goodbye june. [you will be missed!]

goodbye june. you were very sweet to me.

hello july. you bring me back to reality

I took a break from blogging in June due to traveling and an overall busy month. I am slowly returning to reality, and with that, returning excitedly to blogging. The break has given me a spring to my step and reminded me of my passion for writing, so I was excited to write tonight! I am so unbelievably blessed to have had three weeks of vacation time in June. What a gift! I was in need of some time away from work to relax and rest from a lot of the emotional strain that comes with working as a pediatric nurse practitioner in a low-income area. I am humbled and strengthened at the same time to think that my Father God would give me such so many beautiful moments this month.

If I had three words to describe June, they would be EXPLORE [new places], CONNECT [with family & old/new friends, and REST [relax & remember God's faithfulness & goodness]. Now, here are a few of my favorite moments in June and those three words in action:

♥ celebrating my nephew's 2nd birthday at the starting of the month

♥ driving and hiking through the redwoods national and state parks on a sibling roadtrip to san francisco. we were in awe of the ginormous trees 
 

♥ exploring san francisco! biking 11mi from the ferry building, to the palace of fine arts, across the golden gate bridge, and down a steep hill to the adorable neighboring town of sausalito where i enjoyed quiet time at the beautiful marina.

♥ feeling like european royalty at castello di amorosa winery in northern napa valley. ohmygoodness. what a gorgeous place to sip on something yummy, then discovering the small town of castiloga and biting into a delicious pizza at a italian restaurant.

♥ feeling the warm breeze and sand between my toes as we relaxed on the beaches in carmel and monterey.

♥celebrating father's day at the wildlife safari with my parents and some of the siblings

♥ catching up with close friends by text and coffee dates!

♥ having a short work week after getting back from the roadtrip and then hopping on a plane to see several very close friends and my boyfriend in texas!

♥ adventures in texas: s.a. riverwalk [& mariachi band playing a song for us!], birthday surprises galore!, peonies and baby roses [favorite flowers], japanese tea garden, the s.a. missions, enjoying delicious meals [tex-mex, italian, mediterranean, bbq, etc] with old and new friends, walking and talking and just simply being so stinkin' joyful!!

♥ blueberry picking with my mom and a few sibs when i returned to the n.w.

♥ family beach trip for 4th of july weekend!! i just got back a few hours ago. it was such a relaxing time playing with my niece and nephew, catching up with sibs and my sister-in-law, watching the extraordinary firework show at seaside, and exploring new beaches along our favorite stretch of the oregon coast: cannon beach

goodbye june!

hello july. what do you have in store, i wonder?

sincerely,
the wanderings of a junebug