Let's just say.... Rachel knew it was coming. She'd been waiting for 11 years for this guy to pop the question, and she even knew that he was looking at rings. She was hopeful, yet patiently biding her time for him to plan his moment. 

The evening quickly arrived. Dressing up, romantic dinner, walk on the plaza. 

In perfect Charlie & Rachel moment, Charlie said all the right things (of course), and Rachel had the best sarcastic reply.  And suddenly it didn't matter anymore if it was cold outside. 

The plaza shops gave us the perfect window light to capture their moments of joy!! 

YAY!! Being engaged is the BEST!

Charlie did an amazing job of picking out the most perfect, unique, vintage ring for his bride. He knows her so well. :) 

Congrats, you lovebirds!! So exciting to see how you guys have grown together in the last 2 years, and I'm so thankful we've been able to be part of it!! Love you guys! 

For a little over four years now, my husband and I have been a part of the music team at our church. We both have backgrounds in music (we have over 30 years of lessons between the two of us!) and we love being a part of a team that pursues both excellence in music and also purity in heart as we lead others to worship Jesus. Music really is a lovely gift.

Last week, our music team tackled a big project - our first music video! 

Countless hours went into set up, preparing details, testing audio equipment, organizing and preparing our amazing production team, as well as braving the frigid gym for our recording session!! 

As we finished our session, I was able to set down my instrument for a few minutes and capture these images of my fellow teammates as they played and sang their hearts out. 

When you play with people this closely for this long, you learn a lot about each other. The minutes turn into hours turn into days and pretty soon you don't even remember how many times you've gotten on stage together, whether you've felt like it or not. 

In the midst of every emotion possible - both joy or pain; in spite of seasons of change - both difficult or welcomed; you learn to trust each other as you step out to lead others. You lean into the emotions you feel and discover that God is bigger than all of it. You reach out for help and discover that you're supported. And you learn that God uses broken people to do extraordinary things simply because He is full of grace. 

Music really is such a lovely gift.