My Favorite Things About Today

I'm gonna admit, the last two days I've had a crankiness problem.  I have been wearing cranky pants, as it were.  Granted, Monday and Tuesday were VERY long days.  I had a 13.5 hour work day on Monday and an 11 hour work day on Tuesday.  But Jesus asks us to be joyful and thankful in all circumstances, and that was definitely NOT me.  So today, I am choosing to be joyful and thankful.

So with no further adieu, here are some things I'm thankful for today...

1. Orbit Spearmint Gum

The only minty flavor that doesn't make me sneeze.

2. Michael Buble Holiday channel on Pandora..... 'nuff said.

3.  I woke up feeling good and rested for the first time in about 2/3 weeks.

4.  I'm slowly nibbling away at this awesome Ikea dark chocolate.  Yum...

5. New dress with my birthday day money.... best part?  it was 50% off!

(ahem.... please excuse my scenic background)

                                             Here's a better photo of the dress.

6. DATE NIGHT!

So excited for a night to spend with Brandon..... what should we do?  I'm thinking soup at home to save some $ and then renting or going to a movie.... hmm...

Hope you're having a wonderful Wednesday too!

This is the day which the LORD has made;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

psalm 118:24

11/28/11

I'm ________ because...

I'm jumping on the blog world "I'm ___ " band wagon!  It's been fun to see other bloggers do this and learn something about them that they wouldn't necessarily think to write about!  Comment with your answers too!

I'm Weird Because...

- If you touch or mess up my eyebrows, you. will. get. hurt. Please, don't mess them up. Brandon, are you listening?!

- I LOVE animals.  I probably over-personify them, but I just love them.  I could spend ALL DAY and then some at a zoo.  They are one of the ways I marvel at God's creation.  Maybe I should be a zoologist on the side.

- Being late for something I feel is important can ruin my day (although I try my best not to let it).

- I try not to cry too often.  But when I do, watch out!!! I CANNOT turn it off.  It takes me while to pull myself back together.
- I talk to myself a lot.

I'm a Bad Friend Because....

- I am too busy right now to spend the time that I desire to with my friends (this is especially bad when your own love language is quality time.... blah.)

- I am bad at remembering to call

- I think I give too much advice or state my own opinion too much.

- I have a hard time telling them how much I love and appreciate them.

I'm a Good Friend Because...

- I am to-the-death loyal.  (It's a strength and a weakness)

- I am always thinking about my friends and those I love throughout the day (now if I could just get a handle on that pesky phone call problem...)

- I am just as happy following you around running errands as I am at a girl's night out.  It doesn't matter what we do as long as I'm with you!  ;)

- I'd like to think that my friends know they can call on me anytime, anywhere, anyplace, and I will come.

- I forgive and I let it go.  Praise be to God!

- If I say I'm praying for you, I will.

I'm Sad Because...

- I don't know the next time I'll live alone with my husband

- Our debt ebbs and flows..... right now everything is maxed out.  Have mercy...

- I really love to buy/give gifts, but don't have the money to do so.

- I wish I had more time to hone my painting skills.

I'm Happy Because...

- Jesus Christ has washed me clean and I'm His daughter and I'll never be alone.

- I have a roof over my head, food in my tummy, two jobs, clean water, electricity, clothes, shoes, air in my lungs, and all these other wonderful day-to-day blessings I so often forget.

- I have the best husband in the world, no contest. Hands down. Don't even try to convince me otherwise!

- Christmas is coming and I get to see my parents, my brother and sister in law, my 3 nieces and my nephew.

- The Lord has been teaching me and helping me to walk in faith more and more everyday. 

- I can count on more than 5 wonderful ladies that are tried-and-true friends and I know will be my friends forever.  I realize that's more than a lot of other people have.
- God has given me a passion for dance and he has made a way for me to use it.

Special People and a Special App

I am so excited for Thanksgiving tomorrow!  

Thanksgiving and Christmas are my favorite holidays! 

I wanted to take a minute to share about the special couple and friends of ours 

who have graciously let us come and live with them.  We're thankful that 

Phil and Sarah opened up their home to us and are giving us a chance to try to 

take care of some debt and get back on our feet.

They are some of the funnest, personable people we know.  If you were to 

meet them, you would have immediate friends.  

 

Not to mention that we get to spend lots of time with this little cutie!  

Hannah is one of the best little girls I know!  She has the greatest smile, 

loves doggies (who doesn't?!) and enjoys dancing. See?  Like I said... Awesome.

We have slowly been moving in over the last 2 weeks, and slept there for 

the first night last night.  Clothes are all over, our bathroom stuff needs to 

be creatively stored (and let's face it, maybe we don't need some of it 

anymore), so this weekend I will be "nesting" our room and bathroom.  It's a 

big adjustment going from 1,700 square feet to about 100, but we've done 

it before and we'll do it again.  :)  Prayers are appreciated!  :)

I'll take some pictures once I get everything settled!

Lastly,  If you'd like a way to remember to be thankful to God MORE 

than around Thanksgiving, there is an app you MUST download!  

The best part?

It's FREE for a limited time!  WOOHOO!

Christian author Ann Voskamp has a book called "One Thousand Gifts" and 

she also has an app that allows you to record the things you are thankful for, 

and it numbers them and keeps them for you.  You can even add a picture 

to your blessings and share them with friends!

Here is the link to the app!  It won't be free forever so download it today!

One Thousand Gifts

I'm Back! Part 1

It has been a crazy last 3 weeks, but I am still standing.  Thank you Lord! So much has happened -- good and bad, happy and sad, difficult and easy..... it's hard to organize it all by anything but by single events for me, so here goes...

The end of October and early November began our hectic and hardest move we've ever had.  This was the 14th move we've experienced since we've been together, and our 9th as a married couple where both of us were moving.

Existing wall redone and insulated

We had to be out of our condo by the 1st for our renters to move in.  At the same time Brandon was trying to build out a room at his mom's that would serve as his office area, and also give us a hangout area.  He took a portion of the back of the garage, fixed and insulated the existing walls, built another wall and a ceiling, and his uncle brought in electricity.

Moving right along...

As most construction projects go, it took twice as long and cost us more than we had expected. So we ended up doing that and moving at the same time instead of finishing it and then moving.  Poor Brandon was the master juggler of both while I was at work.  It was 2 weeks of sheer exhaustion for him.

Another view

I tried to help when I could.  I helped cut drywall, helped with part of the ceiling, and carried items on numerous Home Depot trips.  There was quite a bit I couldn't do, so I just tried to keep Brandon company when I could. 

Walls are up... ceiling is in.

By Sunday or Monday of the next week.... I can't even remember the exact day, the room was ready to be cleaned, painted and moved into.

And....Here it is all done! 

This picture was taken at 2:30 in the morning as we hurried to finish the room, tried to move all our stuff in before the rain, and tried to clean up all the trash of the work to keep our neighbors happy. 


Abby likes being in the room with us.  She'll even walk from the house outside into the room unleashed!  She's such a good girl!

It's nice to have a little space of our own, a quiet place Brandon can work, and it helps us not have to have everything in storage too!  I'm glad it's done and now we get to enjoy Brandon's hard work.


More catching up to come!  Hope everyone is having a lovely Thanksgiving week!

Do Not Worry

 

“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?  And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? ...




And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!  Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’  For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

matthew 6: 25-34 (nasb)