Stonestreet Beach Trip // Seabrook Island

I love my family. Sadly, my two older siblings (Andrew & Lauren) couldn’t be there, but it was a much needed vacation.

Music // Daniel Dixon

Her Name Is Kate

This little girls name is Kate. She is so precious and beautiful, and such an inspiration to so many, and has so much to look forward to in life.

But she has cancer. In June of 2009, she was diagnosed with brain cancer and ever since her and her beautiful family have been fighting for her life.

It breaks my heart to see such a precious child, created to bring joy and smiles and laughter and hope to so many around her, with such a terrible disease. That has not been lost, and never will be.

My photographer friend, Jannelle Althoff, took these photos while the family was in Hawaii on vacation before Kate’s Chemo started again (Helicopter Ride With Kate –> the post by Jannelle). Beautiful work, Jannelle. Thank you for what you do and for inspiring us all by your heart of compassion and love. My life has been forever changed by this little girls story.

You can follow Kate and her family on their website here — Pray For Kate.

You can read Kate and her families story and hear a beautiful song written for Kate by Audrey Assad. Please pray for her and her family, for her complete healing and for strength and courage for her parents as they continue to fight this horrible disease.

Thanks.

Memories from Young

Memories are fragile and of utmost importance. Oh, how they shape our lives. I read today how most of our experience from before can be so easily forgotten, that we only vaguely remember them. As if they didn’t happen. Maybe we remember our babysitter being super cool and bringing over our favorite games, or our first dentist appointment. But vaguely anything else.

But for me, it seems I can remember a lot. I remember smells, which remind me of places, which remind me of people and specific things that I did here or there, and what happened.

Today, we went to Kiawah Island, which was the vacation spot my family went to every year growing up. It was the best.

The smell of pine mulch mixed with the freshness of the sand and ocean. Biking for miles and miles, with the wind blowing across your sweat soaked body. The smell of fresh flowers and clean sheets, and delicious food every morning. Capture the flag with the other 300 kids on the island, making tie-dye t-shirts, and drinking a Pina Colada iced drink (my favorite). Getting burned because you thought you wouldn’t get burned and didn’t put suntan lotion on. Jumping in the ocean with my family all around, going deeper and deeper in, afraid Id get eaten my a shark, but going anyways. In the meantime, getting salt water in my eyes which made them burn. Then heading back on my little red bike with a towel around my shoulders and little orange swim trunks on, to jump in a shower to cool myself off, only to go right back and jump in the ocean or the pool.

All those memories came back today when I smelled, tasted, and experienced all I used to every year at Kiawah Island. Love it.

Thankfully, lots more to remember and enjoy tomorrow.

Me & the Freelance Life

Sitting here at Taylorbooks in Charleston, and my mind is just overloaded with so much to do. I’ve got this little burden in me that is just screaming, VACATION! And I know where I’d go. Portland, OR. But I know there is no way to get away right now. Too much money I have to make, and too many bills that will take all that money and make me broke.

It has been a great and interesting experience, taking the risk and jumping full blown into freelance videography. Yes, I love being my own boss. But there are so many other stressful things that come with it, when you don’t have steady work ahead of you.

There are so many exciting experiences, jobs, and traveling that takes place. I am really excited to see where it goes in the future. There are a lot of big things happening for me in the next 6 months. I just got to get through the next 2 weeks, first, and then I’ll be well on my way.

Today is filled with editing a video on the trainee process for Inlet Dance Theatre out of Cleveland, OH. A lot of phone calls and emails taking place as well. Many things to confirm, many things to get on top of and push my way into a job. And many things to think about and contemplate within the next 3 hours.

So I’ll be here at Taylorbooks on Capital Street if anyone wants to stop by and see me. Don’t know how much I can chat, but I’d definitely love to see some faces, and chill out with you. Feel free to stop by!

Proud of my sister, Lauren. She just released some new photos from Colombia. Some pretty humorous ;)

Check this out HERE.