The 'Leeses'

25 Weeks

2012-02-15T12:46:00.000-05:00

Anniston is definitely growing! My mom's reaction to this picture was "How on earth do you still have 15 weeks left?"

This has been one of the busiest weeks we have had. It is the BCTC at Faith, & we have some English guests staying with us! I will have to provide updates on that soon :)

Melt My Heart

2012-02-10T13:07:00.000-05:00

I love those boys!

24 Weeks!

2012-02-08T13:06:00.000-05:00

Ugly picture taken in the bathroom at work- but she's growing! Anniston kicks a lot & is starting to make sleep quite difficult for her mommy. I have a doctor's appointment on Friday, so I'm excited to hear her heartbeat and learn more about how she is doing!

I actually made a little progress as far as childcare goes. I called a place right near our home yesterday & found out that they have openings and reasonable prices. We are going to go check them out/ tour them in 2 weeks after the BCTC is over!

We also are making slow progress on getting the nursery ready to become a nursery. The nursery was our office, so we are trying to figure out where everything goes & how to get rid of a room in our house without creating mass clutter. A bookcase made its new home in our bedroom last night & looks decent. We still need to move another one to the guest bedroom (after the BCTC guests leave) and give the desk back to my parents. After that, we can paint the nursery, assemble the crib, and start making it look like a little girl's room!

Hot Water Heater Leak

2012-02-08T12:59:00.000-05:00

I got a call from Nick on Friday on my way to work informing me that our hot water heater had been leaking & had leaked from our garage and through the drywall into the house. As a result, our living room, entry closet, and guest bedroom had some areas with wet carpet.

My first reaction: Freak out- what do we do? Who do we call? Doesn't stuff like this cost thousands of dollars? Should I call insurance? Yea, I should call insurance. What if we get mold?

Nick's response to my first reaction: Why are you worrying?

We get off the phone, I pray, I repent, and then I choose to think in a way about the situation that glorifies God.

It is Wednesday now, and I am happy to report that our carpet/drywall are completely dry, we have no mold as far as I know, & the whole incident just cost us $500 (a new hot water heater.) I'm also happy to report that we are getting a tax refund for the first time in years that more than pays for the new hot water heater. Thank you God for your provision.

The best part is how it only cost us $500. The maintenance/site staff at our church came over and were a huge blessing. One man used to be a plumber & he spent 4.5 hours at our house helping Nick install the new hot water heater & helped us take the right steps in getting the carpet dry. We were also able to borrow fans to dry the carpet from the community center, dehumidifiers from two families in our church, and a rug doctor from the church. I am so thankful for my church family, & their outpouring of love in what could have been a very nasty & expensive situation. Nick worked so hard too- I'm thankful that he is such a handy dude.

I'm also thankful for my husband and his ridiculous sense of smell that helped us discover that something was wet.

Debates

2012-01-27T12:44:00.000-05:00

I've really enjoyed listening to the Republican debates this primary season. It has been fascinating to hear what each candidate's views are and to weigh them with my own beliefs. I'm not going to do a political commentary here because I don't think anyone probably cares what my views are, but I did think I would post a link to the most recent debate in case anyone was interested in hearing the candidates views.

I do think that this is an important election with the state of our economy & the state of our country, so it is good to be educated :)

22 Weeks!

2012-01-25T12:37:00.001-05:00

22 weeks! Only (only?) 18 more left to go! Anniston has moved higher up in my belly in the past few days, & she is starting to zap all of my energy away again too. She is wiggling around a lot too!

This week, I started contacting child care places. It looks like my mom-in-law may be able to watch her 2 days a week, so we are exploring both full and part-time options. It is so hard! There are two people I'm talking to about watching her that may be interested and we have a full time application in at Faith Infant Care (they are full right now though and only do full-time). I also just put in a request for information for the county child care center right next to my work. The secular environment is not preferred, but the location is awesome!

And Baby Makes Three!

2012-01-22T16:48:00.000-05:00

Well... It looks like it is about time that I start blogging again. For real this time. Our life is about to undergo so many big changes, and it seems appropriate to write the memories down that I will actually remember them. Plus- I've noticed that I've been using Facebook more like a blog and that is probably irritating to my Facebook friends :)

So the first big change? I'm pretty sure everyone in the world already knows, but Nick and I are expecting baby Lees- due May 29th. On Wednesday, we actually found out that baby Lees is actually a baby girl, & we announce that her name is going to be Anniston Gray.

We are overwhelmingly excited & eager as for this journey we embark on as we become parents. We also know that there is so much we don't know and so much we will be learning in the process. We look forward to knowing God more intimately through this journey we are embarking on with Anniston. We have actually already learned so much about our relationship to God as our father as we have began reading books about being a mommy & daddy.

On top of spiritual learning and growth, there is just a lot of 'stuff' we need to get in order. Just to name a few:

Sign up for childbirth/newborn care classes
Clean out the garage so that we can put stuff from the current office in there
Clean out the office so we can change into the nursery
Assemble the crib
Acquire items necessary for Anniston's survival & daily needs
Figure out childcare more concretely
Figure out my maternity leave
Etc etc etc

On top of baby things, we are also seeking God's face in his plan for our future, Nick is planning another ministry trip to England in March, & we are actively involved with Faith's college ministry. Life is good and busy! I'm going to update this blog as I get time with progress, growth, God things, & probably baby bump pictures!

Farewell for now! I'm excited to start blogging again.

Lees in England in Pictures

2011-08-05T22:28:00.000-04:00

In a few short words... we LOVED England. The people... the ministry... the Franklins.

I owe a long post about it, but maybe my sweet hubby will provide a blog post about it. I'll ask before doing one :)

Here are just a few of the pictures from our trip:

Lees in England According to Facebook

2011-08-05T22:06:00.000-04:00

In no particular order...

The God Who Is There

2011-07-05T09:30:00.001-04:00

I am currently reading The God Who Is There by D.A. Carson. It is an awesome book, and I just wanted to recommend it! It has taken me a while to read because I get easily distracted in the midst of a book and skip to another and then back to the original one, but I am having a hard time putting it down as I am getting toward the end.

The point of the book? Well the name is pretty self-explanitory, but it essentially reads like a bible study. The goal of the book is to help the reader develop an accurate understanding of what the Bible is all about. It is the perfect book for accountability or discipleship with a new believer, but I also think it is perfect for anyone- believer or skeptic, baby or mature.

Each chapter is structured like a mini bible study on its particular subject. Carson provides scripture and then walks you through the significance of it to the broader story of the bible, to Christ, and to salvation. He also helps us understand key take aways, and he does it all in very clear, basic language. He doesn't presume that the reader is starting the book with much biblical knowledge.

I have been strengthend and edifyed through reading it. One of my favorite parts of the book is when Carson is talking about Nichodemus and new birth. One portion of scripture he explains in relationship to new birth is John 3:14-15: "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life."

This passage of scripture might seem so obvious to you, but I had never really stopped to draw the parallel between Moses lifting up the snake in the wilderness and Jesus being lifted up. Carson provides the scripture that Jesus is talking about here (Num 21:4-9) and helps us to understand that as the Isrealites had to look on the bronze snake and life, so we must look on Jesus to live.

Long weekend

2011-07-04T10:01:00.000-04:00

We have had a really nice, relaxing long weekend. I had been a little stressed on Friday (for really no good reason), so it was nice to have extra time to relax, spend time with my hubby, serve, and read. It is also so nice to have an extra day to get home things done like grocery shopping (I normally grocery shop, it is usually just rushed on Sunday afternoon).

Some key weekend highlights?

Friday night we got to hang out with the Bertles and Kjaers, which is always fun.
Saturday morning I watched Leif Kjaer for 6 hours. Leif is Johnny (another intern) and Tori's 2 month old son. We had a lot of fun sleeping, walking around in circles, changing diapers, and just hanging out. I even got peed on. Seriously, though, we had a lot of fun, and it was a blessing to watch their baby boy.

I completely passed out after watching Leif and woke up several hours later. Nick and I then watched two movies and played board games. It was a nice, relaxing hang out time. I even learned to play the infamous zombie game
Sunday was church and the Faith Community Picnic. The picnic was a ton of fun. Major props to intern Scott on that one. We did cardboard boat races, and they were so dang fun. My team raced Nick's team and beat them.

(our boat is the lower one, Nick's sinking boat is the top one)

Today I am grocery shopping and then we are maybe going to the Allisons for a little bit, and then we are definitely going to the Willis's for fireworks.

What an awesome fun weekend.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2011-07-04T09:45:00.001-04:00

My dad is a July 4th baby. One of my favorite things my parents have at their hous is a telegram (yep, he is that old) someone sent to my Grandpa when my dad was born. It says, "Congratulations on your Yankee Doodle Dandy." Too cute. My dad is 52 going on 15 today! I am so blessed to be his daughter. Happy Birthday Dad! I love you!

The Lees to England

2011-07-03T10:27:00.011-04:00

The flights are BOOKED!!

Lord willing, Nick and I are leaving for England on July 19th. I'll be returning the 1st, and he will be returning soon after (my brother is watching the house and the dogs, so I think it is safe to share this online as my house will not be vacant).

I would love to share more on the purpose of the trip, but I am hoping my sweet husband will do a post on that. However, really briefly. We want to:

Serve and love the Franklins
Help the Franklins in their ministry, their move, and with their kiddos (they just had their 4th boy yesterday)
Explore missions- particularly in England
Proclaim the Gospel in a lost and hurting world
Grow in a deeper love for our God
Vacation :) I love my job, but two weeks off work? Hello!

In other news- my mistake with my marriage license on the passport was a $100 mistake. My amazing mother Fed-Ex'ed my new marriage license to me Tuesday. It went in the mail to the passport office Wednesday. They were guaranteed to receive it on Thursday by noon, and I expect it to take approximately two weeks to receive the passport in the mail after that.

I am cutting it close. :)

Dee-licious

2011-07-02T10:04:00.001-04:00

As I've already said- I love Pinterest. It is absolutely amazing. I have found so many delicious food dishes on there, so I thought I would share some of the drool-worthy ones on here:

I might be getting very fat soon... :)

Happy Birthday Aubs!

2011-06-30T12:00:00.000-04:00

My brother Aubrey turns 23 today! Happy Birthday Aubrey! I am so thankful that you live out here and enjoy hanging out... Even if I beat you in Settlers :)

Birthday Treats

2011-06-29T22:03:00.001-04:00

I made the Chocolate Chip Cookie/ Oreo/ and Brownies for Aubrey's birthday! They are uh-maze-ing. They are also extremely rich. I ate about half of one before I could have no more.

How to make them?

Spray a 9 by 13 pan with Pam
Cover the bottom of the pan with chocolate chip cookie dough
Spread out Oreos on top of the cookie dough
Make brownies and pour them on top of the Oreos
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
YUM. I recommend not eating very much and eating with ice cream or milk.

Nick likes them, but recommends never making them again unless it is for a special occasion :)

Date Night

2011-06-29T09:55:00.001-04:00

Nick and I had an amazing date night last night.We originally planned to go salsa dancing, but we got the times wrong and got really hungry as we waited for our turn. Instead... we went for a long walk to and from Kibu Cafe- a Korean and Japanese restaurant along River Road. It was absolutely delicious, and they gave us so much food!

I am so thankful for my sweet husband and the hours we got to spend tonight talking, catching up, and investing in each other.

Nick- You are a blessing from God. I pray that our marriage can better mirror that of Christ and His church each and every day.

But I am Le Tired...

2011-06-28T08:59:00.000-04:00

Oh Gus-i-mus, I love you.

Radical

2011-06-27T18:35:00.001-04:00

The college class is currently reading Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt. It is an awesome, thought-provoking book. It has a fabulous chapter on God's Global Purpose from the Beginning Till Today.

In one section, he is talking about people in his church family that are giving of their time, resources, and even lives to the end of global missions. In referring to their attitude about God's glory throughout the world, Platt says:

"They believe they were created for more than a Christian spin on the American dream. They believe the purpose of their lives is deeper than having a nice job, raising a decent family, living a comfortable life, and tacking church attendance onto the end of it. They believe Jesus has called them to a much higher plane and given them a much greater dream. They believe God has shown them great grace in order than he might use them to accomplish the glorious, global, God-exalting purpose that has been primary since the beginning of time, and they don't want to settle for anything less than radical abandonment to that purpose."

I am very much looking forward to discussing this in bible study tonight.

Fat Foods

2011-06-26T19:50:00.000-04:00

Pinterest has opened my eyes to a whole new world of delicious, fattening foods. A few weeks back, I made Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies and they were amazing. I highly recommend them. This week, I will be making Ultimate Chocolate Chip n' Oreo Fudge Brownie Bars for Aubrey's 23rd birthday.

I cannot wait to try them! I just thought I'd share the recipes so you could drool or get fat too!

Summer Time

2011-06-26T19:32:00.002-04:00

It is finally starting to feel like summer here in Indiana. With summer comes so many new things and exciting things coming around the corner. Mrs. Courtney Allison starting writing again in her blog and Mrs. Kelli White started one for her and Corbit, so I thought that I would copy them and actually update mine.

It seems appropriate to start blogging again because now that we are a year in to this seminary experience, I would expect new decisions, new explorations, and new paths in the coming months to years (no- I'm not pregnant). Also, God continues to sanctify us in our marriage, bless us immensely, teach us new exciting things, walk with us through trials, and grow us in different areas: professionally, spiritually, in our ministry, and personally.

A few updates of note:

Nick has definitely been growing in his ministry role at Faith. He is currently teaching an ABF (Sunday School) class for the college class on the attributes of God. I know my opinion is a little biased, but it is my favorite ABF class I have ever taken. Each week he digs into a different attribute of our Incomparable God and helps us understand what the attribute means, shares scripture that supports it, and helps us to understand what our response should be. So far, he has taught on God's wrath, holiness, and truthfulness/faithfulness. It has been amazing to sit in his class and really reflect on what an amazing God I serve. It is also amazing to watch my husband use his gifts and abilities that God has so clearly blessed him with.

We are currently planning and preparing to go visit Brad and Megan Franklin in England for 2-3 weeks (2 for me, 3 for Nick). We'll be leaving in about three weeks, cannot wait! We love them and their ministry and are so blessed by their friendship. They'll be moving to London and likely having their fourth child while we are there, so hopefully we'll be a help and a blessing to them. The purpose of the trip is actually twofold. The first is to just minister along side of the Franklins and help them in both their ministry lives and personal lives. The second is to see what the role is like of a pastor in a foreign country in hopes of better understanding God's will for our future. Right now we are dealing with a few different issues related to our trip. We really need to book our flights this week, and I really need to get my passport back from the Federal Government. These two issues feel like weights on our shoulders as we try to figure out the logistics, but Lord willing, we will indeed be in England in approximately three weeks.

My job is going great. I am really enjoying what I am doing and actually enjoy almost every day at work. I don't think many people can say this, so I am very thankful for it.

My brother Aubrey is currently living in Indiana this summer. I LOVE it! It is so nice to live in the same town as a family member. I am so blessed by his being out here and secretly (orrr not so secretly) hope he stays longer.

We ran the Indianapolis Mini Marathon (13.1 miles)! It rocked, and I am seriously considering doing it again next year!

I turned 25 this month

I really should be couponing right now so I can go grocery shopping lately, but I will hopefully be updating more regularly than twice a year going forward.

Here are some pictures of some recent happenings:

Must-Watch Videos

2011-02-16T22:51:00.000-05:00

Nick and I have been very blessed by watching three videos today about people who went through or are going through immense suffering, but did it to the glory of God. I highly recommend grabbing your tissue box and watching these testimonies:

Debbie Costa's Testimony
The Story of Zach Smith <-- watch this video and then watch the Tears of Hope one
Tears of Hope <-- watch this after watching The Story of Zach Smith

I hope you are as blessed as we were

Happy Birthday to Nick!

2011-02-16T22:43:00.000-05:00

Today is my sweet husband's 26th birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NICK! I love you!

This morning, I got in the car, and I started to thank God for my honey. I realized in the midst of my prayers that I have a lot to be thankful for in this man. I love him, and he makes me life much better. I also realized that he not only makes my life better but that of his family and of his church family. He loves much, and God uses him to bless others much. My husband is an instrument in the Redeemer's hand.

(The picture is of Nick and fellow intern Joel. Nick's monk outfit just cracks me up)

The Past Few Months

2011-02-16T22:39:00.000-05:00

I don't even know where to begin. I'm not on Facebook right now, but I do enjoy sharing pictures and having a place where I can look at my pictures. Also, I'm remembering the value of the blog as I read my friend Lauren's encouraging posts about reading Crazy Love and as I see my friend Shannon's pictures of her adorable children.

Instead of trying to recap what has been going on in our lives, I thought I would share some details in pictures:

Busy

2010-10-08T20:47:00.002-04:00

Life is busy :)

We are adjusting to life in seminary and, as a result, my blog has suffered. Work has been insane, also, so there has been no lunch break to blog on.

I don't say this to complain, life is good! I just say it to say, my blogging is going to be pretty darn irregular for a while.

Surprise!

2010-09-06T12:44:00.000-04:00

Best. Weekend. Ever.

First- I am sorry for being such a bad blogger lately. Work has been insanely busy, and I have not been taking my lunch breaks (when I normally blog). Also, when life is busy, I feel the need to do a lot of other things that are not blogging. I hope that the bad blogging will change after this week when a couple of deadlines pass.

So, this weekend rocked. I had the privilege of sharing my testimony Friday night at PBF. If you would like to read the long version- email me at *my full name* @gmail.com- no spaces, periods, or under scores. I would write my email, but I'm just not so sure about the amount of spam I'd get on the internet. Also, I've posted a shorter version on my blog before, but there are a few aspects of the longer version that I would prefer to email out and not post on the internet. So email me :)

Anyways, sharing my testimony was great. It was such a honor to get to share what GOD did and is continuing to do in my life. I don't know how it impacted people/ if it impacted anyone, but I know it glorified God, and that was the goal. After I got done sharing my testimony, my hubby preached on it for 10 min or so. He did a great job- go Nick!

So, after I finished sharing my testimony, I walked to the back of the PBF house and MY PARENTS were standing there. Apparently they had decided to come in town for the long weekend and surprise me! My parents drove 12 hours to surprise me and spend the weekend with us! I started crying because I was so excited. I had been begging them to come visit sometime soon-- and they did!

We went to LBC Friday night after PBF, then went to the farmers market/ gym Saturday morning and Gregg & Cindy's house Saturday afternoon, and then church and a *chill* day Sunday. I am so blessed. Thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to spend time with my parents!

Today is Labor Day, and I have the day off! Who doesn't love an extra day without work?

Here are some pictures:

Awesome Sermon

2010-09-06T12:27:00.000-04:00

Matt Chandler is amazing. If you don't know his story... He is the pastor of the Village Church in Texas. Last Thanksgiving, he had a seizure, which led to the doctors discovering a brain tumor. He has suffered well to the glory of God. Here is a great sermon he preached- you should listen to it :)

Crazy Love

2010-08-30T20:11:00.000-04:00

I started re-reading Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God recently. It is probably one of my favorite books ever. I hope to blog more about my life soon, and in doing so, I will share with you how what I'm reading in Crazy Love corresponds to what is going on in life, but for now, I just wanted to share some truly awesome quotes from the book. I hope they bless you as much as they have blessed me (and maybe tempt you to read it yourself?)

"To be brutally honest, it doesn't really matter what place you find yourself in right now. Your part is to bring Him glory- whether eating a sandwich on a lunch break, drinking coffee at 12:04 a.m. so you can stay awake to study , or watching your four-month-old take a nap."- p. 44

"...Let's take it a step further. What if you rent out the theater on opening night and invite all your friend and family to come see the new movie about you [where you are featured as an extra for two-fifths of a second and can only see the back of your head]? People will say, 'you're an idiot! How could you think this movie is about you?' Many Christians are even more delusional than the person I've been describing..."- p. 42

"Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough , powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives. Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control."- p. 42

The book is so amazing and encouraging and so dang convicting. I would quote more, but I'm lazy :)

Sick Day

2010-08-30T11:16:00.000-04:00

I'm home sick today. I got to work this morning and felt awful. I'm doing better now, and my brain has been melting as I watch Say Yes to the Dress :)

What in the World is Going On? 10 Prophetic Clues You Cannot Afford to Ignore by Dr. David Jeremiah

2010-08-30T10:51:00.001-04:00

Summary: What in the World is Going On? looks at biblical prophecy and how they are being played out and fulfilled today. Some areas that Dr. David Jeremiah touches on in particular are Radical Islam, the Rapture, and Israel.

My reaction: This book was surprisingly good. I was nervous when I ordered it, but was happy when I realized that the book was both biblical and historical. I learned so much about prophecy regarding the nation of Israel and prophecy regarding the end times and Islam. I have to give the caveat, though, that I never finished it. I am about half way through, and I decided to write the review since I don't know when I will be able to read the second half. It is a slower read and requires a lot of brain power.

I recommend this book especially because it helps you to view the awful events going on throughout the world in view of God's plan through all time. Of course you know that prophecy is still being fulfilled, but I never thought about it. It is so cool to see ways that God is still working in our world today. Dr. Jeremiah was very careful not to make any huge assumptions or predict when he expects Christ to return, but he did help you to see world events in view of redemptive history-- amazing!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Fun Convo with my Hubby

2010-08-26T14:18:00.002-04:00

Hubby: do you want to go out on a date tonight?

i'd love to have your company

Micaela: i would LOVE that. only problem...

i have the draft @ 6:30.

we could go somewhere w/ wifi and do that together?

i would still LOVE that

Hubby: HAHAHAHA i love you

Micaela: what what?

Hubby: i ask you on date, you say... "Well i have my fantasy football draft" :P

i just shared with the office

they laughed

Micaela: hahaha

Hubby: and then "we could go somewhere w/ wifi"

Micaela: is that a yes :)

Hubby: um

i guess

we could do BW3s

Oh I love him :)

I will blog soon :)

2010-08-23T21:23:00.002-04:00

I will blog tomorrow night hopefully! I am frantically trying to plan my grocery trip for tomorrow right now.

Puppies

2010-08-20T21:35:00.001-04:00

It has been a little since I posted very many pictures. Here are some recent pictures. The majority of them are of Sam because he is both adorable and hilarious. Gus is amazingly adorable too, but I haven't gotten any pictures of him being as ridiculous as Sam lately

I love my puppies :)

New Blog

2010-08-19T22:59:00.002-04:00

There is a new blog that you should *probably* read

Introducing... my hubby's wonderful new blog!

Faces to Names

2010-08-19T22:19:00.002-04:00

I have worked for the company I work for since June of 2009. The company has multiple locations, and I work heavily with each location. Today, I got to go to one of the locations for the first time. It rocked. It was amazing to match faces to names- and weird at that. I was able to go with two other coworkers that I respect, so that was great.

This week has been a good one! We have one of Nick's seminary-mates and his wife staying with us. It is a privilege to be able to serve people with our house. They have been married for 18 days, and it is really quite adorable. It is a blessing to me to see people who are so newly married as I love my hubby.

Nick has also been in classes all week, and they are going well. Dr. Z has been teaching the boys Systematic Theology. He has also successfully turned their heads to mush each day. The other day, Nick suggested that we mix his mushy brain in with our soup. I said "no" as that sounds quite disgusting. I think the seminary guys have voted him the "smartest guy ever."

Monday night I got to hang with Christen (who has a kindergartener now); Tuesday, we took our guests over to the Bertle's house (we love them); Wednesday was FCI, and it rawked; Tonight was bible study at Janet's- she gave us Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites: More Great Recipes That Save You Time and Money from the Inventors of the Ultimate Do-Ahead Dinnertime Method as a gift- thank you, Janet!

Disturbing

2010-08-18T16:17:00.000-04:00

Not to depress you or anything, but check this out. It is seriously disturbing.

No more fast food for me...

... well except for Chik-fil-a :)

Totally Awesome

2010-08-18T13:28:00.003-04:00

These have me cracking up. Amazing.

Loving My Husband

2010-08-17T10:26:00.000-04:00

I am still reading Helper by Design: God's Perfect Plan for Women in Marriage by Elyse Fitzpatrick as part of a newlywed study that Janet is doing with the ladies/lady sponsors in the collect class. I have said it before, but I love this book. It is by far the best book that I have read focused on a woman's role. Elyse cuts right to the heart and doesn't mess around with the fluffy, appearance driven things that most women's books talk about.

Anyways, I wanted to share with you a list of questions that Elyse asks for us to ask ourself about how we are loving and helping our husband. The questions rock and really point towards the way that we can fulfill our God intended role (and wow! our role rawks):

Questions:

"What does my husband need from me so that he might more completely glorify God in his life? Does he need encouragement or gentle confrontation? Does he need my strength? Does he need my silent prayer? Does he need my counsel and wisdom- or just a back rub?
What lack is experiencing that I might fill (without seeking to take God's place in his life or tempting him to idolize me)?
In this situation, what is the most loving thing for me to do? Should I speak or be silent? Should I act or await God's supply? Do I need to confess my own sins?
Would he easily recognize that my goal in our relationship (and in this particular situation) is to do him good and inspire him to a life of Godliness?
What would Christlike servanthood look like in this situation? Does he need me to take up the basin and the towel and wash his feet, cleansing him from the defilement of the world? Does he need me to provide a haven of rest and nourishment? How can I best serve him?
How would I want to be treated? If I were in his shoes, what would beneficent love- love that seeks to do good- look like to me?
Is my love from him based on his ability to satisfy my desires? Do I think that he's been given to me to rescue me and make my life pleasant, rather than my being give to him to help him?
How can I love him the way that I love myself? (pages 131-132)"

Yikes.

Dealz and Mealz

2010-08-17T08:43:00.001-04:00

I spent more than my budget this week on grocery shopping since a seminary student and his wife are staying with us (about $68), but after I get reimbursed by the seminary, we are way on budget at just $24. An added bonus is that we got a prepaid Visa card with $30 on it in the mail this week from buying a printer at Staples that had a rebate on it, so a lot of the grocery trip went on that card :) My best savings were at PayLess where I spent $42 and saved $54.

In case you are looking for some dealz this week, here are some of the ones I got:

CVS has a ton of really good dealz this week. Unfortunately, everyone else knew that too. By the time Molly and I got to CVS, most of the good things were sold out. I did get some Purex laundry + dryer sheets 3/1 for just 99 cents (normally 5.99), milk for $1.79, and two sticks of Dry Idea deodorant for free. I missed out on Blink tears that they pay you $1.50 for and crest toothpaste for free. Click here to check out the dealz at CVS.

I didn't saved that much at Meijer this week. However, I did get Malt-o-Meal cereal (two of them) for 29 cents each. You can check out Meijer dealz here.

Walmart has Gala apples for 83 cents!

PayLess has a promotion going on where you can buy 8 qualifying items and get $4 off your entire order (50 cents per item). A lot of the items that qualify have really good coupons associated with them, so you can get a lot of stuff for really cheap! A lot of them are snacky items and not 'must haves', but I needed to buy snacky items since the wife of the guy staying with us will be chilling out in our house all week. They also have chicken for $1.97/lb (better than usual- not a stock up price, but good if you need chicken). I got chex mix for 49 cents, bugles for 49 cents, cereal bars for 49 cents, fruit roll ups for 49 cents, bagels for $1, Progresso soup for 69 cents, SoBe water for free, crescent rolls for 49 cents, Gardetto snack mix for 49 cents, rice cakes for 49 cents, warm delight for 19 cents, two boxes of GM cereal for 93 cents each, and some other things :) Here are the PayLess dealz for the week!

Nick spent $24 at staples is is getting $26 cash back. Not quite sure how he did it, but he got a TON of stuff.

As a side note- I am no longer allowed to buy deodorant for myself or shampoo/conditioner for myself. I have way.too.much.

Also, I made all our food for the week last night, and it went really well. I love the time it affords us during the week, and it gives me the opportunity to cook for several hours, which I love doing when I have the time. I hope our house guests like Mexican because we are going to be eating a lot of it. Special thank you to my Facebook friends that made so many yummy food recommendations.

Monday: Taco Ring with corn from the weekend
Tuesday: Taco Soup (we are calling it tortilla soup though so the week doesn't sound so taco-y) with cake. We're hopefully eating with the Bertles :). I highly recommend this recipe- it is amazing and so easy
Wednesday: Semi-homemade Pizza
Thursday: Breaded pork chops with bread and corn
Friday: Date night

Hilarious

2010-08-16T12:04:00.001-04:00

I love Catalog Living, and I especially love this today's post (read the caption).

Corning

2010-08-16T08:26:00.000-04:00

I don't think that it is actually called 'corning', but that is what my mom-in-law called it, so I'll call it that too.

So this weekend, we corned (er... that sounds even more weird that 'corning'). It was really fun. To you non-mid-westerners that aren't surrounded by cornfields- we spent Saturday freezing sweet corn with Nick's grandma, mom, and aunt in Kokomo. It was really fun. I had never heard of freezing corn before I moved out to Indiana, but I did it, and it was awesome. I went home on Saturday with 15 bags of frozen corn that I can just put in the microwave this winter and enjoy.

We also ate a lot of corn on Saturday as we cut it off the cob :)

Here is how you freeze corn:

Buy a whole bunch of corn (we bought three dozen per person with fourteen in the dozen)
Shuck the corn
Bring two big pots of water to a boil and put ice water in the sink (or a bucket, etc)
Put corn in boiling water- remove once the water boils again (do not leave it in there too long)
Place corn directly into ice water
Use a knife to cut the corn off the cob (and eat whatever you miss ;) )
Put corn into a freezer safe bag and trap out all air (we put two cups of corn in each bag because we all have only two people living at home)

Mommy and her babies

2010-08-14T16:25:00.000-04:00

Morning fail # 3

2010-08-13T09:28:00.000-04:00

And now... it is time for our weekly installment of... Micaela slept too late and had a crazy morning!

This morning, though, it wasn't my fault :) My phone (also-known-as my alarm clock) turned off randomly.

I woke up and knew that I would be tempted to sin in my rush, so that knowledge was helpful in having a better response. Also, my hair looked good when I rolled out of bed, so that made things much easier :)

Seminary Update

2010-08-13T09:23:00.001-04:00

We have a little more clarity as to what seminary is all about now! It is going well. We are growing slowly through the experience and seeing our seminary in all new ways. I am learning to be more tenderhearted toward my husband, and I am learning how to trust God more by not being a nag. It might shock you (okay, it probably doesn't shock you at all), but I can be a serious nag.

Proverbs 25:24- "It is better to live on the corner of a tin roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife."

Proverbs 27:15- "A quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping on a rainy day."

There are more verses, but we all get the point- a nagging wife is not a blessing her to her husband. I love my husband, and more so, I love my Lord and desire to please him. I get so easily distracted, and I focus so easily on the minors, though. My goal in my marriage and my life must be to exalt the gospel and make it known. My marriage is to be a reflection of Christ and the church to show the glory of the gospel to the wold around me. What's the gospel? Jesus lived the perfect life and died for hell deserving sinners that those who believe in him should not perish but receive eternal life- all to the glory and praise of God the Father.

So anyways, Nick has been learning his role more at the church- and it is very cool. He and Joel are the pastoral interns for the college ministry! Nick's job is to oversee the administrative portion of ABF, provide counsel for discipleship, and teach an ABF class each semester. He coordinates the sponsors and has the opportunity to learn form Brent regarding different counseling situations. It is a great opportunity to learn immense amounts about ministry, and he is very blessed to be under Brent in an age group he enjoys.

Today was seminary orientation. Nick had the opportunity to meet the other students from churches other than Faith and go over the syllabus- a 65 page one provided by Brent :) They shared testimonies and got to know what the Lord was doing in each person's life. After orientation, they went golfing. Rough life. Nick did come back so sweaty that his shirt smelled a lot like a wet dog.

I know this is going to be a sanctifying three years. I have already seen how short I fall, and I pray that I will love the Lord more through the experience.

My Crocs Came

2010-08-12T21:23:00.000-04:00

I was both excited when I ordered Crocs as I used to make fun of them a lot (I know, not cool). Anyways, they came! I love them. The ballet flats are totally wearable for work and the flip flops are so comfortable. I am very glad I got them- and very very glad they were so cheap!

My only problem is that my Crocs make farting noises when I walk if my feet get sweaty. Gross :)

FCI Classes

2010-08-11T08:42:00.000-04:00

Our church has a series of classes for the community. I'd encourage you to check them out- the majority of them are free! I think I'm going to be going to Sharing the Gospel Today.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

2010-08-10T10:24:00.002-04:00

One of the best memories I have from growing up is of my mom and dad dancing together in the kitchen. My dad loves my mom, and he makes sure she knows it. There were so many nights growing up that my dad would walk into the kitchen, slow dance with his wife, and kiss her. It grossed me out/ weirded me out when I was younger (um, YUCK), but as I got older, I grew to appreciate it so much. My mom loves my dad, and my dad loves my mom. I hope in twenty five years to be dancing around the kitchen with Nick, grossing my children out.

Happy 25th anniversary, Mom and Dad! I am so thankful you are my parents!

Meals for the week

2010-08-10T09:00:00.000-04:00

This was the second week of preparing an entire week's meals in one night. It was great! I've been learning new things about how to stretch a buck and make delicious meals like how to properly freeze foods, what foods are great for freezing, how to repurpose food dishes, and how to actually make a meal that uses vegetables. I'm still growing with the vegetable thing, but it is important to Nick, so it is important to me.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Nick worked at the community center all day Saturday. There was a wedding going on while we were there, and there was a TON of food left over at the end. The caterer gave us (and the rest of the interns) an immense amount of food at the end of the night. I wasn't the world's biggest fan of some of the food (not bad, just not my style), so I was able to use some of the leftovers we took home to make delicious meals this week. This was especially helpful since meat was not cheap this week. I also was able to buy 15 lbs of different type of pork one week at Marsh when it went on sale for $.98/lb. I froze the meat the right way for once, and I have been able to cook so many meals with it. It is really fun making new, delicious meals out of things I wouldn't like as much otherwise.

Last night I cooked the meals for the week. We are having:

Monday- leftovers (Nick wasn't in the mood for a real meal because he didn't feel so good)
Tuesday- Pork with cranberry sauce (verdict is still out on whether this will be good or not. I had some pork chops frozen in the freezer, and I took home a ton of cranberries from the wedding. I looked up a recipe on Recipezaar (now food.com), and found a way to sweeten up the cranberries and use them as a sauce for the porkchops) and with salad (they had a whole bag of fresh salad left over after the wedding)
Wednesday- Chicken stir fry (I used the grilled chicken from the wedding and combined it with green peppers, onions, egg, and soy sauce- yum!)
Thursday- Ribs (easiest recipe ever- put a rib rub on, put apple juice in the bottom of a broiler pan, wrap pan with foil, cook at 425 for 2.5 hours) with potatos and mixed veggies (also left over from the wedding).
Friday- Date night!
Saturday- Freezing corn in Peru

I must go do work for my client. I love working for them, but right now, I'm not exactly in the mood :)

Rejected!

2010-08-09T11:00:00.002-04:00

Emily showed me Oddee.com- it has some hilarious lists (and some inappropriate ones, so be careful what you click on). Here are some great rejection letters from the site:

Meanest rejection letter ever:

Early to Bed

2010-08-09T10:18:00.000-04:00

I love my husband. He rocks, seriously.

Our biggest adjustment so far to seminary has been that his one tired dood at the end of the day. He has been going to bed at 9:30 each night (when it is still light out here in Indiana.) There are a few reasons for the early bedtime. First of all, he is just plain tired. He spends much of his day reading and sitting in meetings- this makes him tired. I am thankful that he is learning and growing so much closer to the Lord that he is whooped by the end of the day. Second, he is working out early in the mornings with Johnny (a fellow intern). I am thankful that Nick is seeking to discipline all of his body and offer it as a living sacrifice.

Nick, I love you. Thank you for being a Godly man and my best friend.

Dealz

2010-08-08T22:15:00.001-04:00

I got to go grocery shopping with Molly this week, and it was a lot of fun. Grocery shopping is definitely much better when you get to do it with a friend!

The trip in summary: spent $36, saved $54. Our grocery budget is $40/week, so I was excited. Here are some of my favorite deals:

At CVS, I got two warm delights for $.75 each. They are delicious. I actually bought them and then two things of red eye stuff (BOGO), and a peanut butter cup (I had to spend a little more money so my purchase exceeded my ECBs). Then, I used my ECBs and bought everything for 42 cents. Find more about CVS deals here.

Staples has a TON of great deals this week. We are excited about that since Nick is a student again. I am going to head over to staples tomorrow to buy the things I want, but I am excited to get filler paper for 1 cent and sticky notes and highlighters for FREE after easy rebate (which are, in fact, easy). Here is more information about the Staples deals this week.

Meijer had some awesome deals this week. I got some Ragu for .62 cents each, Skippy peanut butter for 37 cents each, Smart Balance half gallon of milk for 1 cent and 26 cents (I bought two half gallons- so a gallon for 27 cents), and our must-have coffee for only 4.99/lb. Mommy Snacks has all of the great Meijer deals here.

Payless also had some sa-weet deals this week. They had bread and grapes each for 88 cents, Cap'n Crunch for only .79 cents each, boxes of fiber one bars for .87 cents each, 24 pack of toilet paper for just $2.99, Herbal Essense Shampoo or Conditioner and a Styler for .99 cents (or 50 cents a piece), and men's Gillette body wash for negative one cent (yep- they pay you for it). Go here for the amazing Pay Less deals (PayLess and Kroger are the same thing).

I was very happy with the deals this week. I realize I am FAR from the best at this, but maybe by showing you the deals I get you will either 1) feel encouraged to get good deals yourself and save money or 2) be assisted to find deals easier :)

Oh, and by-the-way, Molly did fabulous at couponing too. She rocks.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2010-08-08T09:29:00.000-04:00

My beautiful, amazing, loving mother turns 49 and 365 days today (some might call it 50). Happy birthday, Mom! I love you!

Oh, and did I mention? She looks more like my sister than my mom!

Seminary Wives + Weekend Plans

2010-08-07T13:24:00.025-04:00

We have our first seminary wives meeting tomorrow! I know that this is probably not the most appropriate thing to associate seminary wives with, but every time I think of it, I think 'Seminary Wives Club', which then makes me think 'First Wives Club', and then I start thinking about a not-so-good movie with Bette Midler and Goldie Hawn. I don't really even remember much about The First Wives Club, but I'm pretty sure it has something to do with divorced or divorcing women. I'm pretty sure that our seminary wives group will be the opposite of that- or at least I really hope and pray that it is.

Anyways, I am very excited for getting together with these ladies. It is lead by Steph and Trisha, who are two pastor at the church's wives (and are wonderful). I am already close with most of the ladies in the group, and I look forward to getting to know the rest of the ladies in the group.

Speaking of close friends- I have been blessed with some great friends out here. I love getting together weekly with Kelli and Christen, who are both amazing Godly women, I love getting together randomly (but pretty much weekly) with Molly, and I love chatting with Lauren as we work out together in the mornings. I loved going to dinner last Friday with Jon and Jen, and I love that Nick and I have a ton of close couple friends in these ladies and their husbands as well as so many other people (including all the seminary guys and their wives). I am so thankful for all my friends here and my friends in Raleigh :)

I am also just very excited that it is the weekend (yeaa!) Here are some of our plans:

Friday night we had date night, which included Five Guys burgers and fries and catching up on TV shows
Nick is working at the community center all day today. I will be helping him, cleaning the house, and doing work for my client all day.
Sunday we have church, and I will be doing grocery shopping and cooking the food! I haven't been shopping in almost two weeks since Colt came to visit :)

The Prayers of An Excellent Wife by Andrew Case

2010-08-06T22:23:00.000-04:00

I was recently provided Prayers Of An Excellent Wife: Intercession For Him by Andrew Case through a free book request I made through Money Saving Mom. I was a little skeptical because I wasn't sure how biblical this random book I requested would be, but I loved the idea: a book of prayers that I can pray for my husband.

I was pleasantly surprised when I got the book and it had a lot of Godly recommendations by women like Mary Mohler, Lauren Chandler, and Joni Erickson Tada. Whew!

I LOVE this book, and I highly recommend it. The prayers show the author's great passion and love for the Lord Jesus and are so biblical! They look toward the character of God, the struggles my husband may have, the level of my sin, and of course, they point toward the cross. I have not even came close to finishing it as I'm trying to do one ore two prayers each day as part of my devotions, but I did want to recommend it! It is exciting as my husband embarks on this big journey to also start these daily prayers for him.

Another Crazy Morning

2010-08-06T07:59:00.000-04:00

New rule in the Lees household: Micaela is not allowed to go back to sleep without setting at least two alarms.

Yep, slept through my alarm again today. The consequences were even worse though because I had to open up at work for the cleaning crew at 7. What time did I wake up? 7:01. Yikes. I know the Lord is teaching me through moments like this, but it is a struggle for me since it is such a frantic start to the day.

I am really looking forward to this weekend. Tonight will be date night with my hubby, tomorrow Nick works at the community center, so I will be there with him while I work on the books for my client, and Sunday I'll be able to go grocery shopping and get things caught up.

Seminary Summary

2010-08-05T12:00:00.000-04:00

Molly gave a wonderful summary of what Nick's (and her husband Joel's) seminary program is all about here. I've been thinking I should probably provide some clarity, but Molly already did it :)

A few good dealz

2010-08-04T22:31:00.002-04:00

I don't know why I spell dealz with a 'z'. I guess I think I'm gangsta. I wanted to share two dealz that you might like:

Crocs: I am not a huge fan of some Crocs (not that my opinion on fashion holds any weight), but they have more recently come out with some really awesome styles. I bought two pairs of Crocs- one pair of sandals and one pair of ballet flats- for $21 today. Here is the information on this deal. I personally couldn't get the Aug2010 coupon code to work, but the other ones do and still make for a great deal!
JC Penny: You can get shoes for $.99 cents at JC Penny right now using a $10 of a purchase of $10 or more coupon. Here is the information on this deal. I couldn't find any shoes that I wanted, but they had some great shoes for kids available.

Recap of Colton's Visit

2010-08-04T22:28:00.006-04:00

We had a great time with my brother! He has grown up a lot and is no longer just the 'little brother.' He is an adult and my friend. I am so thankful that God has blessed me with two brothers that are so precious to me. (Colton and Aubrey, if you are reading this, I promise to stop being mushy now :) )

I wanted to write a recap of the weekend. I know I asked many people to be praying for our visit-- thank you so much for doing so!

Saturday: Colton arrived, and we went to Peru to shoot guns. My mother-in-law is amazing and provided us with a delicious dinner of ribs and potatoes. We had a wonderful time out there, and I think Colton really enjoyed shooting so many different guns.

Sunday: We went to church in the morning. Pastor Viars has been preaching amazing sermons about Christian liberties. I have loved learning from him about these areas of the Christian life. After church, my hubby gave Colt a fabulous tour of Purdue, and we went out to eat at Nine Irish Brothers. Yum!

Monday: Nick had his first day of work at Faith, and I had a full day of work since it is during 'close.' Colt enjoyed sleeping in until noon (I have no idea how anyone can sleep that late) and cuddling with the puppies while we were gone. He calls them rats, but secretly he loves them. We went frisbee golfing that night (see post below).

Tuesday: We both worked, but I got off at noon to spend some time with him and take him to the airport. I definitely shed some tears after he left (ah sorry, another mushy moment). I love my family, and it is difficult to be so far away from them and know I won't see them again for a long time. In this case, I'll see them again at Thanskgiving, so that is not too terribly far away.

Thank you, Colton, for a fabulous visit! We love you!

Nick's first two days

2010-08-04T12:30:00.000-04:00

Just a quick update since work is insane right now: Nick's first two days at Faith have gone great so far! He is having fun, and he is enjoying getting to know the guys better.

Frisbee Golf

2010-08-02T21:52:00.002-04:00

We played frisbee golf behind the community center tonight with Colton. We have loved having him. It is nice to build an adult friendship with my brother. I really recommend the frisbee golf course out there- it was gorgeous. The puppies loved it too. We were able to take them off their leashes, and they ran all over the place. My cell phone took surprisingly pretty pictures:

Good + Funny Video

2010-08-01T11:26:00.000-04:00

Be Sick, Be Loved from Foundry LA on Vimeo.

I really enjoyed listening to this video. Jonathan Acuff is not only hilarious, but he makes some very good points :)

Colt's Visit Thus Far

2010-07-31T20:40:00.000-04:00

COLTON COMES TODAY!

2010-07-31T08:30:00.001-04:00

Squeeeeeee! Off to pick the not-so-little bro up from the airport, shoot guns, and spend time with my fabulous in-laws.

Cake, a Clean House, and a Surprisingly Good Book

2010-07-30T08:25:00.000-04:00

Random blog title? I think so.

Cake: Nick and I were majorly craving chocolate Monday night, but some little piggy ate all the chocolate in the house while I was at work. As a result, we baked a cake at 9:30 at night so we can fix our chocolate craving. It was delightful. It turned out perfectly moist, and we wanted to eat it right away, so I spread icing all over it. I spread icing all over a hot cake. This resulted in a mound of icing and cake. It is delicious. Surprising, we have had pretty good self control, and the majority of the cake still remains. Moo.

Clean House: My hubby is a stay-at-home puppy daddy this week. He is very clean guy, and as a result, my house is immaculate. Also, the master bathroom is almost finally done, and the guest bathroom is getting tiled as I type.

A Surprisingly Good Book: I just spent the last hour or so reading What in the World is Going On?: 10 Prophetic Clues You Cannot Afford to Ignore. I was pretty skeptical over this book, but thus far, it has been amazing! God is amazing, and how he has fulfilled prophesy throughout time is amazing. Thus far, I recommend chapter one of the book. Hopefully I won't give you a play by play update as I read the entire book, but I was just so excited that I'm actually liking the book that I had to share

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Wordless

2010-07-29T14:16:00.003-04:00

Morning fail

2010-07-29T08:22:00.006-04:00

I totally slept right through my alarm and didn't wake up until Lauren texted me at 6:37 to ask if I was okay. Fail!

I whole-heartedly intended to be there this morning, but something happened last night that woke me up from 3:30-4:00 AM. I guess my body really didn't want to budge when the alarm went off because I do not remember it going off at all. I'm sorry, Lauren!

This story does become somewhat humorous, though:

I woke up freaking out and went to call Lauren to apologize. Well, I called the wrong Lauren. I was so out of it. She seemed totally confused and I hung up not knowing what happened. Then she texted me "Are you okay?" (That was the 2nd "Are you okay" I got within 5 minutes of waking up) to which I apologized profusely to my other friend Lauren. Jeesh! I changed it so Lauren E. has her last name first in case I ever need to call Lauren J early in the morning again. I am so not awake until about 30 minutes after waking up.
The plan was for me to get ready at the community center. Obviously, I couldn't since I woke up at 6:40 and was still at home. The problem? I couldn't shower since we just tiled the guest bathroom and our master bathroom shower has a ton of tools in it because we were installing our new medicine cabinet/ mirror last night. Also, I had to get ready in the dark because we are changing the lights with bathroom redo and had to flip the breaker to both the bathrooms. I got to work not knowing what I would look like. Thankfully, I didn't look like a clown, but my hair definitely needed some fixing.

I am thankful this morning for patient friends and a hubby with a good sense of humor! I do not recommend getting too close today, though, as the only cleaning I got was from the sink. :)

Coupon Dealz

2010-07-28T13:26:00.004-04:00

I got some amazing coupon deals at Meijer this week. This blog post shows all the good deals. It is worth noting that a lot of the coupons are actually printable coupons this week, so if you are not a normal Sunday paper coupon clipper, you can still get some great deals.

Here are some of my favorites that I got:

Totino's Pizza Rolls: 50 cents with coupon
Suddenly Salad: 50 cents with coupon
Rotel Tomatos: 67 cents with coupon
Coffeemate flavored creamer: 25 cents with coupon
Angel bath tissue: FREE with coupon
Aunt Millie's buns: 45 cents with coupon

You'll see a ton of good deals at that site (and some that are probably better than my favorites I got), so I recommend you check it out. I spent $50 (more than my budget, but I bought a ton of Ziploc bags so I can freeze corn and some other food), and I saved $46.

CVS also has some free stuff this week too, but their deals aren't quite as good as they normally are (although, they do have two bars of Dove soap for $1 after ECBS and BioTrue contact solution free after ECBs).

Also- if you go here, you can win free stuff at Pay Less/ Kroger.

And... there is a TON of free stuff at Target here: http://moneysavingmom.com/2010/07/hot-target-free-chef-boyardee-aquafresh-for-0-12-bagel-bites-for-0-24-kid-cuisine-for-0-25-more.html

I believe these deals end Saturday in Lafayette.

New Book to Review

2010-07-28T07:48:00.001-04:00

My new BookSneeze book came from Thomas Nelson last night. Admittedly, I am a little skeptical of it, but I find myself really excited to read it. If nothing else, it looks like a book that really helps you understand more of what is going on in the world.

I will update as soon as I finish it :)

PS. Words cannot express how much I love coffee right now. Yummm. :)

Not Exactly Once a Month Cooking...

2010-07-27T09:26:00.000-04:00

I think I mentioned it before, but Janet and I recently discussed how to do a better job taking care of my house/ getting food together with how busy Nick and I are. She gave me Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites: More Great Recipes That Save You Time and Money from the Inventors of the Ultimate Do-Ahead Dinnertime Method to look at. It is a pretty neat looking book as it gives you tips about the preparation and freezing of food, and it provides different meal plans you can follow. There are two two-week plans (one is low-fat) and two one-month plans that you can follow. If you follow the plan of the book exactly, you get a shopping list and meal preparation plan to follow. Then, you go grocery shopping one day and prepare all the food for the two weeks or month the next day or two.

I really liked learning about it, and the plan seems great- except I have two problems to work through: 1) We don't really like some of the foods on the menu plan (ex: split-pea soup) and 2) some of the foods aren't exactly 'coupon friendly' (although, the book does claim that it will reduce your grocery bill as it will eliminate wasted food- which is a very good thing).

I felt excited by the plan from the book, but a little unsure as to how to make it work for us. My solution: make all the meals for this week Sunday night. It went great! It was nice to have an hour or two of concentrated cooking, make stuff we really like, and to know that I don't really have to worry about anything other than putting it into the oven on the day I was supposed to cook it.

Our Entrée Menu:

Monday- Deer Tenderloin (I prepped it by defrosting it into Italian salad dressing. I am sure some of you just got really grossed out.)
Tuesday- Pasta Shells (I prepared the shells, they just need to be popped into the oven after work for 30 minutes- Thanks, Bethany for the recipe! I still make it.)
Wednesday- Orange Chicken (I actually made this, I just need to make the rice on Wednesday and heat it up)
Thursday- Leftovers- I have a meeting after work with a client
Friday- Date night
Saturday- Dinner in Peru with Cindy

I'm sure some weeks will have more meals prepared, but I hope that I can continue doing this- It relieves a lot of stress going into a busy week.

I'll let you know how it goes!

Workout Week #2

2010-07-26T13:26:00.000-04:00

I am loving working out with Lauren in the mornings. We are on week two, and I am hoping we will continue to be faithful! It was so motivating to go work out with a friend and talk while getting your butt kicked. My only problem is that I'm using our working out as an excuse to eat like a pig. I won't even share everything I ate while down South this weekend... it is a scary list.

Thank you, Lauren, for being such a fun work-out friend. I have really been enjoying getting to know you through it!

Holiday World!

2010-07-26T13:10:00.001-04:00

Nick and I took our mini-vacation this weekend- Praise the Lord! Our original plan was to go to the Dunes and camp Friday and Saturday nights, lay out on the beach Saturday, and then shoot over to Chicago for the day. When I looked at the weather Friday morning, it became clear that we had to change plans quickly! The weatherman called for thunderstorms from 3 PM Friday to 8 PM Saturday- definitely not good weather for camping and laying on the beach.

After asking friends about ideas of what to do, we decided to go down to Santa Claus, Indiana (yes, that is really a town) to spend the weekend camping at Lincoln State Park and riding the rides at Holiday World. It was a blast! We arrived around 8 o clock Friday night (it was a 4 hour drive), roasted marshmallows (after a forever long effort to make a fire), ate s'mores (of which I am still eating thanks to my microwave), and spent Friday night in the 82 degree, 79% humidity outdoors. It was hot (82 degrees was what it had cooled down to at 11 PM), but really beautiful and fun. Nick brought the aerobed (we were really roughin' it...) and passed out by 10:30 Santa Claus time/ 11:30 Lafayette time. I laid in bed for a while listening to praise music and looking at the gorgeous sky. It was amazing. I also laid there texting Aubrey to ask what the weather was in Santa Claus as I felt like I was laying in a hot tub. He responded "82 degrees, 79% humidity- there is no way that is a real city."

We woke up early Saturday (which was not hard to do thanks to the time difference- yea CST!) and went to Holiday World. Holiday World is just like Busch Gardens, except the theme isn't Europe, but holidays, and the drinks don't cost $2.50 a piece, but are all free. My favorite part really might have been the free drinks and sunscreen- its the small things that matter. We even got to bring our puppies since they had an indoor kennel for just $10 for the whole day. Nick and I only went on one ride since it was the busiest day of the summer, but we also enjoyed time in the wave pool, the lazy river, and we enjoyed eating lots of fun (pizza and ice cream = so healthy, right?). We only stayed from 9:30-3:00 because it was so hot outside, and I didn't think I would make it much longer if we didn't get into the air conditioning.

A few take aways from the trip:

My hubby rocks, and I love him a lot
Camping is an awesome alternative to a hotel- it only cost us $18 with the parking fee to stay the night versus over a hundred for a hotel that the puppies couldn't even join us in
It is somewhat creepy to see Santa Claus (the fat man in a suit, not the town) in July

And... He's Done!

2010-07-22T13:00:00.000-04:00

Nick is now done with work! Wow. I cannot believe it. He also got his schedule for the first few weeks of seminary. He starts August 2.

Colton is coming to visit!

2010-07-22T08:18:00.000-04:00

I just found out that my not-so-little brother, Colton is coming to visit Nick and I July 31- August 3. Words cannot express how excited I am! Colton has never been to the Midwest before, so I'm sure that will be eye opening to him. I remember when I drove through Indiana on my way to Iowa for the first time 4 years ago I thought: 1) Where are all the trees? 2) Why so flat? and 3) I have never seen so much corn before.

Colt just graduated high school and will be going to Clemson for engineering in the fall. He is pretty awesome :)

Encouraged and Convicted

2010-07-21T12:54:00.000-04:00

I was reading Luke 5 on my lunch break as part of my daily and walked away so encouraged and convicted. I have been in a season of life where I am learning a lot. I am so thankful for this, but the lessons frequently come the hard way. I was convicted as I read about loving your enemies as I have had some situations with people I know lately where I was an all on fight to love them not just in action but in spirit. I was also really encouraged as I read the sermon the mount- in particular, I was encouraged by verses 20-21.

"Looking at his disciples, he said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. (NIV)"

As I was reading it, I looked down at the notes in my study bible and the commentary shared that poor here refers to those who are broken and poor and needy in spirit- realizing their spiritual condition. I was encouraged to see this as I was just reading the Gospel Primer (best book ever- seriously), and it talked about how the gospel should spur us on to love the poor. It basically shared that although I might not be physically poor, I know how spiritually poor I once was and can show compassion to love to those who are poor physically. I can also use that to point them toward the truth of the gospel.

Then, I read verse 21 and realized that when it talks about those who hunger now, it probably isn't just talking about those who are physically hungry (although I'm sure it does because they will not hunger anymore if they know Jesus as savior). I am one who hungers now. I find myself desiring deeper and deeper intimacy with God that cannot be fully quenched- and won't be fully quenched- this side of heaven. Even when I am going down a foolish path toward sin, I find myself desiring the rest, peace, and joy that comes through the Lord alone. I am sure all believers experience this feeling. In Psalm 42:1-2, David said "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?"

I walked away so encouraged because of the next words after talking about those who hunger now, "for you will be satisfied." Wow! Can you even imaged how satisfied and full we are going to be in heaven? That is amazing.

Hopefully I didn't just totally misinterpret scripture (I fully recognize that I could have), but I am pretty sure that I did not, and I hope this post encourages you!

A little tired... :)

2010-07-21T08:26:00.001-04:00

So I am loving these morning work outs, but my body is adjusting slowly to waking up so early. This morning, I walked into work and dumped the entire bag of coffee into the coffee filter. Uh... oops. That would have been some strong coffee!

Workout = Success

2010-07-20T15:00:00.000-04:00

Lauren and I got our butts out of bed early this morning and met each other at the gym at 6 AM. Day 1 = Success!

We are going to try to do this every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We can work out on our own/after work or just be lazy (more likely for me) the other days if we would like, but we are committed to being their Tuesday through Thursday.

This morning went really well, and I feel energized :) Woohoo!

Hilarious Blog

2010-07-20T13:47:00.001-04:00

I recently discovered Catalog Living, and it has me cracking up. The basic premise of the blog is that people in magazine pictures frequently have totally ridiculous things in it that we overlook.

Here are some examples from the blog:

Nick has only...

2010-07-19T13:25:00.001-04:00

... 16 hours left of work before he gets 1.5 weeks off and then becomes a staff member at Faith! Yeaa!

We are going to the Dunes this weekend to get away before school starts! Woohoooo! Nick went every year for a while with his friends from Peru. We actually went there over 4 years ago now when we first started dating with a bunch of his friends. Here we are on that trip:

My how we have changed.

Here are the books for his Systematic Theology class:

Are Miraculous Gifts for Today?
Angels: Elect and Evil
Jesus Christ Our Lord
Inerrancy
Christian Theology

Time Flies

2010-07-19T13:16:00.000-04:00

When I was in school, I used to think that I would have so much more time when I graduated. What a lie! Sure, there isn't studying and homework, but I completely underestimated the value of have free time when no one was home or when businesses were open or when you weren't completely exhausted. I had every friday off when in grad school-- amazing!

Right now I work from 8-5 with a 20-25 min commute each day. During busy weeks, I'll work until 5:30 and during weeks where I have physical therapy (most weeks right now), I'll work until 5:30-6 a few days so that I can do flex time and not use up my precious PTO.

I got together with Janet on Friday to ask how on earth someone that is so busy can keep up with the house and dinner and sleep and work out... because all these things have been suffering. Nick is great at keeping things clean, but he is going to become more and more busy with school. One suggestion she had is to do Once a Month Cooking. I think I might try it. Basically, you prepare all your meals for an entire month on one Saturday and then freeze and cook as needed. I love the idea, but I'm not sure I'm disciplined enough to follow it every month.

I am going to give it a try- either July 31 or August 7, so I'll update you and fill you in on how it goes. I'm excited and think it would be great to not be driving home thinking about how I'm going to prepare a decent meal within a 1/2 hour of getting home (we are usually very hungry and you can only eat so many sandwiches, soup, and hamburger helper)

I've read some books like Shopping for Time: How to Do It All and NOT Be Overwhelmed, but I am so not the type of person that gets motivated by lists and good things to do. I really do, however, need to get better at this area!

Another thing I'm going to do is attempt to work out in the mornings. This usually lasts about 2 occurrences before I decide that it is miserable and that sleep is more important. Then, I go about a week without any working out, eat too much one night and think "I really need to work out" and start the cycle over again. Not good. I'm excited to attempt working out in the AM with my friend Lauren :) It will be fun!

Any tips on how you get things done and still sleep? I know the biggest thing for me is I need to just not be so dang lazy.

Same Kind of Different as Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore

2010-07-17T13:01:00.000-04:00

Summary: Same Kind of Different As Me is a true story told by both Ron Hall and Denver Moore, who are the main characters of the book. Denver grew up on a plantation as part of the sharecropping system in Louisiana back in the 1950s and 60s. Ron was a succssful art dealer living in a upper class world. The book is the story of how their lives intersect when God speaks very clearly to Ron's wife, Debbie, about their calling at the Union Gospel Mission (a homeless shelter). It really is the story about a woman and two men changing each others lives and the city around them.

My reaction: I have definitely found my new favorite book. I was drawn into this book emotionally laughing, crying hard, and marveling at how God changed these men's lives and conformed them more into his likeness. It is definitely worth mentioning that I sobbed through the middle section of this book. It is definitely not a book that will leave you feeling disengaged. As a middle class American, my eyes were opened wide to the world that the homeless men and women live in every day and the huge need there is for the people of God to have compassion on those who are hurting. After finishing this book, I definitely felt a new desire to be there for those in need- to befriend them and listen, not to try to fix them.

The book is cleverly written as the chapters rotate between being written by both Ron and Denver. It is fascinating to see how each of them viewed a situation so differently and how they were growing and changing through them.

I highly recommend this book. I know my mother-in-law has read it twice now, and I might have to do the same thing :)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

BookSneeze

2010-07-17T12:41:00.000-04:00

My friend Shannon recently told me about a wonderful site through Thomas Nelson that allows bloggers like me that love to read the opportunity to review books for free. They get free advertising, I get free books. I like that deal. If you love to read and to blog, head over here and check out their wonderful program.

I don't think that the structure of my blog will change too much with the addition of these book reviews as I already include them in it, but I expect that my blog will focus on these areas:

Life as a married person, and what comes our way. I want the blog to still be a good way to keep in touch with our NC friends and family.
Life as a seminary wife- I know it will be an exciting adventure
Book reviews
Couponing information
Home updates
Miscellaneous things God is teaching me

I've struggled for a long time to figure out exactly what to blog about since I have so many things to say, but I am not sure anyone actually cares about much of it. I thought I'd share what I'm going for and hopefully it will be interesting :)

Internet Hiatus is Over + Exciting Change

2010-07-17T12:34:00.000-04:00

It is obviously not Sunday, but I am at my in-laws in Peru today, and I thought I would get back into the swing of things a day early. I love visiting my in-laws. They live in a 28 year old house on 28 acres that they built with their own hands over several years. It is a wonderful, peaceful place to come. I also love spending time with them, so that is a huge plus :) I have been so blessed to have a great relationship with them.

Nick and I have a lot of newish things going on in our life. I am not sure if anyone even reads my blog anymore, but in case they do, here is the down low on our exciting new change:

Nick's last day of work is Thursday. Starting August 1, he will be on staff at Faith Baptist Church as a pastoral intern. He will be starting classes at Faith Bible Seminary on August 16. His first class is Systematic Theology 1. Nick plans to write a letter to friends and family informing them as a reason for the change, but we are very excited about it. Essentially, Nick has felt God's call on his life since he was a teenager to enter into the full-time ministry. His desire is to share the hope he is in the Lord with others on a full time basis and to teach them to be more faithful disciples. I am sure his letter will provide a lot more information, but we are pumped! Faith's seminary model is intensely biblical, and for that, we are thrilled. The seminary requires each student to be an intern at a church, which will support their intern for the three years of schooling, and give them practical experience. A requirement is that all students graduate debt free and well equipped to serve the Lord wherever they go. Nick and I would so appreciate your prayers as we enter into this exciting journey in life. Please pray for Nick that he will be a great student of God's word and will grow closer to the Lord in his journey. Please also pray that God will be making our path after seminary clear to us as we have no idea where we are going to go or what we are going to do (there have been talks of missions, counseling, college ministry, but really- who knows? seminary may change his desire here a lot). Pray also for me that I will be supportive and learn more about what it means to *help* my husband as he enters this very busy season of life (20 + hrs of schoolwork per week, 20 hrs of intern work per week, 8 hours of community center work per week). Also, pray that we will be wise stewards of our finances as our income is going to go down quite a bit.

Also, I thought I would share that my sling is OFF. I am doing physical therapy pretty intensely right now, and it is going well. I think physical therapy was invited by someone very mean to torture poor sweet people like me. Obviously, I'm just kidding.

Four Days!

2010-07-12T12:59:00.001-04:00

We get our internet back on Friday! I will resume blogging then! I have some fun things to share :)

Neat Video

2010-06-28T15:25:00.000-04:00

I really like this guy...

(He is an MIT graduate)

My blogging will resume in full force once our internet hiatus is over in August :)

Ecclesiastes 7:21-22

2010-06-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

"Do not pay attention to every word people say,
or you may hear your servants cursing you
for you know that in your heart
that many times you yourself have cursed others."

Thank you, Christen, for that wonderful dose of truth last night. You are a great friend :)

A Few House Updates

2010-06-14T14:55:00.000-04:00

So I mentioned that I don't have internet, right? Yea.. It is going to be a slow blogging summer. I might try to link my cell phone to blogger, but then I have to send text messages to update, and there will never be a post more than 160 characters (that sounds like Twitter...).

We've been working hard on the house. I do not have a 'good' picture of anything to show yet (just off my cell phone), but since it does look so nice and different, I wanted to share even the bad pictures. Better pictures will come...

We painted our bathroom ORANGE. I love it. I really love orange, though. I also love my new shower curtain.

New Bedding... (looks gorgeous in person, has a tealish blue pillow on the bed). It was a birthday present.

New chair (birthday present)

New lamp (also a birthday present):

Another Funny Gus Video

2010-06-04T09:14:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but we also don't have internet at home. We get too distracted by it :( We'll get it back in August, but for now, my only updates will be on my lunch breaks. Here is an hilarious video of Gus. He really doesn't like Kung Foo Hampster. Click here.

Things I love

2010-05-26T21:08:00.000-04:00

I love a lot of things. Mainly though, I love Jesus, Nick, my family, and my puppies. This week, I have grown in my love for other things. Since typing hurts even though I really want to blog, I thought I'd make it short to reflect some of the things that my eyes have been opened to since my surgery:

I love my criocuff. I have no idea if I just spelled that right... but it is basically a cuff that goes on my shoulder that has ice cold water pumped into it at all times! LOVE it!

I love my husband even more. He is an amazing caretaker and a wonderful husband. I love him more now than I did a week ago

Walks. I have gone on a ton of walks as it is my only form of exercise.

Thank you Lord for these things!

Surgery

2010-05-25T09:49:00.000-04:00

I haven't been updating because I had my surgery. It went very well. They tightened the ligaments in the front of my shoulder and created mini fractures throughout the bone in order to help my cartilage. It turns out that my cartilage is 'not good' (bad news meaning I will probably have issues as I age), but thankfully he did some things that will ease the pain from the lack of cartilage (bone on bone) and he put the shoulder back in the joint (apparently it just rested out of place). Thank you Lord for a good doctor!

Typing still doesn't feel the greatest, but here is a groggy-few-hours-out-of-surgery picture of me:

Gus, What type of dog are you?

2010-05-14T08:07:00.000-04:00

Gus loves the word 'Yorkie.' He goes crazy when we ask him if he wants to see the yorkie neighbors, and we had fun with it last night. I hope you can see this. <-- click to view

Happy May 13!

2010-05-13T12:59:00.000-04:00

There is actually no significance of May 13 to me, but I didn't know what else to title this post :) I could write "it has been almost 2 weeks since my last post", but I share that I'm a bad blogger in just about every other post :) I am excited to be writing, though.

So my surgery is in exactly a week! The bad news is that I'll be cut open, and it will hurt. The good news is that the good news far outweighs the bad news. What is the good news? Well, my mom comes in six days, my shoulder might actually get fixed, and I get a few days off work to read and relax. Really, I am super excited to see my mom and super super excited for my shoulder to work again. Yesterday I walked on the treadmill for ten minutes and had to get off because I couldn't take the pain anymore. As Shannon and Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist pointed out to me, God always does what will bring him the most glory. My shoulder problems are part of God's purpose in glorifying Himself.

In other news, I am reading (another) really good book. I'm not finished with Desiring God yet, but I am reading Helper by Design: God's Perfect Plan for Women in Marriage by Elise Fitzpatrick for a bible study the newly wed college sponsors are doing with Janet. It is amazing! This is the most grace filled and Christ-centered book on a woman's role I have ever read. It is softening my heart and helping me to understand more what it means to be a helper. Although I 'knew' it before, being a helper is a really good thing. I highly recommend the book. I am also super excited for our first study tonight with Janet on the book. I am so grateful to be part of a church that has such wonderful women in it like Janet!

Kelli and Corbit recommended this website for budgeting. It is amazing, and you must check it out. It tracks your portfolio, allows you to set a budget, assigns expenses to categories, and provides you with feedback with how you are doing with your budget. It is absolutely amazing. I wanted to share because you should definitely check it out.

Also, my birthday is coming up on June 3-- I'll be 24. The only reason I share this is because I think Nick is going to buy me the duvet that I have been blogging about for far too long. Speaking of Nick- he is amazing. I love him a lot.

Some other things that are going on include:

Work is going well. I have made some errors lately that have been humbling, but I am very grateful for the role I am in and the wonderful work relationships I have developed. I really enjoy what I do.

We got to go see Cindy and Rachel run the mini last weekend! It was AMAZING! Cindy ran it in 2 hours, 9 min and 47 seconds. Her goal was 2 hrs 10 min. We are so proud of her. Also, I am a clutz. I managed to fall in a hole and sprain my ankle pretty good while watching the mini. I hobbled around for the rest of the day and ended up with a black and blue, swollen ankle. It was real cute. I've included a bunch of pictures below

We made a 'schedule' for the summer of the home improvement plans. Gahhh so excited! The two big projects are tiling where we have laminate and tiling our shower. It will be hard work, but I can't wait!

Here are some recent pictures!

The lunch break is over, so I'm out!

Desiring God

2010-05-01T21:09:00.000-04:00

I'm reading Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist right now by John Piper (err... I read multiple books at once- ADD?). It is amazing, and it is totally want I need to read right now in light of some thing the Lord is opening my eyes to. I want to recommend this book to everyone who desires to grow in a deep, intimate, satisfied relationship with the Lord. We are far too easily pleased and sometimes settle for a superficial, rule based, small view of our God.

I also want to share a quote that was such a blessing to me as I struggle to explain to those around me what it means to believe in the Lord Jesus.

"... I mean that no one is a Christian that does not embrace Jesus gladly as his most valued treasure, and then pursue that fullness of that joy in Christ that honors Him.

Someone may ask, "If your aim is conversion, why don't you just use the straightforward, biblical command 'Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved' (Acts 16:31)? Why bring in this new terminology of Christian Hedonism?

My answer has two parts. First, we are surrounded by unconverted people who think they do believe in Jesus. Drunks on the street say they believe Unmarried couples sleeping together say they believe Elderly people who haven't sought worship or fellowship for forty years say they believe. All kinds of lukewarm, world-loving church attenders say they believe. The world abounds with millions of uncoverted people who say they believe in Jesus.

It does no good to tell these people to believe in the Lord Jesus. The phrase is empty. My responsibilty as a preacher of the gospel and a teacher in the church is not to preserve and repeat cherished biblical sentences, but to pierce the heart with biblical truth In my neighborhood, every drunk on the street "believes" in Jesus. Drug dealers "believe" in Jesus. Pandhandlers who haven't been to church in forty years "believe" in Jesus. So I use different words to unpack what believe means. In recent years I have asked, "Do you receive Jesus as your Treasure?" Not just Savior (everybody wants out of hell, but not to be with Jesus). Not just Lord (they might submit begrudgingly). The key is: Do you treasure Him more than everything? Converts to Christian Hedonism say with Paul, "I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord" (Philippians 3:8)..."

Wow. How convicting and refreshing! I just really wanted to recommend the book.

Now... back to painting trim while hoping my shoulder doesn't explode.

Okay... It isn't going to explode. It just hurts really bad, but the gorgeousness of white trim is worth it. Plus, it will be fixed in less than 3 weeks now.We are currently working on the master bedroom. The finished product will be quite wonderful with this bedding, a 'photo wall' with two rows of three landscape sized photos matted & framed, our furniture, white curtains, sandstone cove paint, and hopefully some fun plants. I am still waiting on some free shipping on the bedding at West Elm!

Okay for real- going to go paint

Shoulder Update (Again)

2010-04-30T18:15:00.000-04:00

I had my appointment with Dr. Misamore today. I'm having surgery on May 20th.

The surgery has a 'most likely path' and a 'maybe path.' Basically- we hope he can go in, snip my Bicep tendon and clean up the cartilage and then strengthen through physical therapy afterwards to stop the instability. This would mean a small sling and shorter recovery. Very good things. However, they might get in there and realize the tendon and cartilage aren't so bad and that they do need to fix the ligaments, then it will be a much bigger surgery. Recover will be 6 months to a year and the sling will be quite large. Please pray that it is the first. Also, please pray for me as I go under anesthesia because that really freaks me out.

I am actually really excited though! Hopefully I'll be able to do normal things after this :)

Picture updates

2010-04-28T22:10:00.000-04:00

Here are some updates in pictures...

The house is coming along nicely. I am still wanting to buy shelves (2-3 white ones) to put over the couch-- we just haven't made it to Lowes yet to put them up- hence the very bare looking wall over the couch

I failed at pictures of Josh and Shana's wedding- I only got a few and they are all pretty much just of the church and the backs of people's heads. Their wedding was only 1.5 hrs (wedding + ceremony), so that is my excuse for the picture slacking.

I did get some of Molly's bridal shower! Molly and Joel get married in about a month :) Yayyy!

I love my puppies still lots and lots- they are adorable

My baby brother (who is not so little anymore) went to prom this weekend. He is going to Clemson in the fall. I am so excited for him, and I miss him (and the rest of my family) a lot. I haven't seen them since Christmas. The girl in the pictures is his girlfriend Emily (these pictures are obviously stolen off Facebook as I am over 700 miles away from them). The gorgeous lady in the pink is my momma and the dude in the polo is my dad. The car is not Colton's- although I am sure he wishes it was:

Fabulous Quote

2010-04-28T21:52:00.000-04:00

I am reading The Knowledge of the Holy by AW Tozer (very slowly- that dude is smart) right now. He opens each chapter up with a prayer- I thought I'd share the one from today on God's immutability. You can see his love and passion for the Lord. Just reading this prayer warmed my heart toward Jesus:

"O Christ our Lord, Though hast been our dwelling place in all generations. As conies to their rock, so we have run to Thee for safety; as birds from their wanderings, so have we flown to Thee for peace. Chance and change sare busy in our little world of nature and men, but in Thee we find no variableness nor shadow of turning. We rest in Thee without fear or doubt and face our tomorrows without anxiety. Amen."

Shoulder Update

2010-04-28T10:50:00.000-04:00

I feel the need to tell someone about the shoulder because I'm slightly freaked out. I thought I'd tell my blog :)

I got my MRI results back today, and they found the beginning stages of arthritis, bone spurs, a past history of dislocation (I think that means scarring caused by it), and an unstable bicep tendon that is not lining up right. They said we could try physical therapy or have an arthorscopy. The therapy wouldn't fix the bone spurs or the tendon, so we will most likely be going with the surgical option.

I am very grateful that this MRI told the doctor what is going on... I'm just trying to wrap my head around surgery. I want the best long term option :) God has blessed me with a great doctor, so I feel confident in doing what he recommends. I'll be going to see him on Friday.

I have some pics I want to post of the Greiner wedding and of Molly's shower and of the house- hopefully I'll do that soon!

Revelation 2

2010-04-26T13:36:00.001-04:00

I have heard messages related to these verses and at random lately. I think God is trying to tell me something...

"I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first."

Awesome

2010-04-26T12:21:00.001-04:00

This is awesome

See more funny videos and Funny Videos at Today's Big Thing.

Struggling with blogging

2010-04-22T14:07:00.000-04:00

My life is pretty ordinary. Each day is a blessing and wonderful, but really quite ordinary. When I was in school, I remember something new and different would happen each week that I would be looking forward to. Now, each week is very similar- there is always something new or out of the ordinary- and each week is always a blessing- but we generally do the same thing each week. I do not say this to minimize any of the Lord's blessings because I love the place he has brought us in life. I just share this to say that sometimes I struggle to figure out what to blog about. I don't want blog posts to be all about what I did each day as I imagine that wouldn't be very interesting or edifying to others. I also don't want them to be all about decorating, the house, or material things because then I feel like I'm telling people that things that are unimportant and are going to burn one day are important. I also don't want to write all about spiritual things all the time and act like I am super godly or super smart because I fall way short. I do try to share the things God is teaching me, but I know that this is the internet and public and that it might not always be appropriate to share those things (for example: I do not think Nick would love it if I shared all (or really very many of them unless they are addressing my heart in it)of our 'sanctifying moments' in marriage on the blog.) I know my goal in blogging should not be to please others-- but I do think it should to be build others up and glorify God.

Anyways- I guess I'm just saying that I haven't been blogging as much because I'm trying to figure out how to be blogging. I'm also just super busy this time of the year with work, conferences, weddings, date nights, doggie cuddling time, working on the house, enjoying the weather, interviewing (I'll share), bible study, taxes (done! finally!), my client (finally opening soon!), and my shoulder. God is good and has provided abundantly lately.

Here is the DL on some of the things I just mentioned in the paragraph above:

Work is great. I really love my job. I am now 'Financial Analyst II.' I love that my job has good hours, a ton of variety and fun, and really great people to work with. This might make you think: Why were you interviewing then? Well, about a month ago, Caterpillar emailed me and asked me to apply for an accounting position with them in their Lafayette office. My initial reaction was a sinful freak out, but I later submitted to Nick's wishes and applied for the job. I received an interview, and as I prayed about the whole situation, I felt a lot of peace in God's plan and provision. I didn't know what the plan was, but knew he was working through my situation. I also knew that God had really blessed my work and relationships at my current job. As it turns out- after a lot of prayer, conversations with my bosses, and interviewing, I didn't even get the job. It was humbling, but I am so grateful. My main prayer during that time was that the Lord would give them wisdom to select the right people and that He would make the decision easy. I guess the fact that I didn't get the job wasn't a surprise either- I told them in the interview that I couldn't relocate, I am not sure what is going to be going on after seminary, and that I enjoy my current job. I said them in good ways, but hey- I was honest.

We went to Mexican at our favorite Mexican restaurant (it is where Little Mexico 2 used to be- you have to get their chicken quesedila) and rented The Blind Side yesterday. It is definitely my new favorite movie. I liked it even more after watching this video and this video with the real Michael Oher

I am going to the Because He Loves Me conference at Faith this weekend. Last weekend was Shana and Josh's wedding (yay) and Molly and Joel are getting married in a month :) Yea!

I have an MRI friday where they put a needle through my shoulder and inject ink. Please pray for me. I am claustrophobic and freaked out by the whole needle thing. It will be a sanctifying experience.

As a weight update- I was 11 lbs over my goal weight. I think I have lost 2 lbs :)

We have been getting a ton of work done on the house! The office is FINALLY unpacked (mostly), pictures (or frames that need pictures in them) are hung on the wall, flowers are blooming, and we are figuring out this whole mowing the lawn business. Also, I found an affordable and wonderful duvet for our bed:

It is only $59 at West Elm + $32 for the shams. I am just waiting on a sale or free shipping event, and I am purchasing them. I love the color and the geometric pattern. Goodbye blue and brown striped duvet :) I will try to post some pictures of the house as time allows.

Have a wonderful weekend! We are going to be busy :)

I'm lovin it

2010-04-14T18:40:00.000-04:00

This weather rocks.

Okay, back to soaking up the sun as I make my taxes legible (yes... I am an accountant finishing my personal taxes the day before they are due :)... They've actually be calculated for a while, just not input.