up for air

Wow.

Excuse me while I catch my breath.

I cannot believe that four years of college have come and gone already.

I am officially a college graduate.

Can I just savor this a bit before I start to worry/fret about student loans/unemployment?

These past few months especially have been incredible so I’m not going to worry right now. Just when I needed some fresh air, God interceded and sent me an incredible group of friends. Their faith and strength and welcoming arms have been amazing these past few weeks and I still can’t even begin to imagine not having them in my life.

I’ve only known them a short time, but in those limited hours spent together, those careless afternoons hanging around and talking about everything and anything, I’ve grown closer to them than so many others.

For that, I’m truly thankful right now.

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I know I’ve been lacking here for the past few weeks but I honestly just had to focus on other things for a while. It’s good to be back, though, and I’m looking forward to catching up on my favorite blogs (yes, that means YOU) and blogging away.

I’ll be back to recap graduation!

But first, I have a bachelorette party to attend…and…well…I’m sure you know a little bit about how THOSE go…

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Have you ever attended a bachelorette/bachelor party? This will be my first one! I’m really excited…though, honestly, my bank account is NOT.

**Because it’s clearly time for summer ice-cream shops to open up:** What’s your favorite ice-cream place? There’s a local place in my town called Joe’s Dairy bar that is almost in the middle of nowhere, but they are THE place to be in the summer for ice-cream and running into everyone and anyone!

soak it up + savor it

I’ll be back.

I promise.

I’m just soaking up Senior Week and enjoying myself with some great friends.

Love and prayers 🙂

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Tell me, what have YOU been up to this week? It’s just days before graduation and so I’m trying to spend as much time as I can enjoying my dwindling time in Newport and savoring some of the best quality time with good friends. As can be seen from my leave of absence, it’s working out extremely well.

What did you do right after graduation (lunch/brunch/dinner/casual/formal/pack up and go home)? I’ll let you know! But for now I think the family and I are planning on grabbing food some where and then exploring Newport. We’re not much into fancy and I think the major restaurants are going to be pretty crowded, so I’m not sure where we’ll be headed.

mother’s day

Happy Mother’s Day, Marmee.

You’re all I could ever hope for and more. Words lack all meaning when it comes to describing how I feel about you, how much I enjoy our time together, and of course, our sense of humor together.

Thank you, especially for your strength, your faith, and your passion for life.

Now grab your drink of choice, Marmee, and celebrate. I’ll be joining you in just a few short days!

(And don’t worry. You’re my favorite mother, so it’s totally alright that I’m your favorite child.)

Love always, Natalia

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What’s one of the qualities you admire most in your mother, or in another mother-like figure present in your life? I admire her courage and strength for standing up for her beliefs. And then there’s always her home cooking and her shared love for horses and…

Just because it’s the weekend…drink of choice today? I could really go for a whiskey sour. My grandmother (mom’s mom) makes the best ones I’ve ever tasted. I think a visit to her house is on the agenda after graduation!