CATWALK // WELCOME ZARA

today is the day people.

you can finally buy zara online in canada.

those on the island…reeeejooooiiicceeeee!

today is the day i’m also starting a catwalk feature called wdp.

work, date, play. 

one outfit for work, one outfit for a date, one outfit for play (coffee, picnic, shopping with girlfriends).

i work in a fairly casual workplace (praise the LORD!), so i can get away with rocking a sweater and jeans. and how cute is that faux leather peplum top? and that beauty light pink dress? i love it paired with the jean vest…oh zara, i love you.

all clothing from zara.

happy shopping!

-s.s.♥.

SHE WILL RISE

started writing this post last week on Wednesday but then the week got away from me! blerg…

oh wow. did last weekend even happen?

i have been bunkered down with sickness for the past two days…not fun! after such an incredible weekend, and an insane month, my body shut down. i also found myself with a not so great attitude, making me not really a joy to be around. yesterday afternoon i finally realized that it was probably an attempt from the devil to get me down after such a fabulous weekend, so i got up off the couch, apologized to james and rose up from the funk. God is good!

And yes, last weekend happened. God showed up, and Holy moments happened that only He could orchestrate. it was absolutely incredible.

to be honest i expected about 170 girls to register. we had only ordered 200 bracelets but God went above and beyond and brought 250 girls out, bringing up our registrations from last year’s 140 to 250 (over 100 new girls!!!). AND over half the girls were first time girls to illuminate…yay!!

there was a lot of screaming. there was a lot of smiling. there was a lot of dancing. there was a lot of girls being girls. my heart sparkled.

my heart for illuminate is always that girls would come in and be encouraged, equipped and empowered. my heart is that they would know that God loves them like crazy and that he has a plan for their life. my heart is that they would come in and feel comfortable to be the girl that God created them to be. my heart is that they would leave knowing that Jesus is there for them, in every situation they face. my heart is that they would leave smiling ear to ear. that they would be excited to live the adventure that God has for the. 

here are a few instagrams from the weekend…

i stole this pic from kim moran (who spoke saturday night and absolutely inspired every single person in the building!!!!) during the opener every girl was given a balloon and at a pinnacle moment, every girl released her balloon. immediately after balloons started falling from the ceiling.

my beautiful, brave friend, bg, shared her story how God met her while she battled cancer.

the incredible helen burns came to speak! this woman has inspired me for years! (i first heard her when i was 18 at hillsong church in london). it was such a blessing to have her pour out her heart and wisdom over the girls.

this incredible photo is from our closer. chenoah sang a song she wrote & then alicia key’s girl on fire. the girls went mental. seriously, that was my most favourite moment of the conference.

so overall it was an incredible weekend.

God is sooooo good.

xoxo,

s.s.♥.

GEMS // HONEYMOON VIDEO!

we celebrated valentines day on wednesday (because we were at city youth on thursday).

james cooked me a delicious thai dish then we ventured out to get some frozen yogurt and watched a movie downtown.

we get home and i enter the bedroom and BOOM there are candles lit EVERYWHERE, like tons and tons of candles. my mind was boggled as i wondered how on earth he had gotten all those candles lit when i was with him for the past three hours prior. turns out he hid our key and our friend (who lives in the same apartment as us with his lovely wife) steve came in while we were at the movie and lit all of them! (thanks steve!!)

i was incredible surprised. my man knows how to plan incredible romantic surprises.

little did i know he had another surprise up his sleeve. that day he had secretly edited our HONEYMOON VIDEO! i screamed in delight when he showed it to me. ahhhhh take me back to the beach!

enjoy!

J&L Honeymoon! from James Liira on Vimeo.

it was even better than it looks. seriously. 

best.

vacation.

ever.

xoxo,

s.s.♥.

LOVE ADVICE FOR VDAY

it’s valentines tomorrow…the day when you really become aware that you are or are not in a relationship.

my advice for you girls is, hold tight.

i have a few of my old diaries. in them i see a couple reoccurring themes.

1. i was a cray teenager.

2. i was DESPERATE for a boyfriend.

i’m pretty sure in almost every entry i would plead and plead for a boyfriend. i remember reading one entry where i stated “life would be so much better if i had a boyfriend”. i am praising Jesus that he did not give the 15 year old me what i so desperately wanted and believed would make life better.

i had one boyfriend, in grade 9 for two weeks. yep, two weeks. before dating james that was my longest and only relationship. we broke up (me & grade 9 boyfriend) over icq. it was mutual. it was ridiculous.

so let’s just say, i waited a long time for my next boyfriend. the desperation of wanting a boyfriend never really faded. i’m a hopeless romantic. i longed for love. i met Jesus truly when i was 18 and nope, the desire for a boyfriend didn’t fade away once i accepted Jesus and received his love.

it stayed. but over the years it shifted. my mindset started to change. yes i obviously still wanted a boyfriend but i began to realize that a boyfriend wasn’t going to fix my problems. Jesus was the only one who could do that. i knew my boyfriend was coming so i did what i knew that i had to do…i waited…and waited and made mistakes, tried to make things happen my own way (and failed horribly) then waited some more and some more and then God brought james and i together.

waiting sucks. it really does.

each love story is different. i wish there was a step by step formula on finding the one but there is no formula, no equation, no do this, do that. you just have to wait. and know that God is good, faithful and true. He knows the desires of your heart, your longing for that special someone, and he’s going to truly work it out. just trust Him.

so what is my valentines advice for people who don’t have that special someone yet?

have fun!!! do not sit at home at mope….unless that’s fun for you…

watch sappy love movies with your girlfriends. watch a billion episodes of 30 rock. make crafts. eat chocolate. lots of chocolate. have a dance party. give your crush a valentine (i gave james one before we were dating haha) take cute photos and instagram them. go swimming. COME TO CITY YOUTH (if you’re in grades 9-12)

live

it

up

because your moG is coming. God is good, God is faithful, God is true. he has your special someone, just you wait :)

xoxo,

s.s.♥.

RECIPES // GNOCCHI

i’m italian and i’m not ashamed.

i’m passionate. i love soccer. sometimes i yell. i like to use my hands when i talk. i grew up drinking chinotto.

and i grew up eating gnocchi.

gnocchi is my absolutely favourite pasta (besides lasagna) and want to know the most awesome thing? it is incredibly easy to make.

like really, really, really easy.

meet nana rosa.

this is my beautiful grandmother. she is 88 years old and cooks dinner every single night. 

she bakes the best pasta you’ve ever eaten and is one of the most generous people i know. she loves, loves, loves. gosh, i could go on and on about my incredible nana.

anyways, i told her i was having 8 girls over for dinner and needed to make gnocchi and she said no problem (in her very thick italian accent).

all you need for gnocchi is…

2 potatoes (boiled then mashed)

2 cups flour (+ more for rolling)

1 egg

combine mashed potatoes, flour & egg in bowl.

roll into dough.

take bits of dough and roll into long pieces (like image below)

cut into tiny pieces

roll on gnocchi board

put on tray

freeze!

ohhhh, doesn’t my fancy new iphone take such beautiful photos?

 

boil a big pot of water and toss a few gnocchi pieces in at a time.

gnocchi cooks very quickly, (like less than 2 minutes)

sidenote- i cooked them for way to long and they went mushy (good thing i only cooked a few). i ended up cooking penne for the girls night BUT now james & i have a mad amount of gnocchi..woohoo. and it tastes amazing.

xo,

s.s.♥.