Why?

In a previous post I mentioned that my best friend's mom has been fighting pancreatic cancer for the last little while.  It all started about a month and a half ago, when her mum got the stomach flu.  She never really got any better from that, so their doctor recommended going in for some tests to see if it was something more than that, and we now know that it was.  Eventually, the cancer overtook her entire liver, and the family has just been doing their best to make her happy and comfortable for the last 2 weeks; they knew it was only a matter of time.   And they were sadly right; at 12:30 this morning, she went to be with her Lord and Saviour.
I actually balled my eyes out, and I never cry!!  This sounds awful, but I barely even cried when my own grandfather died... I guess I just didn't know him as well as I knew Mrs. L.  But now she's with her baby boy :-) (she'd miss-carried once)  You'd think this will be so hard for my friend, but my other friend saw her and her family early this morning and said that she couldn't believe how peaceful they were :-) My dear friend was even smiling - what faith!!  You'd be so impressed with her strength if you knew the full story of what she's had to contend with, and how she's done!! Regardless of that fact that she's a little younger than I am (and shorter :-P ), I look up to her like crazy, I've never met anyone smarter or more level headed.

Side note, 'cause she'll probably read this - Meg, I'm SO lucky to have you around, I love you :-) Thanks for being such an amazing example of what God can do, and what He looks like in our everyday lives

I can almost guarantee that this will raise a lot of tough questions for her family.... pretty much all of the questions you can think of that start with 'why?'
Pray that Jesus will hold them, and make them all even stronger for this.
May the glory be to you, God.

Spinach Dip

OK, so you may remember from my previous post that I'm obsessed with cooking right now!! So I'll share my favorite snack/appetizer recipe with ya'll :-D  Yes, it does have spinach in it, but if you don't like spinach, remember.... thats how Popeye got so darn ripped :-P Scrawny to muscle man like *that*!!! (C'mon boys, you know you want some of that magic now :-P )
** NOTE: My family has always done this recipe by eye and taste, so measurements are approximate.  Feel free to add more or less, depending on what tastes better to you.

Spinach Dip:
1  ~  40g packet Knorr's Vegetable Soup Mix
3 cups  ~  sour cream (you can knock out 1 cup of sour cream and add 1 cup of mayonnaise, if you like that better. But we've found that more sour cream lightens up the dish)
4  ~  Green onions (Scallions), thinly sliced
1  ~  small can Water Chestnuts, chopped
1  ~  300g package frozen chopped spinach

    1.  Mix soup mix in with sour cream and let sit for at least 4 hours (to soften dried veggies)
    2.  Add mayo (optional), green onions, and water chestnuts
    3.  Rinse spinach and squeeze extra water out as best you can with your hands, then add to dip
    4.  Stir like there's no tomorrow! Make sure to get all of the pockets of spinach that form
    5.  Serve with sourdough bread, stone wheat thin crackers, bread, or pitas!

Bon Appetite!

Term deadline + moving + school + sports + other stuff = AHHH!!!!

Hi guys!
Sorry, its been a few days! I've been pretty busy with moving, school, sports, music courses, etc.
Ahhhhh, I love fall. The colors, the smell, Halloween, the warm, fuzzy socks and PJ's I get to crawl into at night! And hot chocolate to warm me up after soccer games :-) (or whenever else I want it)
Speaking of soccer!! I usually play midfield and a little outside defense, (if I lost you as soon as I mentioned sports... you should just skip to the end of this paragraph :-P ) but at my last game near then end I was like, 'you know what? I feel like I could run super fast right now, stick me in forward!'. My coach was kind of caught off guard, but he complied and stuck me there. And you know what? I SCORED THE WINNING GOAL!!!!!!! What now, how's that for girl power?!
I'm done, all you non-sport people can come back now! hahaha...
And I joined my school's basketball team!! The TLA Armada, woot!! hahaha I'm really excited for this, I've never played b-ball before so I'm excited for the experience.
Learned a new pick-up line today! I love pick-up lines, they crack me up!! But if anyone ever decides to use one on me i'd start laughing and then like, a minute of laughing later i'd realize he had been serious and that I'd hurt his pride. A lot. :-P whoops!! hahahaha so FYI, dont try one on me :-P OK, my new pick-up line!! = "Is you name google?" "Umm, no? why on earth would my name be google?" "Cause you're everything I've been searching for." Now, I have to admit that one's cuter that other's I've heard.  I saw a video about a bunch of bachelors' best pick-up lines, and one guy is walking up to the camera, all cool-like, and suddenly he falls!!!! I was super embarrassed for him at first, but then he got up and said "I think I'm falling for you..." BAHAHAHAHAHAHA I cant even tell you how hard I laughed!! And there was another guy! He said, "Oh, you want to hear my best pick-up line? OK. ....... *takes shirt off to reveal a well built and conditioned chest ;-) * "Hi, my name is Mark."
'nuff said. :-P
I've been researching SLR's lately... its way past time to upgrade from my awful Canon powershot A470!! I'm thinking Nikon D300 :-D Any input? I could sure use your help!!
I've been obsessed with cooking lately.... not baking, that was last month! Savory foods is what I'm into right now.... I've loved working in the kitchen!! I might post some of my personal favorite recipes... Even cleaning hasn't been as bad, have you noticed that it can be rather therapeutic?
*whew*, thats a lot of words, thanks for reading :-D Have a great weekend!

Summer time

This picture remind me so much of summer!! I took it this summer when a few friends and I went on a picnic by a lake behind my house. We had a lot of fun trying to throw the biggest rocks we could find just right, and pressing the shutter button just so to get this shot!! This is one of many, and is one of the most succesful  :-P

But summer is the exact opposite of my life right now!! Summer is a time of relaxation, and no stress to speak of.  Currently, we are super busy trying to move!! so there is lots of packing and cleaning going on. But my family has lived here for 18 years... you know what that means, lots of dirt and grime! One of my best friend's mom might have pancreatic cancer. Her first biopsy came out inconclusive, so she's going in for another (PRAY!!!). Another good friend of mine is feeling super isolated, and isnt sure if she believes in God anymore... she's going through a lot right now. And im trying not to kill anyone due to my extreme lack of patience as I try to balance my schedule... I am taking wayyy to much extra-curricular stuff!!  Suggestions for how to survive please?!?!!!
So pray. Pray not just for me, but as hard as you can for my friends mom and the rest of her family, my other friend, and my mom (who is super stressed about moving).

Wow, my next entry had better be happier than this, or no one will read it anymore!!  :-P
~ Caitlin
PS did I mention I LOVE this picture?  God Bless :-D

Picture time!

Time for a picture! Hope you like it  :-) Yes, its uber pixely, but its not like that on my computer! I blame blogger  :-P thats why its so big, to cut out the awful pixely-ness. Tell me what you think!

Today I went to Bard on the Beach, it was awesome!! I got to meet some friends from school (I'm homeschooled online through correspondance, so we dont get to see each other a lot!), and we went to see 'Henry V'. It was super fun  :-D

But the drive home was cool too. We drove past a house with a girl sitting on the cement steps leading from the road to her yard, playing her guitar and singing away. It was very cool! I thought it was awesome how she felt free to be herself, even in front of countless people driving by on such a busy road! It was kind of inspiring  :-)

I bid you adieu,

~ Caitlin

The Beginning

Hi!
Seeing as this is my first blog, I'll start off by explaining why I'm writing one...
Reason #1 - Just like some girls love to journal, so do I! But I hate writing with all my heart, I much prefer typing
Reason #2 - I can use blogger to show the world my pictures, and see what you all think of them
My blog title explains what you'll probably find in this blog - a bit of everything. My thoughts, my aspirations, the dream I had last night (it was weird...), but mostly my photos. I am really into my photography and I want to get a whole lot better at it, and you can help me by telling me what you liked and what you thought I could do better. Please feel free to!
Until next time,
~ Caitlin