27 in Review

Y’all! I’m turning 28 on November 7! Where are my November babies?!

This year I gained a few wrinkles, and lots of wisdom- so I thought I would do something fun a few days before…

This is one of my longer posts that I will do on my blog. But, it has a lot of great visuals. I know some people will never understand how important it is to me to capture my life and the wonderful people in it… but this post is an example of the gratitude I feel when I get to look back on a year in my life and see how much God has blessed me and the amazing people he surrounds me with. So here are just 27 (out of a million) special moments from being 27 years old…

1. Had our first Christmas in our home we bought

and made a homemade Christmas card while we were at it.

25442805_10156350242182985_1247807799257273763_n.jpg

And kissed each other in front of a bunch of strangers…

25592068_10156361064922985_5282370257168076882_n

2. FINALLY bought Film for my old Polaroid that I’ve owned for years. It was worth it.

I get to gift people with polaroid pictures. And hang some of my favorite instant memories in my home. This film is good for most old polaroids (and the best deal).

29790875_10156696265017985_544287689159999488_n.jpg

3. I did a LOT more yoga at 27. And I noticed a difference.

It’s insane how much yoga has helped my body and my balance. Here’s the yoga mat cleaner I’ve been using.

30124186_10156696266237985_6317690368913571840_n.jpg

4. Threw a New Years party for the first time ever.

And we somehow managed to fit a lot of people on our patio.

26168520_10156389000637985_6622402609687378819_n

5. Taught at Church in main service for the first time ever.

… for 3 services. I was really nervous, but had some great people by my side.

26231760_10155193963843388_4703648896520507394_n.jpg

6. Picked up mountain biking. Because why not?

Actually because Zack built me a mountain bike from scratch so I was kind of obliged.

36223753_10156921098517985_5566561594558644224_n.jpg

43407030_10157223923897985_1455576433932894208_n

7.  Went camping in Carpinteria

And a few other places. Surfed our brains out. And then I broke my phone at a coffee shop on our way out. Haha. (Tent that we use).

30656175_10156716527467985_5322075151079047168_n.jpg

8. Surfed in Baja

This was my first time being able to actually surf down in Mexico. Ensenada isn’t long board friendly, so I had to get GOOD on my short board to make this happen.

27752223_10156515410897985_2683932511214000572_n.jpg

9.  Ate a lot of Avocados

Enough said.

44118542_10157251313342985_6436130955458510848_n.jpg

10. Went to a Clippers game with Zack’s family

TBH… The Clippers have the best entertainment at timeouts and in-between quarters. I could have done without the $10 Mcdonalds meal.

30264628_10156701961837985_5464730685929422848_n.jpg

30581445_10156708330827985_2103617429019033600_n

11. Saw Taylor Swift in Concert at the Rose Bowl

No words. Except WOW. And so many amazing ladies came with me.

32940884_10156816614092985_718966156571967488_n.jpg

32875995_10156816612877985_2297887668924579840_n.jpg

12. Gave a lot of surf lessons

Like a lot. And it was really fun and challenging.

32294313_10156793417802985_7227985743585476608_n.jpg

12. Hosted a LOT of different people at our home.

High school students, college students, young adults and the list goes on. This is why we wanted a home… so we could open our doors to others.

28576057_10156583094232985_2024596395733983987_n.jpg

30221985_10156696266422985_5451829235532431360_n.jpg

13. Saw Switchfoot in concert on the beach… during their hiatus.

It was INSANE. They never get old.

36459795_10156937460287985_30478801624367104_n

14. Got to spend Mother’s Day with my Mom for the first time in a long time

Such a special part of my year that I will never forget. Love you so much Mom!

32308842_10156800578562985_1942865809676173312_n.jpg

15. Shared my testimony at Hume with some wonderful high school students.

My testimony is ROUGH. But such a wonderful example of God’s grace. It’s hard to share the things I had to go through to get to where I am, but these students make it easy.

38458589_10157035389012985_7100170828276301824_n.jpg

16. With the help of my church, I got to bless 15 other women with the Devotional that has transformed my relationship with Jesus.

I stumbled upon this book a year ago and haven’t dropped it since. It’s actually impacted my life so much that I pretty much share about it all the time.

41981620_10157170439797985_2027157295934210048_n.jpg

17.  Got to be part of 3 couples engagements whom we admire deeply. I love LOVE.

Kimmy. Lewis. Kassidy. Kevin. Lexie. Zach.  You are all stellar human beings and I’m so blessed to know you!

45047231_10212439700163417_7320990404227104768_n.jpg

42636025_10157197036007985_3184688202392797184_n.jpg

40628642_10157124923082985_1216218632376287232_n

18.  Had the best week of summer EVER with my Sister

Malibu, Venice, Laguna, Food, Surfing, Yoga, Hiking… I wish every week was like the one we shared.

41991718_10157170427612985_4371336130965012480_n.jpg

41952351_10157170427257985_181610450138431488_n.jpg

19. Bought a new surfboard… for $75.

I told Zack I wanted a really long cruiser for one day when I fall pregnant and will need to knee paddle into waves. This one plopped right into our lap for a price you can’t pass up.

40428402_10157115767502985_3839368254845878272_n.jpg

20. Went backpacking through the Sierras

You can read this blog post for the full recap. It was UNREAL.

42628000_10157197040807985_6994387183935160320_n.jpg

21. Met baby Riley Yang

You all know I love babies. I just knew she was going to be something special.

40674424_10157124933032985_4655177840814194688_n.jpg

22. I made like 5 meals.

Literally. Beef stew. Crepes. And I made chicken tortilla soup 3 times. That’s impressive for me.

26196447_10156402182222985_6016950374803115921_n.jpg

23. Found a new coffee shop that I love.

I’m not a coffee snob, but great customer service matters to me. High Tide Coffee Co. is my new favorite spot. Scott and Annie are wonderful. And their Rosemary espresso tonic is to die for. I’ve taken like 5 people here because it’s too good not to share.

40526735_10157115767902985_9212786368399278080_n

24. Made a lot of cool stuff for our home. & for others.

Canvas paintings, wall hangings, macrame, watercolor cards. It’s been a super creative year for me!

26229943_10156420579852985_5689614134383672816_n.jpg

25. Wore a lot of hats.

Like a lot. But that’s every year. So maybe it doesn’t count. My favorite brand is Peter Grimm. They know what they’re doing.

26991776_10156473638082985_7133354119927949342_n.jpg

26. Found a hair stylist I really love.

Lauren Norris with Citizen Salon is a hair genius.

37711941_10157002056142985_2408215586233384960_n.jpg

27. Celebrated 2 years of marriage to my amazing husband!

Need I say anymore? I’m married to the most hard working, selfless, adventurous and loving man alive.

43080746_10157211278197985_7443598629467586560_n.jpg

 

I already know that 28 is going to be really special, challenging and unexpected… but if it’s anything like 27, I can’t wait!

 

xoxo

Ashley

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Google photo

You are commenting using your Google account. Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s