the "godfather of radars"

my dad is a brilliant man.
...i know, i know everyone says that about their dads. dads are great that way!

{bookshelf in his office, 2009.}

he is also a professor, and my favorite thing is never knowing if i am going to see him randomly on campus. i once realized he was standing a few feet behind me on the campus bus, as he was going from one of his offices to another. i was so excited. i waved feverishly and exclaimed "dad, dad, hey dad!" he said hello and kept focus of whatever he was thinking before i caused the scene. (i'm pretty sure he was doing a math problem or inventing something in his head...)

then i wondered how i could be related to such a smart man--whenever i can barely get past math 101... but that's neither here nor there, or over there, either.

one day last spring, i started talking with someone at a seminar who turned out to be one of the grad students in my dad's department. i was so excited, i love meeting his students & hearing what they think, (seeing as how my dad is yet to be posted on ratemyprofessor.com)... which is good.
well anywho, something came up about my dad and when the kid realized i was my dad's daughter, his eyes lit up...
"HE is your dad!? He is the godfather of radars--even people at the national science foundation know him!!"
i found it hilarious, mostly because i could see that the kid couldn't believe i was my dad's daughter... i'm a little more outspoken than my dad, and by that i mean i am obnoxious.

this leads me to tonight--

i walk into the kitchen to see my dad sitting at the table with my mom's broken laptop in a bajillion different pieces, while my dad attempted to find the problem on the intricate circuit board...

{i must make his birthday cake like this.}

i honestly wondered how he was going to get it all back together. but of course, less than 30 minutes later he has it fixed and back together. i kid you not.

but the best part was my mom getting home and being so excited that it was fixed... she asked my dad what was wrong and he exclaimed that he did something fancy, with some other fancy piece and yada yada yada.
as soon as he goes upstairs my mom said:
"Oh i'm glad he got it fixed, i didn't want to tell him that i dropped it earlier.."
i love her. i love him.

i have the best parents.
xo-

{beautiful pink roses} from heaven.

My grandma and grandpa allen were always spoiling us.
From birthday outings to Applebee's or Zio's, to pool toys which almost filled up the entire pool.
however, i don't suppose "spoiled" is the best word for it...
we were blessed with their unconditional love.
But it wasn't the merely the gifts we were happy about,
we were happy to know that our grandma loved us so much that even amongst eleven grandchildren, she would somehow manage to remember our plays, sporting events, concerts, along with any awards ceremonies; be it "best handwriting" in elementary school, or being inducted to the "national honor society". {And to think she didn't even have a palm pilot to keep all this straight!}

We knew how much she & my grandpa love us, unconditionally.
and most importantly was us learning & witnessing what love really means.

{graduation roses from gma & gpa allen, 2007.}

I remember my grandma & grandpa bringing me the beautiful roses above when i graduated from high school,

& i remember hugging my grandma & her simply telling me how much she loved me.
so this past sunday as i sat at my nieces birthday party, i saw the beautiful pink roses my sister had on her kitchen table...seeing them took me back to hugging my grandma that day she gave me much similiar beautiful pink roses...
at that moment i felt my grandma's love in my heart, and i smiled.

{july 2009.}

everytime i see a beautiful pink rose,
i know its {a sign from my grandma}.

telling me of {her love}.

While i tell her how much i love her.

xo-

{Quote of the Week.}

week {achtundzwanzig};

{wescoe beach, may 2009.}

“The best memories are the ones you can`t explain. you just had to be there. it’s those days where we sit around and do nothing. it’s the moments we laugh so hard, we cry. it’s the way we look at each other and know whats going threw each others head. it’s those stupid pictures and the jokes. those are the reasons we’re best friends.”

-via: victoryblues.

a birthday party: in photos.

{click to enlarge pictures.}
xo-

Fill your weekend with:

{via: tumblr.}

lots of it.
xo-

Never forget to love yourself, too.

this week seems to have been a roller coaster of emotions for many of us...
so this beautiful passage below is for us all.

{via: tumblr.}

Speak quietly to yourself & promise there will be better days. whisper gently to yourself and provide assurance that you really are extending your best effort. console your bruised and tender spirit with reminders of many other successes. offer comfort in practical and tangible ways - as if you were encouraging your dearest friend. recognize that on certain days the greatest grace is that the day is over and you get to close your eyes. tomorrow comes more brightly…

-Mary Anne Radmacher