Friends from across the pond!

A couple weeks ago I got to meet up with a friend from England. Mark, his fiance Sarah, and his parents were vacationing in Canada and their last stop was Toronto. I've known Mark for a few years but never had the privilege of meeting him in person ... until now. What was really cool about their trip ... he proposed to Sarah during their stop in Niagara Falls. :)

I had a wonderful afternoon with Mark and his family. He dabbles in photography ... so I made sure I brought both my camera's for him to see. I love his photography and am hoping to buy a few of his photos to grace the walls of my new apartment. (Dec. 3rd is moving day ... I'll catch you up on my crazy life real soon!)

Click HERE if you want to check out Mark's photography site ... you won't be disappointed! :)

Here are a few of my photos that I took that day. I don't claim to be any sort of photographer ... but I love the art and give it my best.


Here I am with Mark and Sarah at the end of our afternoon together. It was pretty chilly out that day and my face was numb, making it hard to smile. lol

Mark in action...

An old church...

No trip to Toronto is complete without seeing the CN Tower.

Mark and Sarah strolling through the streets of Toronto.

The beautiful Royal Alexandra Theatre.

A cool reflection of one building in another.

Shall I live here? :D

A quaint little park area.

Mark and Sarah ... great friends from across the pond! :)

If you want to see more photos from this day, click HERE!

Zombie Ang!

Friend or Foe

It's been a long time since I've questioned my friendships. I guess I like to keep people at a distance so that when tough times come I am not hurt by those who don't understand. I've been hurt in the past ... and I learned a whole lot about people during that hurt. So again I am going through a tough time ... and once again I let my guard down and trusted people I shouldn't have.

I think it's just human nature to want to trust people. But I should have known that when the thousand questions started about my separation situation that no one can be trusted. Everyone wants a reason. They want to "understand" ... they want to hear something big that will justify my situation. But when the words they hear are not what they want to hear, they are confused and saddened. They take MY life personally. They judge me on what little they know. They are usually the ones who have not yet experienced their own darkest hour.

Over the past few months I have received various emails / notes / phone calls from caring people. I have taken to heart everything that has been said, but in the end I have to chose what I hold on to. A note from one of my best friends came to me the other day. It was simple ... but left a lasting impression on my soul. Here is a bit of it:

"...I miss you! I pray everything in your life will work out. Remember God does have a plan for you! I also believe that s*** happens to good people, you just have to roll with it. Wishing you all the happiness at the end of your journey! Life is what you make it! Never let circumstances control your life/destiny, or steal your true joy!"

I also received a note a few days ago that said this:

"Wherever you are emotionally, physically or spiritually, I pray for the day when I can rejoice with the angels over your return to the loving arms of Jesus."

I read this to a few friends who all had the same response ... "did you leave the arms of Jesus?". According to the lady who wrote this note, I have. Her words do not surprise me as she is one who pulled her son from piano lessons because of my situation.

I don't need to defend my life ... and it would do no good even if I tried. (Everything I say can and will be used against me.) I can only hope that the people who send me notes saying I am far from God ... or those who make jabs at me through other means such as facebook status messages ... will never have to make a life-changing decision that goes against the grain.

This is my journey to make. I am blessed to have a few friends who see through the pain and into my heart. So friend or foe ... I journey on.

Here is a photo of me with my best friend Jen ... she was 8 months pregnant in this photo. She now has a beautiful baby girl. :)

Here Comes the Bride!

My life-long friend Sabrina got married a couple weeks ago. She always said that when the day came, I would be the one at the piano. So the day did come ... and I had the honor of playing at her wedding.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from that day.

Sabrina and I :)

The Bride and Groom having their first dance as husband and wife.

The chandelier in the foyer.

Me at the piano. I got to play on a beautiful baby grand! :)

A beautiful rainbow blessed us with it's presence.

My dress from La Chateau :)

Love the sepia effect.

During my piano prelude a dashing elderly man comes up to me and says, "Do you have the song SOMEWHERE IN TIME?". As he said that, I was turning my page to the exact song. (talk about jinx!)

I then paused my prelude to have a lovely chat with him about this song...the movie...and Mackinaw Island, where he and his wife go ever year. He says it is like stepping back in time ... and I should go when I get the opportunity. I definitely will. :)

Experimented with my black and white camera setting ... thought this was a cool pic.

No wedding is complete without cake ... and this was the best mango cheesecake in the world!! :D

For more photos from the day, click HERE!

The Fun Theory :)