Random thoughts

I've been wanting to blog... honestly, I have. I haven't really known what to write about though. Nothing really came to mind and I don't want to blog because I feel like I have to do it. There have been lots of thoughts floating around in my mind lately- here's what's been going on.

1. I am really looking forward to closing on our house so that all of this "stuff" will be taken care of and we will be past it.
2. By "stuff" I mean the emails and phone calls from the bank, building delays, stress...
3. Today is the first day of fall. I love Fall.. but all of my cardigans are still in storage until we move, hoping to hold out a little while longer!
4. We had a good weekend and ended it watching the movie "Endless Love" last night. By the title, we weren't sure if we were going to like it.... and I didn't like it, I loved it! If you haven't watched it, you should!
5. We are participating in trunk or treat at our church and can't decide what we want to dress up as... and I need to decide so I can get to making or ordering costumes!
6. God's timing is perfect, I keep reminding myself of that.
7. Student loans stink.
8. We're still trying to find a good routine for us since we have moved, and that hasn't really happened yet. I think we'll be more "in the groove" once we are in our house.
9. I'm trying to be ahead in work so that whenever I have to take off to close on the house it won't be a big deal, with that being said, I worked extra 4/5 days last week and will be doing it again today. Even if we don't close in the next week and a half, I think I may take a day off anyways. Still undecided.
10. I love my husband!

And there you have it, a re-cap of what's been going on with me in a 10 bullet point post.

The Power of a Post-it

Post-it notes... nothing special, right? Wrong. Post-its are a part of my every day life, I use them constantly at work and actually have a nice little system for Post-its. Why am I writing about it though? Because this morning, a Post-it was pretty powerful.

I got ready, got in my car, and found a Post-it note from Preston on my speedomter. Just a simple note, but at the perfect time it meant so much more than a few words on paper stuck to my car. That little Post-it was a reminder, and a reminder I'm holding onto for a while. I decided to write a Post-it in exchange. Sure, it's a 3x3 sticky paper for notes, but when giving it to someone who matters, it goes a long way. To me, it means Preston was thinking about me and my day, so much show that showed effort and wanted me to know... it was encouraging.

So here's the challenge, leave a Post-it note for someone you care about... those few words on that sticky could mean more than you'll even know, and if you have something to say to someone, why not Post-it?

Count your blessings, name them one by one.....

Hello and happy Wednesday.... what day is it? Huuump Daaay!
Do you ever just stop and think about how awesome our God truly is? Yesterday evening as we were cleaning at our new house, I couldn't help but think about how great God is and how BLESSED I am. So, whether you are interested, or if I am just writing for my own memory, this post is about blessings that God has given me lately, and I am so grateful! I don't want to make it seem like I have all these things that make my life perfect, because it's not, but I just want to recognize some of the wonderful blessings that God has given me.

*I am blessed with a husband that loves me, even when I might be cranky or have a list of to-dos that seem like a mile long. A husband that loves the same God I do and puts God before me, just like I do him. A husband that values me and is very understanding. A husband that is encouraging and a husband that prays.
*I am blessed with a family that is supportive and loving, I don't remember many times that they weren't. By family, I mean my "side" of the family and Preston's as a whole. We don't have the problem of not wanting to see in-laws or anything like that. Our families work well together.
*I am blessed with a job that I love, I get to work with children on a daily basis and know that I might have a tiny chance of making a small difference, and that's why all the papers, exams, and studying in my student years makes it all worth it. I have a pay rate that I'm happy with and a benefits package that is wonderful, that in itself is another blessing.
*I am blessed with wonderful friends. Whether they are 9 hours, 4 hours, 2 hours, or 10 minutes away, I've got friends near and far that I consider true friends. The ones I know I can call at any time and know that if they can help me they will, the friends that will pray with/for me, the friends that are dependable. The friends that share some of the same values with me.... that's important! *I am blessed with good health. I don't get sick often, and when I do, it's not too bad, my blood sugar/ blood pressure is usually right where it's supposed to be. I know there are so many medical problems these days and I'm grateful to be in good health.
*I am blessed with reliable transportation, not being able to get where you need to go can be difficult and I am glad that I can get to work every day with no struggle.
* I am blessed that we are getting a new (to us) home. With Preston's job, a house is included in his income package, so we will have a very spacious and newly updated house that will be saving us monthly because of the decrease in bills. We like the layout of the house and we are excited to move to a bigger place, even though that means this will be our 4th move in 2 years and we just got settled into where we are now, it will defintely be worth it.

I know that these things are not all of my many blessings, but they are a few that I've been thinking about lately. God is good, He blesses us, even if it means we have to wait and be patient for the blessing. As I said before, I don't want to come across as a "my life is perfect, look at all my great things", I just want to be grateful and recognize the things that I have been blessed with. What are some of your blessings?

Digging Deeper

I don't know about you all, but sometimes I feel like I don't spend as much time with God as I should.... and I hate that. Being a Christian is the most important thing in my life and I think I owe God more time than I allow. It's an easy thing to do, with all the things we have going on daily, God's time sometimes slips through the cracks. I have been wanting to start a new devotional book and after bouncing from book to book and reading reviews, I have decided to do a devotional titled "Beautiful in God's Eyes" by Elizabeth George. This book shows what it means to be a Proverbs 31 woman and I am excited to get the book and get started. Have you ever read this book or do you have any good devotional recommendations? If so, I'd love for you to share! After I finish this book, I am wanting to start "The Power of a Positive Wife". They both looked like great books, it was just a matter of which one to do first. I'm hoping doing a daily devotional with friends will be encouraging, help me make more time for God daily, and will teach/show me ways to live as a better Christian.

How things can change in a year

Have you ever thought about where you were in your life this time last year? Since last August, lots of things have changed for us. I have decided to do a flashback comparison month by month to show a difference between then and now... so, I am rewinding the past year just to remember what has happened over the past 365 days, warning: This post is very long and has some an overload of pictures!

August 2012: We were living in Elizabethton, TN. I was a full time student working towards my Master's degree at ETSU, I was working at my internship placement part time, and I was working at a shoe store part time.... Preston was working on his Master's degree through KCU, and was working at Best Buy. Preston and I also celebrated 4 years of being together since we started dating, we went to a Tenth Avenue North concert

September 2012 Last September was a lot like August, consumed in school, work, internship, etc. In September I also made my first deco mesh wreath so that it would be ready for October, it turned out like this:

In September I also made chicken and dumplins' for the first time!

October 2012 In October, we continue with the working/school routine... I made this wreath for halloween.

In October I went to my friend Deanna's baby shower and got to see some friends from high school!

November 2012 In November, my mom and I did our annual Black Friday shopping (we LOVE it) and my sister got to join for the first time.... after that, we were on the road and Florida bound for Emily's baby shower!

December 2012: In December, we enjoyed Christmas, the Biltmore estate, and a short break from school!

January 2013 January came and we continued school, but I was excited for it to be my last semester. Towards the end of January, for the first time, I interviewed for a full time social work job position for after graduating school. In January I picked up a new hobby and began crocheting sashay scarves

In January I also got a picture of Chloe sleeping like she normally does, on her back, on a pillow, covered up, with her tongue out... spoiled?

February/March 2013: In Feb and March, not much changed... the same school/work routine. We must have been either boring or busy because I didn't even take any good pictures.
April 2013: In April, Preston and I found an amazing deal on a cruise (thanks to my brother who told me about it)and we booked a cruise on the spur of the moment and we were ready to set sail in just 2.5 weeks. If you know me, I'm a huge planner, so going on a trip like this without planning it was crazy to me, but it was so much fun!

At the end of this cruise, I got a voice mail which led me to talking to someone from the company I interviewed for back in January, I ended up being offered and accepting the job!
May 2013: In May, we had already planned to go on vacation with our friends Adam and Renee to the Outer Banks in North Carolina so we went on another vacation. Also in May, I graduated from graduate school with my Master's of Social Work degree!

June 2013: In June, we moved to Virginia and began to get things situated in our new home. I planted my first rose bushes, which I was extremely excited about. My family had planned a beach trip.... so I was blessed with another vacation, this time to Myrtle Beach, SC.

In June I was also honored with being a bridesmaid in my dear friend, Jade's wedding... it was such a fun wedding!

Also in June, I started my job as a social worker doing what I love and working with children every day. It's great to go from having a crazy schedule to only working 8:30-4:30 Monday through Friday, I love my schedule!
July 2013 July continued work, but my 3 month streak of vacations came to an end! I did enjoy visiting the church camp a lot in the evenings after work, though!
And that brings us to where we are now, August... I'm enjoying the changes that have made, our move, and my job, I'm excited to see what the next year brings. What's been going on in your lives lately?

Random Ramblings...

I’ve been having a lot of random thoughts, some that are probably pointless… but I’m sharing them with you!
•I need to get my nails filled in
•I am looking forward to my hair appointment in 2 weeks
•I’m also looking forward to my Thirty-One party in 2 weeks (you can order, just ask how!)
•I am enjoying living in our new town, but I do miss some of the amenities/places that were close to us before..but we LOVE having friends nearby
•I can’t wait for football season to start, we live closer to my family now so we will be planning to watch my younger brothers play football, and of course watch my sister cheering on the sideline
•Getting closer to fall means that it’s about time for apple cider…. And I can finally pull out my fall wreath and decorate my house with all things fall
•I am liking my new job, I feel like I’m in the groove of things now
•I am excited that Chloe liked her new dog toy, a stuffed chicken

•I’m wanting to try a new recipe next week, you should share one with me!
•I’m looking forward to Christmas decorating and baking
•I’m kind of bummed that we don’t live in a place to get many trick-or-treaters on Halloween
•I need to wash my vehicle
•I’m thankful for weekends, only one more workday this week!
•I haven’t been very crafty lately and I miss it, time for a project!
•I HATE the lack of cell phone signal in my office
•I want to buy a few new shirts for Fall
•I’ve recently became a fan of Zulily
What are your random thoughts today?