been an absolute blast.
I've been super busy with lots of art classes. But that's the beauty of it: I enjoy my homework! Haha. I'm actually at my workstudy job right now...I landed a great job in the bookstore. The people I work with are great, I get homework (ahem..homework.) done, and get to socialize at the same time. Yep, my kind of job =)
One of the highlights of the semester (there are many!) is my PhotoII class. The photo I posted is an example of what we did last week on our "field trip" to a small town to capture smalltown life and get to know the community a bit more. It has been a crazy time---great class and amazing prof. Visit fotothree.blogspot.com to get more of an idea what we've been working on this semester!
Well, I'm going to go enlighten the world that I am indeed back on American grounds and not across the ocean. I'll write more later (For real, I will!)
Ha det!

Off to the homeland...

Hullo!
In a few hours my sister and I will be on a plane to Europe....a dream come true =)
Just wanted to let you know, I probably won't be updating this blog in the next 7 weeks.
http://tonorway.blogspot.com ---that's the place to be for the next 2 months haha.
Prayers for safe travel and a wonderful time overseas are greatly appreciated.
Catch ya later,
Bergie

Squirt Guns, Trespassing, and Muscles

For Memorial day, my family and I stayed at the old family farm, named Plain View. Contrary to the name, Plain View Farm is actually full of beauty and surprises. Our weekend at the farm was full of work projects, vacuuming up spider webs, mowing, playing with fire, exploring, and the occasional delicious rhubarb bar. All in all, a vunderful goot time! Here are some pictures to back it up...

I'm lame.

I worked EIGHT hours today!
That means $90+ for me.
Just thought you might wanna know.
=)

...time for a nap.

I AM alive...

Why hello there!
Yes, I am still alive.
I have been quite busy with a variety of things and as a result haven't been on here for awhile!
Yet, here I am.
At 12:21am.
When I need to get up at 7am.
..yeah....
...I really shouldn't be here right now.
But before I go, I wanted to share an awesome Bible verse with you:

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you."
--Psalm 32:8

Neat huh?
I heard it on the radio today while driving around town.
Just got me thinking...
..in this culture, especially in college, everyone's worrying about what they should be doing. C'mon, we all do it...one minute we're freaking out about what major to choose and the next minute we don't even understand why we're at college. I just think this verse is so neat by the way it clearly states that God, our father, will guide us in the way we should go. He will counsel us. He knows each and every one of us so personally that He can reach us in His timing and His way that maybe only we will be able to comprehend individually. Whatever the case, He's got His hand in each of our lives and we have absolutely nothing to worry about.
So folks, don't get your undies in a bundle. And have a wonderful week!
Genuinely,
Aanna

Rainbow amongst the whirlwind

You know those moments when all your thoughts are tightly bundled into one mess yet go every which way? Yeah, today's one of those days. It's at those times that I sit on this couch and stare out the sitting room windows...gazing upon the glorious morning sunshine dancing across the trees and carefully listening for the birds' song...Just allowing the peace of the morning to quiet my mind and calm my soul. Sometimes my thoughts still don't know where to turn or which path to take--they just keep spinning. That's when only God's voice can accurately penetrate the wall of confusion, doubt, and insecurity I've built up within me. My cousin also realized this when speaking with me and instead of prying, turned to praying. The result was a miracle. Do you believe in miracles? If not, let me enlighten you; God definitely guided my dear cousin's eyes and hand as she paged through the Bible and found these verses in Romans:

The Holy Spirit helps us in our distress.
For we don't even know what we should pray for,
nor how we should pray.
But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings
that cannot be expressed in words.
And the father who knows all hearts
knows what the spirit is saying,
for the spirit pleads for us believers
in harmony with God's will.
~Romans 8:26-27

Do you see how awesome our God is? I was definitely awe-struck. It was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment. An unknown peace rushed over me and suddenly I was given the strength. How cool is that?! Even when we don't have the words, knowledge, or maybe even self control to pray, the spirit will intercede for us; the spirit prays in accordance to God's will so what have we to worry about? Just goes to prove, when the rain keeps plummeting down, and the dark clouds stubbornly hover, God has all the power and control to reveal His love in an unique and earthshaking way: a rainbow. Lovely =)
Hope you all have a beautiful day.
Genuinely,
Bergie

Here's some more!

Before you look at my photos, I should update you on my life a bit. How 'bout four things...
1) I officially have tan lines on my back, my feet (love flip flop tans), and legs (my friend and I recently entitled such a flattering tan, the "surfer tan").
2) Bike rides are fun!
3) Swinging on swings at a park at 11:30pm is awesome.
4) S'mores!!!
Alright, enough about me. On to my pictures (well hey...when I think about it, my photos are about me too...hope you don't mind being immersed by Bergie-ness today..)

MMMmmm....

Ahhh...the excitement summer brings!
And one of those huge excitements is...you guessed it, taking pictures =)
After getting my new Canon Rebel T1i last semester, my dreams came true; finally, my camera was pushing me to do more instead of the other way around. I have absolutely loved exploring with my camera at hand. So, for this post (yep, I remembered it's called a "post"...SCORE! I think I'm getting the hang of this thing called blogging) it will mainly consist of some of my favorite recently-taken photos instead of rambling on as I usually do. hahaha plus, I'm not exactly feeling witty as I'm fully engrossed in an episode of LOST...sigh, I have to admit, LOST is the one television series I have a weakness for; it's amazing.
Anywaysssssss...hope you enjoy my photos =) I have loved taking every one of them. It's one way I appreciate God's creation, take time out to think and reflect, and just plain love capturing moments!

One Week Later...

Greetings!
So...I have been officially blogging for a week. WOW. Annnndddd...I finally got the guts up to put the link on Facebook so who knows what will happen; I may actually get a reader! Not sure what I think about that.
This morning had a rough start; woke up to my sister asking if I was planning on getting up today. One glance at my phone told me that it was definitely NOT 7:15. In fact, it was 9:30. Shoot. Honestly, I don't think that's happened for a good two years now. Good thing churches have more than one service Sunday mornings. And I now have a new record of a speedy time of dress, makeup, and hair.
After jamming out to some exhilarating Mandisa music on the way home, I slipped on some shorts and am now attempting to summon the energy (yes, energy is needed to be summoned on Sunday afternoons otherwise it may never show up) to trek down to the woods and gather some of the gorgeous wild purple flowers that diligently show up this time of year. I have yet to know their name. And yes, I have tried Google: unfortunately the magical source is not providing what I need; shocking, I know. No, but really, this is one of my favorite times of year!!! These purple flowers bring a smile to my face every time I see them popping up along the roadside. Our woods are FULL of them; I regularly hike down and pick armfuls of the beauties. I actually took these photos last year...but I still like them. I'll have to bring my camera next time I go =)
Alright, lunch time!
Stopping to smell the flowers,
Aanna

Postscript:
Oh, and by the way...that's my adorable puppy, Sonny, in the first photo.

In the Silence

Touching title huh?
I just had a really cool God-thing happen to me...
First, you need to know my situation. I'm currently looking for another summer job as the one I have is not providing me with many (if any) hours. I'm in desperate need to make money before heading out of the country in five weeks. I'm super excited for Europe (!!!!!!!), however, it would be a relief to be somewhat financially stable upon coming home to another whole year of college. I have been applying anywhere and everywhere and receiving the same ol' answer: "Sorry...5 weeks isn't enough." This is rough.
Anywaysss....
I was sitting outside in the sunshine waiting for my cousin to come pick me up. Thoughts of needing a job and saving money were spinning in my head. Since I had some time to kill I took out the book I've been reading throughout the semester, "Passion for the Heart of God" by John Willis Zumwalt. It's a wonder of a book and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. It's focus is on seeking out the heart of God instead of focusing on your own heart. How's that for a cliffhanger? There's so much I could say but that, my dear friend, is for another time. For now, I will continue. Sitting in the sunshine, I dig into chapter 6, "High Drama." It's all about how God is a God of last minute (in our terms) and will always pull through and rescue us. We, as sinful humans, create a lot of drama within our waiting, or rather, "panic" as God orchestrates His plan. The author shares a story of he and his wife needing money for a mission trip that was in a week; all they needed was $1000. He and his wife woke up in the morning doubting that this was really God's plan and fearing they mistook a personal urge for God's voice. Zumwalt's wife said she heard God say "sit back and watch the show" that morning, and within a week they were miraculously given a total of $1,500 from generous people of their church congregation. What an awesome God! Then, I read the line that spoke to me the most: "God's work done in God's way will not lack God's supply" (J. Hudson Taylor). How cool is that? Why stress when I know what ends up happening with this whole job/money situation (or my whole life for that matter) will be of God and His work and His timing. Even if what we want, desire, or work towards in life is good, why would we want it to be of our own doing and not His? Sorry to ramble...but I think it's a story worth sharing. And a true one at that. One that happens every day in the big things AND the small things, if you're willing to allow God to orchestrate your life desires. Hope it inspired you like it did me. Afterall, it's God; what is not to be inspired about??

Reunitation! ..is that a word? well, it is now.

Before I dig in, I must mention, it is rather intriguing writing to nobody but still possessing a possibility that someone might find me. It's rather an enjoyable secret of mine that someone may just "happen" to find out about. I've always particularly enjoyed mysteries and although this doesn't quite qualify, it's as close as I can get right now. Plus, what college student has time to dissect a legit mystery right now? I don't know how to trace an axe murderer; I'm only Freshman! Ha..anyways...time to dig in? (I'm a little embarrassed of my flutter-brain qualities that intensify by the morning hours (I'll just conveniently forget to mention it's 15 minutes to noon...shoot).
--> ANYWAYS, yesterday was a day of reunitation! What is that? It is a special moment in which me, my sister, and my two cousins reunite and experience renewal, rebirth, and an extreme outburst of excitement (continuing to burst throughout the day). *cue the fireworks* (If I could light fireworks through the internet, I would. Unfortunately, technology hasn't gotten THAT far yet even though I must admit, this blogging thing is PRETTY close..) It truly is a joyful time. We all met at our favorite pizza place in town and enjoyed laughter, food, and...thugs. Yes, thugs. My cousin got asked if he was a pimp. Not sure what I think about that. It was an experience to be had, that's for sure. Point is, we're safe, had a great time, and have a handful of stories to laugh about in the future! (for now, I'm leaning more on the "safe" side...laughing will come later).
Thinking about us four (remember this number. believe me, it will be back) and what I love about such a group as us, my thoughts immediately turn to our conversations; I can't explain how much I appreciate our conversations. We are close on every single level. Mentally (jokes, laughs, memories), emotionally (heart-to-heart girl talk---I'm sorry boys, it's a must!, support, shoulders to cry on or laugh on...), and even spiritually; One minute we may be talking about the pros and cons of the latest snuggie, and the next turn to the importance of prayer in worship. Whatever it is, it's sure to be inspiring and a hoot! All this to say, my family means the world to me; we are truly blessed.
Ending on that note, time to go eat some peanut butter and toast (a favorite of mine). The forecast says it's to be sunny with a high of 73 (so close! just wait, I may still randomly break into a relient k jam session) so enjoy this weather if you're in close vicinity! And if you're not...just the same, have a beautiful day!
Genuinely,
Bergie

PostScript:
The photo I shared was taken during our reunitation in Montana. It's the FOUR of us when our dads took us on a berry-finding, mountain-conquering, family-strengthening, and foot-blistering experience of a lifetime through the Beartooth Wilderness!

Ahh. . .Sunday afternoon bliss.

Well, here I am again. There's some time in between church and lunch...and currently my mom has the waffle griddle under control.
It's going to be delicious. I can tell by the lovely array of homemade syrups decorating our table---crabapple syrup made from the crabapples at the old family farm, maple syrup made from sap drilled from our own trees by my handy dad, plum syrup made from the wild plums that grow in our backyard/forest...YUM. Sadly, I can't successfully smell it or taste it as it should be. For the past week I have had a nasty cold that is now dwindling out...however, it has decided to pick on my sinuses. Nonetheless, I'm excited for a family dinner around our table. I've missed them a lot during my Freshman year of college; it will be nice eating on a table instead of a plastic coated tray.
Alright, 3 of my favorite words were just spoken: "come and eat!"
Until another time, tata.

Hullo!

Hullo to all! (all meaning....nobody..?)
So...basically, I'm experimenting with this popular thing called blogging. The word brings much to mind...however, for me....for some odd reason I think of boggle, the popular family game that includes the search for words formed by dice that have letters on them. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing because I do rather enjoy that game! I happen to be pretty good at it too....if my dad isn't playing, I'm bound to win. But don't tell that to my sister. That, however, is beside the point. What is the point? The point is, I am now a blogger (whatever that means). And if, for some odd reason, you are reading this...welcome! I'm honored to have held your attention.
Why did I decide to become a "blogger"? Well, I have many reasons...
1) As I'm sure many beginning bloggers must confess, the newly released movie, Julie and Julia (if you haven't seen it, I encourage you too--great movie!), inspired me to take on this cyberspace phenomenon of blogging. I'm sure such a movie has caused a huge rise in the purchase of cookbooks and people attempting to cook. That is next on my agenda, but for now blogging will suffice.
2) I have tired of displaying my photos only on Facebook and would love some more constructive comments and interest in my work with photography, designs, and pure randomness that goes along so well with such fun.
3) Time to try something new! I've always wanted to have a website of some sort to call my own and as of now, regarding my limited knowledge on putting my say into the world of technology, blogging seems a safe way to ease my way into this.
4) I hope, if I dare say, I may bring a bit of joy into your day. And if not, at least I experienced a sense of amusement and accomplishment by creating this.
So, once again, welcome! As I'm limited on time, I will have to tell you more about myself in future posts (yes, I did have to double check to make sure these are called "posts"..don't judge me).
Until we meet again...
Genuinely,
Bergie