Our History Through Pictures

3 bible studies, 5 soccer seasons, dozens of birthday celebrations, 3 engagements, 2 weddings, 1 cancer scare, about 3 dozen job interviews and job offers, many wine glasses, hundreds of dinners, thousands of cups of coffee, 5 races, 1,000 wardrobe swaps, 5 bachelor seasons,  3 wedding dress hunts, hundreds of happy hours, church searches, 1 torn ACL, homeownership, 2 bachlorette parties, many slumber parties, 15 or more trips and vacations and so so much more. Our history together has been full of ups and downs, truth talks and joyful celebrations, tears and laughter, cooking and eating, workouts and chats, party planning and training, moving and re-uniting. It's been a history with a lot of changes brought about by new seasons and new relationships and new situations and new jobs, but here we are so excited to be faithful friends cheering each other on and pushing each other for growth. I couldn't be more thankful for these girls. They each are uniquely creative and passionate and Godly and beautiful. Here's to many more memories!

- Mekenzie 

Kindergarten!

There are many moments in time I would love to relive, like being in Hawaii and eating pineapple ice cream for the first time, or going to Disneyland/world. There are also moments that I would hate to relive, like tearing my ACL, losing in soccer, or the loss of grandma. I've been blessed with a beautiful life and wonderful memories and I have no problem reminiscing on some of these glorified moments. So, I'm going to bring you back to a BIG day in the life of my 5 year old self.

The first day of kindergarten. Sounds silly, but it is the day I met my best friend. We sat across from each other on that first day and the rest is history. Her name was Brittany Barton (now Mrs. Johnson).

All sorts of emotions were running through my little body. I was nervous as all get out! Luckily I had a friend from pre-school who was in my class so I took comfort in him being there, but I didn't get to sit by him. We had assigned seating and luck (or God) would have us sitting directly across from each other. Britt was wearing this nice blue, little dress and I was wearing my favorite white cotton, rose patterned dress. I rocked the mushroom cut so I walked into kindergarten with confidence. Our teacher made us introduce ourselves to those around us. We grinned at each other with our toothless smiles and it was then I found my best friend.

I found out later that a 5th grader, friends with my older sister, told Brittany to keep an eye out for me, and I'm glad she did. I was definitely excited to have this new friend. We played hard together, got in trouble together, and best of all lived life together. Looking back now, I would never anticipate having her as a friend for so long. Recently my best friend married the man we've been praying for. I was fortunate enough to stand by her side as her maid of honor, 18 years later, and watch her enter into a God given marriage. I'm so thankful for that first day of kindergarten. God knew what he was doing and what I needed for the rest of my life even at the age of 5.

Kindergarten picture

18 years later

PS. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


--Holly

Connect through social media

Social media is a network of connecting people. I want individuals to reach our blog, of course, but more than that I want people to feel connected to others personally. Social media is a connection of people looking to find another person who is in the same season of life. One girl looking for a recipe for a dinner party stumbles upon Mekenzie’s famous Thai turkey burgers and immediately feels like she has found her perfect meal. The girl who is struggling with a work out regimen seeking transformation finds encouragement through Lauren's latest work out routine. I love that social media provides an avenue for us to connect with real people experiencing real life situations from miles away. It connects my roommate down the hall to my family in California. It allowed all of girls to stay connected when one of us was in Kansas, one stayed in Fort Collins, another moved home to Colorado Springs and the last moved her newlywed self to Denver. The blog was a key player in keeping our friendships strong and our lives intertwined. 

This was the night we created the Serendipitous Girls Blog,  January 2012

Throw back to celebrating Mekenzie's Graduation, May 2012.

Social Media has connected friends to family, strangers to loved ones- and it has connected me to the journey of my life. As I was writing this post I decided to flip through some of my first articles and I couldn’t stop reading about the wild life I’m living. Serendipitous Girls blog has been a journal of my life over the last 2 years. It’s kept record of my highest highs and lowest lows. I loved reading back on times that I was on cloud 9 after the birth of my sweet niece; my heart could hardly take in how blessed I was feeling at that time. On the flip side, I enjoyed reading back on the rocky roads I’ve been down, the trials I experienced and the amount of growth I have experienced because of the them. I’m not the same person that I was back in January of 2012 when I wrote my very first blog post. I am thankful for the connection the blog created for me so that I reflect on where I have been and the lessons I’ve learned along the way. Looking introspectively into where I’ve been and where I am going is encouraging and enlightening for me.

Connect. Connect with people you love through social media and reconnect with the amazing life you've lived. It’s fun, encouraging and if used properly- social media can change who you are.

Denver Girls. 

Sweet Halle babe! She changed my life. 

My Right hand woman!

XO,

Er