This is the last post for the blog a day thing that I wanted to do, and today's blog is gonna be kinda serious. It's about me and it's about the wedding, and how I feel w/ it getting closer every single day. I'm going to be completely honest, so if you're a bride to be and you're on a budget, then you're soon going to recognize w/ a lot of these emotions.
I am happy that I am going to marry Chris in 5 weeks and 6 days. I'm ecstatic. I'm also scared out of my head. I am completely freaking out. There is so much that needs to be taken care of that's not even happening on the wedding day. We still have no idea where we're going to be. My whole life I've known exactly what's going to happen to me (for the most part) and where I'm going to be. That's not the story come May.
I am going to start having to find time to go through all of my stuff and start donating and throwing away a bunch of stuff. It scares me. I've always had my stuff! I have tons of stuffed animals, and I went ahead and gave 2 of them away tonight to Olivia, my other flower girl. It didn't hurt to give them away since I know she's going to take good care of them, but I still have so much more to go through.
We still have to pay some people for the wedding and get all of that out of the way, and we still have to order a few things. We're about 90% there to where we can get married and I not stress about certain details. I'm super excited because I know that we have such fantastic vendors and they all work wonderfully together, so our wedding is going to be everything I've ever dreamed of, but me being me, I'm still going to stress over something. Hopefully, I will be tipsy enough to not care though.
I will drink at my wedding, but I will not get drunk! Another thing I am scared of is that we don't have a coordinator. We never put that in the budget, and we've always been telling ourselves that we can do this. We can pull this together ourselves. I've told people about our wedding, and they've asked who's coordinating, and when I say we don't have one, their jaw just kinda hits the floor. Yeah. Thanks for the warm fuzzies guys. I'm pretty sure, about 95% sure that Chris and I can do this wedding w/out a coordinator since we're surrounded by such amazing friends and family.
I've also been stressing out about our vows. I have no problem telling Chris how much I love him and how much he means to me, but it's difficult to find the perfect wording to the vows and promises that I need and want to make to him. I think I have it, but I'm such a perfectionist at my writing, that I'm probably going to edit it a million or so times. I want to make sure that what I say to him is as perfect as he is to me.
This wedding and this engagement has been a true test of patience. Chris and I have been together for about 8.5yrs, and we've been engaged for nearly 5. I've had no choice but to be patient. We haven't had to money or a place to stay or anything until now. Chris will graduate and have a job or being going to grad school. We will have a means to support us. All this time that we've spent planning has lead up to this. It's going to happen, and it's going to happen soon. Chris has about 3 weeks left of classes and I only have a few weeks left watching Sean and Emily, and I'm going to make sure that these are the best next few weeks. I only hope that the weather is nice so that I can do this for them.
The wedding is in 41 days. I'm still not sure when I want to show up to start getting ready for the wedding. All I know is that the ceremony starts at 4 and Chris and I are leaving the wedding to go to our new home at 9. It can be in Nashville or it may be here in Madison. We're praying Nashville. I'm scared and freaking out, because I stress and worry and that's a part of who I am. I'm learning (slowly) to just lay it down and relax, but I'm also excited. I'm so excited that I can't stop counting down or telling Chris and everyone else how many days we have left. I'm so excited that whenever I get the chance I look at my dress, and keep thinking I'm getting married in this. I am so excited that I can't help but look at Chris multiple times during the day and say "I'm gonna marry you"
Thank you guys for reading this blog and listening up to me as I spill out my life and what's going on this past month. I may start up another blog and just post on it whenever. I don't think that it'll be every day, because doing every single day has been difficult. Yesterday's didn't come out til close to 12:30 this morning. I hope that you guys have enjoyed this :)
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Expectations on Moving
Chris and I will be moving. We aren't sure where though. We'll either be in Nashville or we'll still be here. We're hoping Nashville.
I have lived here in Madison my whole life. I have friends since before kindergarten. Whenever Chris and I drive down the road I can tell him what used to be what and what roads used to not exist. The Arby's on the corner of Hughes and 72 used to be a Wavajo gas station when I was little. When we first moved into our house off of Balch there used to be nothing between Wall Triana and the Wal-Mart on up on University close to Research Park, and Research Park wasn't even called that, it was called Rideout Rd. There is just so much that has changed, and I've witnessed it all, but I'm ready to move. I'm ready for a fresh start.
Don't get me wrong though. I love all the friends, family, and the memories that I have here, but it's time for some new friends and some new memories. It's scary to think of being in a whole new city not knowing the back roads and ins and outs of places and little shortcuts that shave a bit of time off of rush hour. I know just about every single street and neighborhood around the Madison area. If you're deep in a subdivision I'll google your address, but most of the time I know exactly where I'm going and exactly how I'm going to get there in the best way. If we move to Nashville then I will have to learn all of the shortcuts for Nashville and everything else.
The only thing about living in the Huntsville/Madison area for as long as I have is that there isn't much to do at all. We have the Space and Rocket Center, but when you're in elementary school they're gonna kill it for you quickly. You're gonna go at least once a year. As an adult I haven't heard of that many good bars that I would like to try, and I've heard the worst terror stories about Sammy T's and if you wanna get raped that's where you go. I know that there are all kinds of things for Chris and I to do in Nashville. There are tons of bars, and good local restaurants. There are a few amazing ones around here, but there aren't as many.
I'm scared though. If we move to Nashville we're gonna be 2hrs away from family. We're gonna be on our own, and I'm used to always being surrounded by family. I think it'll be fantastic for Chris and I as newly weds, but it's still a thought that makes me nervous. I can't wait to be in our own place and for us to decorate and all of that. I can't wait for Tora to have free range over a house and us not worrying about her terrorizing the other animals or getting into stuff she shouldn't.
We still aren't sure where we're going and it's driving us crazy. We want to start making concrete plans and getting stuff ready, but at the same time I'm hesitant. I'm gonna start having to go through a lot of my stuff and getting rid of it. Chris isn't going to want all of my stuffed animals on our bed, and he's not gonna want glow in the dark flowers on our ceiling. I know it's time to start getting rid of stuff, but it's sad and it's also kind of rejuvenating at the same time. It's sad to give up your childhood, but it's awesome to live your childhood dream of having the wedding of your dreams to the man of your dreams.
I have lived here in Madison my whole life. I have friends since before kindergarten. Whenever Chris and I drive down the road I can tell him what used to be what and what roads used to not exist. The Arby's on the corner of Hughes and 72 used to be a Wavajo gas station when I was little. When we first moved into our house off of Balch there used to be nothing between Wall Triana and the Wal-Mart on up on University close to Research Park, and Research Park wasn't even called that, it was called Rideout Rd. There is just so much that has changed, and I've witnessed it all, but I'm ready to move. I'm ready for a fresh start.
Don't get me wrong though. I love all the friends, family, and the memories that I have here, but it's time for some new friends and some new memories. It's scary to think of being in a whole new city not knowing the back roads and ins and outs of places and little shortcuts that shave a bit of time off of rush hour. I know just about every single street and neighborhood around the Madison area. If you're deep in a subdivision I'll google your address, but most of the time I know exactly where I'm going and exactly how I'm going to get there in the best way. If we move to Nashville then I will have to learn all of the shortcuts for Nashville and everything else.
The only thing about living in the Huntsville/Madison area for as long as I have is that there isn't much to do at all. We have the Space and Rocket Center, but when you're in elementary school they're gonna kill it for you quickly. You're gonna go at least once a year. As an adult I haven't heard of that many good bars that I would like to try, and I've heard the worst terror stories about Sammy T's and if you wanna get raped that's where you go. I know that there are all kinds of things for Chris and I to do in Nashville. There are tons of bars, and good local restaurants. There are a few amazing ones around here, but there aren't as many.
I'm scared though. If we move to Nashville we're gonna be 2hrs away from family. We're gonna be on our own, and I'm used to always being surrounded by family. I think it'll be fantastic for Chris and I as newly weds, but it's still a thought that makes me nervous. I can't wait to be in our own place and for us to decorate and all of that. I can't wait for Tora to have free range over a house and us not worrying about her terrorizing the other animals or getting into stuff she shouldn't.
We still aren't sure where we're going and it's driving us crazy. We want to start making concrete plans and getting stuff ready, but at the same time I'm hesitant. I'm gonna start having to go through a lot of my stuff and getting rid of it. Chris isn't going to want all of my stuffed animals on our bed, and he's not gonna want glow in the dark flowers on our ceiling. I know it's time to start getting rid of stuff, but it's sad and it's also kind of rejuvenating at the same time. It's sad to give up your childhood, but it's awesome to live your childhood dream of having the wedding of your dreams to the man of your dreams.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Annoying
I may have mentioned this a few times through out the month, but I was annoying when I was little. This post and the last two this weekend are going to be me being completely honest about some feelings that I've been struggling w/.
I had a very high pitched voice when I was little, and I didn't know volume control. I was super loud a lot of the time. I also had a problem w/ not shutting up. I wanted and had to be the center of attention all of the time. I also did guy stuff that a lot of girls didn't like. I hung out w/ "nerds" and so they didn't hang out w/ me because of that.
I was a terrible sister to my younger brother. I drove him crazy. I would make him play dress up and Barbie w/ me. We had a terrible fight when we were still in high school, and I'm honestly surprised my brother and I still talk. I was a jerk of a sister. Once Phillip moved out we got closer, but Phillip didn't move that far. Josh is across the country, so it's hard to be close to him when he's so far away, but he'll be where in about 4 weeks :)
I was always so annoying when I was younger. I've done my best to not be that way anymore. I try really hard not to talk too much and to turn down my volume when I speak. I don't have the high pitched voice anymore. When I get really tired I tend to talk a lot and giggle, and not know when to shut up.
After high school I've been working on this a lot. There were a lot of girls in high school that I would try to talk to and get to know, and if I said something odd or weird they would just kinda stare at me w/ a half smile and kinda nod. Once I turned around I could hear her look around at a friend and laugh. I was always paranoid that people were laughing at me or thinking I was weird.
I have always been a people pleaser. I want to make everyone happy. I want everyone to like me. There was a quote I found, and it's kinda helped me.
You can be the sweetest, juiciest peach in the world and still find people who don't like peaches -- Dita Von Teese
That quote has helped me recently. It's been hard coming to the realization that, no, I can't make everyone happy. I try so hard, and that's probably my problem. I try to hard to make people like me, and in the process, sometimes, I'm not always myself. I've been myself a lot more lately and I've been making some good friends at our church. I'm just going to come to the fact that if people don't like who I really am, then oh well. That's their loss. It's still hard though sometimes.
When I was little and we moved into our house, I would find kids about my age and just ask them if they wanted to be my friend. I've never been afraid to talk to people and spill my life story w/in minutes of knowing them. I trust people very easy, and it's not always the best thing. I have been taken advantage of, so I don't trust as easily as I used to.
I'm glad I'm not as annoying as I used to be. I know I still have my moments, but I've been working hard on it. I'm not that little girl anymore who is super annoying. I'm a woman, and I'm getting married in about 6 weeks. I don't think Chris thinks that I'm that annoying :)
I had a very high pitched voice when I was little, and I didn't know volume control. I was super loud a lot of the time. I also had a problem w/ not shutting up. I wanted and had to be the center of attention all of the time. I also did guy stuff that a lot of girls didn't like. I hung out w/ "nerds" and so they didn't hang out w/ me because of that.
I was a terrible sister to my younger brother. I drove him crazy. I would make him play dress up and Barbie w/ me. We had a terrible fight when we were still in high school, and I'm honestly surprised my brother and I still talk. I was a jerk of a sister. Once Phillip moved out we got closer, but Phillip didn't move that far. Josh is across the country, so it's hard to be close to him when he's so far away, but he'll be where in about 4 weeks :)
I was always so annoying when I was younger. I've done my best to not be that way anymore. I try really hard not to talk too much and to turn down my volume when I speak. I don't have the high pitched voice anymore. When I get really tired I tend to talk a lot and giggle, and not know when to shut up.
After high school I've been working on this a lot. There were a lot of girls in high school that I would try to talk to and get to know, and if I said something odd or weird they would just kinda stare at me w/ a half smile and kinda nod. Once I turned around I could hear her look around at a friend and laugh. I was always paranoid that people were laughing at me or thinking I was weird.
I have always been a people pleaser. I want to make everyone happy. I want everyone to like me. There was a quote I found, and it's kinda helped me.
You can be the sweetest, juiciest peach in the world and still find people who don't like peaches -- Dita Von Teese
That quote has helped me recently. It's been hard coming to the realization that, no, I can't make everyone happy. I try so hard, and that's probably my problem. I try to hard to make people like me, and in the process, sometimes, I'm not always myself. I've been myself a lot more lately and I've been making some good friends at our church. I'm just going to come to the fact that if people don't like who I really am, then oh well. That's their loss. It's still hard though sometimes.
When I was little and we moved into our house, I would find kids about my age and just ask them if they wanted to be my friend. I've never been afraid to talk to people and spill my life story w/in minutes of knowing them. I trust people very easy, and it's not always the best thing. I have been taken advantage of, so I don't trust as easily as I used to.
I'm glad I'm not as annoying as I used to be. I know I still have my moments, but I've been working hard on it. I'm not that little girl anymore who is super annoying. I'm a woman, and I'm getting married in about 6 weeks. I don't think Chris thinks that I'm that annoying :)
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Dream Vacations!
Before Chris and I have kids I would love to travel some. If we move up to Baltimore I would love to take Chris to D.C. since he has never been there. I'm gonna tell you some places I want to go here in the U.S. I want to go to New York and see a musical. I've always wanted to go there. I would love to visit the city my dad grew up near, Pittsburgh. I have been dying to visit a ton of places in California as well. If I could ever go there I would go to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, and a ton of beaches there. I would love to be able to visit my younger brother and his wife in Las Vegas. I think it would be a blast to visit New Orleans as well. If you can't tell, I haven't been to a lot of places. The farthest west I have been is Texas, and the farthest north is D.C. I have been to Hawaii as well, and I'm grateful for that, but I must explose more!
Paris. Paris is the number one place I have dying to go my whole life, just like I've been dreaming to get married and have the perfect wedding, I've been dreaming of vacationing in Paris as well. I used to read stories about Madeline when I was younger, and I have no idea though what got me so hooked onto the French culture. I took French in high school, and I love learning the language and the culture. It's so fascinating to me. I've told Chris, that if I have been given a week to live, to get me on the first plane out to Paris. I really don't want to die w/out visiting this city and seeing it's sites and taking in it's history. I don't care if it stinks. This is a life long dream of mine, and I will see it one day. When we went over all the fun historical places in my French class I just kept thinking about how much I wanted to go there one day.
Another place that Chris and I would like to visit is Japan. I started having an interest in the Japanese culture when I started getting into anime. I had a friend at the time who was really big into the culture and trying to teach herself Japanese, so I learned a few things about the culture from her. I think that their fashion is really neat there, and that their technology is through the rough. I only just found out that the country has the highest suicide rate because of their honor system type of culture. It just seems so foreign to me, and it intrigues me at the same time. I love learning about this kind of stuff. Chris has been working on teaching himself Japanese for the past year or so, and I think he's doing pretty well.
I would love to visit Italy and Germany one day as well. I want to visit Italy because of the history and the food (lol). There is so much beauty there, and I would love to see Venice and see how much of it really is under water w/ my own eyes. I want to see where some of Ancient Rome was, and I would love to visit the Vatican since I was raised Catholic, and since I'm sure that the cathedral is jaw dropping-ly beautiful. I would love to visit Germany since that's where a lot of my heritage originated there. I would also like to try the beer. I have yet to find a beer that I like. I've tried all kinds, and maybe (just maybe) Germany has the beer I'm looking for. I haven't studied much about Germany and the places to visit or sites to see, but I'm sure that there are tons. Sandy is German, and has been a few times, so I'm sure she wouldn't mind telling me what to do.
I believe that there is a Disney park at each of these locations some where, and I want to visit them as well. I want to see each country's take on Disney and what they have to offer. I really am a nerd, aren't I?
Paris. Paris is the number one place I have dying to go my whole life, just like I've been dreaming to get married and have the perfect wedding, I've been dreaming of vacationing in Paris as well. I used to read stories about Madeline when I was younger, and I have no idea though what got me so hooked onto the French culture. I took French in high school, and I love learning the language and the culture. It's so fascinating to me. I've told Chris, that if I have been given a week to live, to get me on the first plane out to Paris. I really don't want to die w/out visiting this city and seeing it's sites and taking in it's history. I don't care if it stinks. This is a life long dream of mine, and I will see it one day. When we went over all the fun historical places in my French class I just kept thinking about how much I wanted to go there one day.
Another place that Chris and I would like to visit is Japan. I started having an interest in the Japanese culture when I started getting into anime. I had a friend at the time who was really big into the culture and trying to teach herself Japanese, so I learned a few things about the culture from her. I think that their fashion is really neat there, and that their technology is through the rough. I only just found out that the country has the highest suicide rate because of their honor system type of culture. It just seems so foreign to me, and it intrigues me at the same time. I love learning about this kind of stuff. Chris has been working on teaching himself Japanese for the past year or so, and I think he's doing pretty well.
I would love to visit Italy and Germany one day as well. I want to visit Italy because of the history and the food (lol). There is so much beauty there, and I would love to see Venice and see how much of it really is under water w/ my own eyes. I want to see where some of Ancient Rome was, and I would love to visit the Vatican since I was raised Catholic, and since I'm sure that the cathedral is jaw dropping-ly beautiful. I would love to visit Germany since that's where a lot of my heritage originated there. I would also like to try the beer. I have yet to find a beer that I like. I've tried all kinds, and maybe (just maybe) Germany has the beer I'm looking for. I haven't studied much about Germany and the places to visit or sites to see, but I'm sure that there are tons. Sandy is German, and has been a few times, so I'm sure she wouldn't mind telling me what to do.
I believe that there is a Disney park at each of these locations some where, and I want to visit them as well. I want to see each country's take on Disney and what they have to offer. I really am a nerd, aren't I?
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Wedding Party
Chris and I have an amazing wedding party. I am so excited to share this information w/ you guys, and introduce you to the amazing people that will be a big part of our big day!
My maid of honor is Sandy. I've already had a whole blog about her, but she is awesome. She knows how to organize and plan. She will also be a nurse by the time of the wedding, so if I fall or faint then I know that I am in good hands. I know that I can count on her for everything. She is my wing (wo)man.
Daphne is second in command. Daphne is my amazing sister in law. She married my brother about 4.5yrs ago. She tried to plan a wedding for her and Phillip, but they decided to elope in Hawaii, and it was perfect. She has tons of ideas for stuff and she's super helpful w/ so much, on top of being a mom and a student w/ a full time job. Yeah, she kicks ass.
Missy will be my new sister once Chris and I get married. She lives out in Texas, so she's missed out on a lot of stuff, but I've made sure to make sure that she will be included in the bachelorette party. Missy knows how to have a good time, and I know she'll help make sure that I have one as well. I hate that she doesn't live closer, but I can't wait to finally see her. She is super creative, and has helped w/ ideas and planning and other stuff as much as she can from as far as she is, she has done an awesome job. She helped Chris and me decide what to do w/ our cake and how to have it. I've missed Missy, so it'll be wonderful to see her soon.
Last but not least for the girls is Kaitlyn. I met Kaitlyn back in high school. She and I were in culinary together, and we found out that we both had a serious love for Disney, and she introduced Chris and to the world of dance! She will be helping Chris and I w/ the waltz. I love Kaitlyn and she stepped in last second and is ready to go. She helped plan the shower and got her dress and everything super quick. She rocks.
Onto Chris's guys! Chris's best man is Nathan. Nathan is awesome. Chris has known him a year longer than I have, but Nate is like a brother I've never had. I can talk to him about a lot of stuff. We can have some serious conversations sometimes, and then other times he can have me rolling on the floor laughing and holding my sides while snorting. We have our issues sometimes, but I know that he's always on my side, and that I can trust him.
Michael, our friend that we've met online is also included in this party. We only stayed w/ him for 2 nights. Those 2 nights were some of the best memories that Chris and I have together. San Antonio was so much fun, and Chris and I can't wait to go back some day and hang out w/ him. Michael is one of the nicest guys that I know and he's ridiculously funny too. Ladies, he's easy on the eyes as well, but I do believe he's taken. Chris and I were trying to figure out who all was going to be a groomsmen and I asked if he wanted Michael in, and he said yes, but he wasn't sure if Michael would want to be included, since we'd only known each other for a couple of days, but I guess he thought that we were equally awesome since he said that he would be honored to be a groomsmen :)
Victor...yeah...haha. I love Victor. I had a crush on him in 8th grade. He was one of my best friends that year. Little did I know that him and Nathan were best friends as well. Victor is a very charismatic kind of guy, and he is super sweet. Every time he decides to come home he gives me a huge hug and picks me up. He lives in Auburn, so we only really see him on the holidays, but we always have a blast when he finally comes home.
Last for the guys is Chris's good friend Ryan. They both majored in the same things, and I do believe that they have the same minor as well, but Ryan just graduated back in December. They got to know each other pretty well since they had a lot of classes in common. Ryan was really quiet at first when we met, but now it's gotten to be pretty easy to talk to him. We have a few things in common and one very important thing is that we all love Doctor Who. He's really cool, and I'm glad Chris has him as a friend.
Then Sean and Emily are ring bearer and flower girl as well as Olivia and Noah. Olivia and Noah are Chris's cousin's kids. Noah just turned 6 earlier this month, and Olivia will turn 4 in September. Olivia and Emily are going to steal the show, because they are going to be so dang pretty and cute that no one is going to want to look at me, and Noah and Sean are just gonna play it cool. We're going to try and get them some Converse as well.
Yeah, EVERYONE in the wedding party will be wearing Converse. I got to thinking about my girls, and most of them don't wear heels that often, so I figured they would love this and be more comfortable and not hafta worry about a shoe change during the reception.
I hope that you have enjoyed getting to know our awesome friends that are going to be by our sides when we get married. We couldn't have chosen a better bunch of people. I'm looking forward to having them all up there w/ Chris and me. We're getting so close everybody...
My maid of honor is Sandy. I've already had a whole blog about her, but she is awesome. She knows how to organize and plan. She will also be a nurse by the time of the wedding, so if I fall or faint then I know that I am in good hands. I know that I can count on her for everything. She is my wing (wo)man.
Daphne is second in command. Daphne is my amazing sister in law. She married my brother about 4.5yrs ago. She tried to plan a wedding for her and Phillip, but they decided to elope in Hawaii, and it was perfect. She has tons of ideas for stuff and she's super helpful w/ so much, on top of being a mom and a student w/ a full time job. Yeah, she kicks ass.
Missy will be my new sister once Chris and I get married. She lives out in Texas, so she's missed out on a lot of stuff, but I've made sure to make sure that she will be included in the bachelorette party. Missy knows how to have a good time, and I know she'll help make sure that I have one as well. I hate that she doesn't live closer, but I can't wait to finally see her. She is super creative, and has helped w/ ideas and planning and other stuff as much as she can from as far as she is, she has done an awesome job. She helped Chris and me decide what to do w/ our cake and how to have it. I've missed Missy, so it'll be wonderful to see her soon.
Last but not least for the girls is Kaitlyn. I met Kaitlyn back in high school. She and I were in culinary together, and we found out that we both had a serious love for Disney, and she introduced Chris and to the world of dance! She will be helping Chris and I w/ the waltz. I love Kaitlyn and she stepped in last second and is ready to go. She helped plan the shower and got her dress and everything super quick. She rocks.
Onto Chris's guys! Chris's best man is Nathan. Nathan is awesome. Chris has known him a year longer than I have, but Nate is like a brother I've never had. I can talk to him about a lot of stuff. We can have some serious conversations sometimes, and then other times he can have me rolling on the floor laughing and holding my sides while snorting. We have our issues sometimes, but I know that he's always on my side, and that I can trust him.
Michael, our friend that we've met online is also included in this party. We only stayed w/ him for 2 nights. Those 2 nights were some of the best memories that Chris and I have together. San Antonio was so much fun, and Chris and I can't wait to go back some day and hang out w/ him. Michael is one of the nicest guys that I know and he's ridiculously funny too. Ladies, he's easy on the eyes as well, but I do believe he's taken. Chris and I were trying to figure out who all was going to be a groomsmen and I asked if he wanted Michael in, and he said yes, but he wasn't sure if Michael would want to be included, since we'd only known each other for a couple of days, but I guess he thought that we were equally awesome since he said that he would be honored to be a groomsmen :)
Victor...yeah...haha. I love Victor. I had a crush on him in 8th grade. He was one of my best friends that year. Little did I know that him and Nathan were best friends as well. Victor is a very charismatic kind of guy, and he is super sweet. Every time he decides to come home he gives me a huge hug and picks me up. He lives in Auburn, so we only really see him on the holidays, but we always have a blast when he finally comes home.
Last for the guys is Chris's good friend Ryan. They both majored in the same things, and I do believe that they have the same minor as well, but Ryan just graduated back in December. They got to know each other pretty well since they had a lot of classes in common. Ryan was really quiet at first when we met, but now it's gotten to be pretty easy to talk to him. We have a few things in common and one very important thing is that we all love Doctor Who. He's really cool, and I'm glad Chris has him as a friend.
Then Sean and Emily are ring bearer and flower girl as well as Olivia and Noah. Olivia and Noah are Chris's cousin's kids. Noah just turned 6 earlier this month, and Olivia will turn 4 in September. Olivia and Emily are going to steal the show, because they are going to be so dang pretty and cute that no one is going to want to look at me, and Noah and Sean are just gonna play it cool. We're going to try and get them some Converse as well.
Yeah, EVERYONE in the wedding party will be wearing Converse. I got to thinking about my girls, and most of them don't wear heels that often, so I figured they would love this and be more comfortable and not hafta worry about a shoe change during the reception.
I hope that you have enjoyed getting to know our awesome friends that are going to be by our sides when we get married. We couldn't have chosen a better bunch of people. I'm looking forward to having them all up there w/ Chris and me. We're getting so close everybody...
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Self Esteem and Body Image
This is kind of a part 2 continued from the last post.
For as long as I can remember I have had self esteem issues. I always wondered why certain girls would just hate me and not want to be my friend. I never got that, and I still don't. My family would just say that they're jealous because I'm so much prettier than the other girls. I never believed them. I thought that they always said that because they had to, they were family.
My exes never told me every day that I was pretty. My last ex was kind of a loser. I still talk to him every now and then, but I don't think he was very secure about himself. He said I could flirt w/ any guys just as long as I never acted on anything and he was still number one. I don't think he was secure w/ the fact that I liked him enough, so he thought he would keep me happy by saying that stuff.
I would think "If I'm so pretty, then why won't the popular guys even look at me or talk to me?" I haven't ever really felt pretty. Chris tells me every single day that I'm pretty, gorgeous, beautiful, hot, etc. My parents would also tell me that I was pretty. I hate the media. I hate how these tall airbrushed models that wear half the clothes I do are shoved into my face and every other single girl out there. It's not fair. Of course we feel inadequate.
I like that Dove and a few others are trying to show real women w/ curves, and I like that more and more women are trying to embrace their curves, but it's almost too little too late. I respect some of the models though. That's some serious work and little sleep. They hafta be extremely active and they have people watching their every bite. I couldn't do that. I couldn't have people telling me that I can't eat those sweet potato fries, and that I can't have a brownie for dessert.
I've been working really hard on my self esteem. There have been times where I think that bulimia would be so much easier, but I know how bad it is, and I know how much I would disappoint everyone if anyone found out about it. I have a feeling once I start getting off of my butt more and exercising and treating my body better that I'll be more content.
As I said in my last post I want my arms and thighs to look better. I would also like my belly to be a bit better as well. I have a feeling though that I will probably struggle w/ this forever. It's a girl thing sadly. I will do my best to just take what Chris says and believe that and keep that in my head and ignore all of the media.
For as long as I can remember I have had self esteem issues. I always wondered why certain girls would just hate me and not want to be my friend. I never got that, and I still don't. My family would just say that they're jealous because I'm so much prettier than the other girls. I never believed them. I thought that they always said that because they had to, they were family.
My exes never told me every day that I was pretty. My last ex was kind of a loser. I still talk to him every now and then, but I don't think he was very secure about himself. He said I could flirt w/ any guys just as long as I never acted on anything and he was still number one. I don't think he was secure w/ the fact that I liked him enough, so he thought he would keep me happy by saying that stuff.
I would think "If I'm so pretty, then why won't the popular guys even look at me or talk to me?" I haven't ever really felt pretty. Chris tells me every single day that I'm pretty, gorgeous, beautiful, hot, etc. My parents would also tell me that I was pretty. I hate the media. I hate how these tall airbrushed models that wear half the clothes I do are shoved into my face and every other single girl out there. It's not fair. Of course we feel inadequate.
I like that Dove and a few others are trying to show real women w/ curves, and I like that more and more women are trying to embrace their curves, but it's almost too little too late. I respect some of the models though. That's some serious work and little sleep. They hafta be extremely active and they have people watching their every bite. I couldn't do that. I couldn't have people telling me that I can't eat those sweet potato fries, and that I can't have a brownie for dessert.
I've been working really hard on my self esteem. There have been times where I think that bulimia would be so much easier, but I know how bad it is, and I know how much I would disappoint everyone if anyone found out about it. I have a feeling once I start getting off of my butt more and exercising and treating my body better that I'll be more content.
As I said in my last post I want my arms and thighs to look better. I would also like my belly to be a bit better as well. I have a feeling though that I will probably struggle w/ this forever. It's a girl thing sadly. I will do my best to just take what Chris says and believe that and keep that in my head and ignore all of the media.
Fit and Healthy
I am doing my best to be more healthy and more fit. After I graduated from high school I gained close to 50lbs in about a year or so. I was getting close to 200lbs. I was wearing close to a size 16 jean and I hated how I looked. I finally started watching Sean and Emily a lot, and last year I lost close to 20-30lbs. I'm now going between 140-and 150lbs.
I've also been trying to eat healthier lately. I want to look good in a bikini when Chris and I go on our honeymoon. It's been hard, and I have days where I eat what I want, and regret it.
Chris has me working out a lot to help me lose some fat as well. I did this squat challenge the other day, and it killed me. It's on my facebook, and my legs are still hurting. It hurts to walk. It hurts to do anything really. I had my final alteration appointment yesterday. I didn't feel pretty in my dress. This is the first time that I have put on my wedding dress, and not felt pretty. I've gained about 5lbs lately, and my arms look terrible. I almost had back fat, and I felt terrible. Usually when we go for a fitting I have had a shower that morning and my makeup done, and I haven't been up all morning. That wasn't the case yesterday. I had a shower the day before, had been up since 6:20, and no makeup. I looked like a mess.
I'm excited that I'm getting the dress back in a month and I'm going to look much better in it this next time. I won't feel so fat. I want my arms to look better and I want my thighs to look better as well. There is a lot that I want to make look nicer about myself, but I know if I can't do all this before the wedding that it won't be the end of the world.
I won't ever let myself get as heavy as I was a few years ago. It's a daily struggle to maintain a weight and to lose weight. I had 3 doughnuts before my dress fitting yesterday. I hated myself for it. That probably didn't help my case at all. Before my last fitting I'm barely going to eat anything that day, and I'm going to be taking much better care of myself.
If you're trying to lose weight get an app called Daily Burn, it's for iPods or iPhones, and I'm sure iPads too. I haven't been the best about keeping up w/ it lately. You can record your food and drinks and your exercise for the day. When you see how much fat and how many calories you're taking in during the day really effects you. It makes you want to be better at finding the right foods to eat.
If you're struggling w/ weight or losing it, I'm right there w/ you. I'm super lazy. I find excuses for everything, and I'm doing my best to stop. You hafta find something that makes you want to lose the weight. The squat challenge I did was to one of my favorite songs, so I had fun while it was killing me. I like exercising w/ other people. I like the class setting so that I know I'm not the only one dying. I just don't have any money for a gym membership, but I always listen around to hear who gives a month free or a week of classes for free.
I will lose another 20-30lbs this year, and I will be a lot more fit by the end of this year, and I will be happy w/ myself and how I look :)
I've also been trying to eat healthier lately. I want to look good in a bikini when Chris and I go on our honeymoon. It's been hard, and I have days where I eat what I want, and regret it.
Chris has me working out a lot to help me lose some fat as well. I did this squat challenge the other day, and it killed me. It's on my facebook, and my legs are still hurting. It hurts to walk. It hurts to do anything really. I had my final alteration appointment yesterday. I didn't feel pretty in my dress. This is the first time that I have put on my wedding dress, and not felt pretty. I've gained about 5lbs lately, and my arms look terrible. I almost had back fat, and I felt terrible. Usually when we go for a fitting I have had a shower that morning and my makeup done, and I haven't been up all morning. That wasn't the case yesterday. I had a shower the day before, had been up since 6:20, and no makeup. I looked like a mess.
I'm excited that I'm getting the dress back in a month and I'm going to look much better in it this next time. I won't feel so fat. I want my arms to look better and I want my thighs to look better as well. There is a lot that I want to make look nicer about myself, but I know if I can't do all this before the wedding that it won't be the end of the world.
I won't ever let myself get as heavy as I was a few years ago. It's a daily struggle to maintain a weight and to lose weight. I had 3 doughnuts before my dress fitting yesterday. I hated myself for it. That probably didn't help my case at all. Before my last fitting I'm barely going to eat anything that day, and I'm going to be taking much better care of myself.
If you're trying to lose weight get an app called Daily Burn, it's for iPods or iPhones, and I'm sure iPads too. I haven't been the best about keeping up w/ it lately. You can record your food and drinks and your exercise for the day. When you see how much fat and how many calories you're taking in during the day really effects you. It makes you want to be better at finding the right foods to eat.
If you're struggling w/ weight or losing it, I'm right there w/ you. I'm super lazy. I find excuses for everything, and I'm doing my best to stop. You hafta find something that makes you want to lose the weight. The squat challenge I did was to one of my favorite songs, so I had fun while it was killing me. I like exercising w/ other people. I like the class setting so that I know I'm not the only one dying. I just don't have any money for a gym membership, but I always listen around to hear who gives a month free or a week of classes for free.
I will lose another 20-30lbs this year, and I will be a lot more fit by the end of this year, and I will be happy w/ myself and how I look :)
Sunday, March 24, 2013
My Gamer Geekiness
I was very different when I grew up. I didn't know a lot of girls that were girly girls and were also hardcore button mashers and watched anime. That's one reason why a lot of girly girls didn't really hang out w/ me. I hung out w/ the guys that were into some serious gaming and anime. They were complete nerds, but they knew how to have a good time and how to make me laugh so hard that my sides would hurt the next day.
I would watch my two brothers play video games all day long, so how could I not want to join in? I played fighting games w/ them, first person shooters, and racing games. Then I we would take turns watching the other one play something like Ocarina of Time or a Final Fantasy game. Whenever we played games that we could all play I would always lose. I was a practice dummy, and I never memorized moves that well for fighting games, so I would just mash the buttons and hope for the best. It wasn't until Super Smash Bros. started coming out that I started to memorize moves, but the thing about this game is all the characters shared the same button sequence, so you would hafta know how this character would work to use them efficiently. I always chose Link until Super Smash Bros. Brawl came out. I started using Zelda, and was pretty good at her. She was in Melee, but I would still use Link more than Zelda.
My favorite games when I was growing up had to be (in no particular order) Snowboarding Kids, Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, Perfect Dark, Final Fantasy VII, Vigilante X, Road Rash, F-0 X, Super Smash Bros, and any Mario Party game. Those were some of my old time favorites, but the list has grown so much as I've grown. I remember when my older brother got Ocarina of Time in 1998. We had a really bad ice storm that year, so we had no power during Christmas, but oddly, our neighbors did. They were out of town and left Phillip a key so that he could watch their cat, but he took the N64 over there and played it as well. One more Christmas comes to mind, and that was when Phillip got Final Fantasy X. He opened it, and after opening all of his other gifts he went upstairs to play it. He played for a solid 10-12hrs straight that day. He was playing when I went to bed and his eyes were completely blood shot.
After my brother moved out him and Josh got into World of Warcraft. That game sucked out their soul! My little brother would wake up early so that my dad could take him over to my Nana's so he could play all day, and then dad would pick him up on his way home. My Nana had a better computer and he shared an account w/ Phillip (I think). I never got into it, but I did start playing another online game called Ragnarok. I have made some awesome friends on that game. Those friends are Michael and Peter. Michael is one of Chris's groomsmen, and Peter...he's Peter. I can't talk much about Peter w/out sharing some dirty details. He's a piece of work and I love him. I can trust him w/ anything and I know I can talk to him about any and everything. He's one of my best friends and I've never met him, and he lives in Miami. Michael is just cool. He is just so damn cool, and ripped. He does gymnastics and parkour. We've only hung out w/ him for 2 days while we went and visited him in San Antonio. I can't wait for them to come to our wedding!
I don't play Ragnarok anymore really. I miss it a lot, but I haven't gamed at all lately. I did get Guild Wars II for Christmas, but I haven't played it that much recently, and we used to play League of Legends a whole bunch last year, but that's taken a back seat as well.
I'm not a good gamer, but I'm a gamer. I'm not one of the slutty girl gamers that sits around in naughty lingerie holding a controller in her hand a suggestive way. I sit slouched on the couch mashing buttons and yelling at the TV or the computer when things don't go my way. I sit around w/ my friends playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl laughing my butt off because of how much I'm getting my ass kicked. I know I'm not the best but I seriously enjoy the game. That's what it's all about in the end, right?
Saturday, March 23, 2013
My Hopeful Future in Nursing
When I graduated from high school I was all about becoming a lawyer. I wasn't 100% what kind of lawyer I wanted to be, but I thought that I wanted to be a lawyer. When I started out at UAH I was going to go for a Poli/Sci major, but I dropped out in about 2 months.
That winter my grandparents put me through CNA training, and I fell in love. I loved taking care of people. The reason why they put me through it was so that I could help my mom more efficiently. My mom had had a knee replacement surgery a little while after I had graduated from high school, and wasn't getting much better. I was her home care for the longest time. When I was in the CNA training I learned a lot about nurses and some differences b/t BSN and RNs.
I started going to Calhoun in the spring of 2010 and I was only taking some easy classes at first since I hadn't been in school for over a year. Once the fall of 2010 came I was signed up for my first human anatomy class. I had Dr. D. This professor kicked my butt. After I failed my first lab practical miserably I went back and started to pick up my game. I really began to adore this teacher. I made a lot of good friends in that class, and if it wasn't for them I probably wouldn't have passed that class. I didn't have her for my second anatomy class, but I did have her for my microbiology class, and she got her doctorate as a microbiologist. The way she taught this class was awesome. She made the 8:30am labs worth it and interesting. I saw her clap and yell for me last May when I got my A.S. in biology. She is the coolest teacher I have ever had the joy of having. She made me want to be better.
When I really started to think about nursing I started thinking about Jesus. He healed people when he was here. I want to help heal people. My mom always says that I have a "soothing touch". I sometimes think that she's just being a bit biased, but I hope that it's true. I hope that I can help heal people. I want to help save lives and show people my compassion.
I started thinking about what field of nursing I would want to go into, and then I thought automatically, trauma. I sometimes think that I am ADD. I can't focus for too long, and that's why i think trauma would work for me. I wouldn't be w/ a patient for too long. I would be bouncing back and forth and running across the hospital making those 12hr shifts fly by. I would be right there were I could save some lives. I know that I will also lose lives w/ this job, and I have a feeling that it will upset me, but the lives that I save will remind me why I'm doing what I'm doing. I have no problem w/ blood or needles. The only thing that kinda freaks me out is a compound fracture (where the bone has penetrated the skin and is visible). Those make me feel a little uneasy.
Nursing school is going to be competitive. I've applied to Calhoun's nursing program twice and I have been denied each time. I've decided that once Chris and I figure out where we're going I'm going to just start all over on my bio classes. I got Cs in my anatomy classes and my micro classes. Nursing schools usually want As in those. I can do it. I know I can. I want to be able to wear scrubs every day.
I'm going to go for my RN, and maybe one day my BSN, and if I ever get bored I may one day decide to become a doctor, but that takes FOREVER! If I do become a doctor I would like to be a surgeon or an anesthesiologist. There are nurse anesthesiologists, but I would need to get my BSN and go through some serious competition for that. If I just want to get a doctorate and not be a doctor I think I would like to get it in microbiology or something dealing w/ rare and special diseases and research those.
The way the human body works is amazing. It's a miracle that happens w/ every heart beat and every intake of breath. The way that we are woven together is so beautiful and fascinating, I don't understand how anyone wouldn't want to know more about how they work.
That winter my grandparents put me through CNA training, and I fell in love. I loved taking care of people. The reason why they put me through it was so that I could help my mom more efficiently. My mom had had a knee replacement surgery a little while after I had graduated from high school, and wasn't getting much better. I was her home care for the longest time. When I was in the CNA training I learned a lot about nurses and some differences b/t BSN and RNs.
I started going to Calhoun in the spring of 2010 and I was only taking some easy classes at first since I hadn't been in school for over a year. Once the fall of 2010 came I was signed up for my first human anatomy class. I had Dr. D. This professor kicked my butt. After I failed my first lab practical miserably I went back and started to pick up my game. I really began to adore this teacher. I made a lot of good friends in that class, and if it wasn't for them I probably wouldn't have passed that class. I didn't have her for my second anatomy class, but I did have her for my microbiology class, and she got her doctorate as a microbiologist. The way she taught this class was awesome. She made the 8:30am labs worth it and interesting. I saw her clap and yell for me last May when I got my A.S. in biology. She is the coolest teacher I have ever had the joy of having. She made me want to be better.
When I really started to think about nursing I started thinking about Jesus. He healed people when he was here. I want to help heal people. My mom always says that I have a "soothing touch". I sometimes think that she's just being a bit biased, but I hope that it's true. I hope that I can help heal people. I want to help save lives and show people my compassion.
I started thinking about what field of nursing I would want to go into, and then I thought automatically, trauma. I sometimes think that I am ADD. I can't focus for too long, and that's why i think trauma would work for me. I wouldn't be w/ a patient for too long. I would be bouncing back and forth and running across the hospital making those 12hr shifts fly by. I would be right there were I could save some lives. I know that I will also lose lives w/ this job, and I have a feeling that it will upset me, but the lives that I save will remind me why I'm doing what I'm doing. I have no problem w/ blood or needles. The only thing that kinda freaks me out is a compound fracture (where the bone has penetrated the skin and is visible). Those make me feel a little uneasy.
Nursing school is going to be competitive. I've applied to Calhoun's nursing program twice and I have been denied each time. I've decided that once Chris and I figure out where we're going I'm going to just start all over on my bio classes. I got Cs in my anatomy classes and my micro classes. Nursing schools usually want As in those. I can do it. I know I can. I want to be able to wear scrubs every day.
I'm going to go for my RN, and maybe one day my BSN, and if I ever get bored I may one day decide to become a doctor, but that takes FOREVER! If I do become a doctor I would like to be a surgeon or an anesthesiologist. There are nurse anesthesiologists, but I would need to get my BSN and go through some serious competition for that. If I just want to get a doctorate and not be a doctor I think I would like to get it in microbiology or something dealing w/ rare and special diseases and research those.
The way the human body works is amazing. It's a miracle that happens w/ every heart beat and every intake of breath. The way that we are woven together is so beautiful and fascinating, I don't understand how anyone wouldn't want to know more about how they work.
Friday, March 22, 2013
Photography!!!
I love taking pictures. I was so happy when I got my first camera when I was in high school. I would love to have a serious Nikon DSLR camera, and learn real photography, but all I have is a point and shoot, and I don't really have that anymore. Not only is this post about photography, but my sad history w/ all of my cameras.
My first camera was a silver kodak. I loved it, and I used it all the time. My junior year I was historian of the French club, and I wasn't able to make it out to the building of the float for our homecoming parade, so I handed it to a friend. She came back and gave it to me, and the screen was just white. It stopped working. My friend said she just went to turn it on and the screen was white, and she didn't do anything, that it just happened. That was the end of that camera.
I gotta second camera that following Christmas and this time it was a blue kodak point and shoot. I loved this camera, and then I had culinary my senior year. I put my camera in my breast pocket while I washing dishes. I bent over and then my camera slipped out of my pocket and into the sink full of dish water. Then that camera was done.
My third camera was amazing. Chris got me this fantastic Olympus Stylus Tough point and shoot. It was water proof, shock proof, dust proof, and Rachel resistant in other words. I adored this camera. It was my favorite and I loved taking underwater pictures with this camera. Chris wrapped it in 5 different boxes for me to open the Christmas after I got my blue one. My parents took it to San Antonio w/ them for my younger brother's graduation from basic, and then lost it there. I was so mad and so upset that I had lost the best camera.
Later I got a Canon point and shoot. This was another amazing camera. I bought this one. I didn't get it for Christmas, but I got it just for me, and I wasn't going to let anyone use it. It wasn't water proof and all that like the other one, but it was still awesome. Last year when I was taking Sugar out for her last day I was recording her. I put my camera down while it was on, and my phone rang and it surprised me, and my camera fell off of my lap and hit the lens first. The camera still works, but I can't zoom in anymore or the camera just shuts off. I'm hoping to get a new camera after we get married.
One of my favorite things to take pictures of was flowers. I know people that do photography professionally may say that's easy and what not, but I just loved the fact that I could capture the beauty of a flower w/ a camera. I was always very proud of the pictures I would take of flowers. I also kinda did my younger brother's wedding. Those are some pretty decent pictures. I was proud of them. The lighting in the court house sucked, and I had a point and shoot, so some of them aren't that awesome, but I am still proud of a few of them.
I want to learn how to use a manual zoom and focus. I want to learn how to use lighting and all of that. If I ever got into it so much I would love to be a photographer on the side. I just love taking pictures. I'm also so happy that I have the coolest photographer for the wedding.
I guess that's really all I have to say about photography. If you have any tips or pointers please tell me then!
My first camera was a silver kodak. I loved it, and I used it all the time. My junior year I was historian of the French club, and I wasn't able to make it out to the building of the float for our homecoming parade, so I handed it to a friend. She came back and gave it to me, and the screen was just white. It stopped working. My friend said she just went to turn it on and the screen was white, and she didn't do anything, that it just happened. That was the end of that camera.
I gotta second camera that following Christmas and this time it was a blue kodak point and shoot. I loved this camera, and then I had culinary my senior year. I put my camera in my breast pocket while I washing dishes. I bent over and then my camera slipped out of my pocket and into the sink full of dish water. Then that camera was done.
My third camera was amazing. Chris got me this fantastic Olympus Stylus Tough point and shoot. It was water proof, shock proof, dust proof, and Rachel resistant in other words. I adored this camera. It was my favorite and I loved taking underwater pictures with this camera. Chris wrapped it in 5 different boxes for me to open the Christmas after I got my blue one. My parents took it to San Antonio w/ them for my younger brother's graduation from basic, and then lost it there. I was so mad and so upset that I had lost the best camera.
Later I got a Canon point and shoot. This was another amazing camera. I bought this one. I didn't get it for Christmas, but I got it just for me, and I wasn't going to let anyone use it. It wasn't water proof and all that like the other one, but it was still awesome. Last year when I was taking Sugar out for her last day I was recording her. I put my camera down while it was on, and my phone rang and it surprised me, and my camera fell off of my lap and hit the lens first. The camera still works, but I can't zoom in anymore or the camera just shuts off. I'm hoping to get a new camera after we get married.
One of my favorite things to take pictures of was flowers. I know people that do photography professionally may say that's easy and what not, but I just loved the fact that I could capture the beauty of a flower w/ a camera. I was always very proud of the pictures I would take of flowers. I also kinda did my younger brother's wedding. Those are some pretty decent pictures. I was proud of them. The lighting in the court house sucked, and I had a point and shoot, so some of them aren't that awesome, but I am still proud of a few of them.
I want to learn how to use a manual zoom and focus. I want to learn how to use lighting and all of that. If I ever got into it so much I would love to be a photographer on the side. I just love taking pictures. I'm also so happy that I have the coolest photographer for the wedding.
I guess that's really all I have to say about photography. If you have any tips or pointers please tell me then!
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Books and Reading
If you have gotten to know me then you know that I read, and I read a lot. I have to read before I go to sleep. It helps relax me, even though I may stay up a bit to get through "just one more chapter".
I just finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower and it was amazing. There is a quote that I found somewhere and it kinda goes like "That moment when I finish a book, and look up and notice everyone going on w/ their life like I didn't just suffer serious emotional trauma," and that's how that book made me feel. I hate that feeling of being so sad and bummed when you finish such an amazing book. You finish it and put it down and just wonder what to do next.
There are a few books that have done that to me, and almost all of them are by John Green, and they are The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns, and some more are the Hunger Games Trilogy and Harry Potter. I'm sure that there are plenty more that I haven't listed. The Fault in Our Stars was the hardest book, emotionally, that I have read. I have never cried like that when I've read a book. Harry Potter made me cry a lot, but this book really puts you into the stories and you really know these characters and then it just rips your heart out.
I like reading fantasy novels, and I still read teen novels. I like love stories, but I don't like romance novels. I'm not into reading that kind of stuff, and that's why I still read a lot of teen novels, because they keep everything PG-13 for the most part. I have read a few R rated novels, but for story purposes and not "romance" reasons.
I've been trying to read more classics as well. I'm working on getting through The Great Gatsby right now and then after this I want to look into reading This Side of Paradise and 1984. There are plenty of other classics I want to read as well. I would like to read most of the Jane Austen novels as well, and if I can ever build up the patience I think I would like to try John Steinbeck again. My 11th grade honors english class KILLED that book for me. It did the same w/ The Great Gatsby, but I kinda actually liked that story. I had to read East of Eden and...ugh. That's all I can say about that book. It was so long and it just seemed so boring to me as well. There are still a few more that I want to read. I also want to read all of Shakespeare's plays.
I love reading. It takes me out of my world and puts me in the world of this story. I felt like I was in Pittsburgh when I was reading Perks of Being a Wallflower and I was w/ Charlie through everything that he went through. I was there for all of his laughs, tears, and finally his freedom. This is one of my new favorite books. I love it when books keep me thinking about them after I have finished them, and I love it when movies do the same as well. There are books that I read that stay w/ me forever, and characters that just haunt me, and I love it. I love it when an author is that talented that their stories become a constant part of your life.
Feel free to comment w/ any book recommendations for me :D
I just finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower and it was amazing. There is a quote that I found somewhere and it kinda goes like "That moment when I finish a book, and look up and notice everyone going on w/ their life like I didn't just suffer serious emotional trauma," and that's how that book made me feel. I hate that feeling of being so sad and bummed when you finish such an amazing book. You finish it and put it down and just wonder what to do next.
There are a few books that have done that to me, and almost all of them are by John Green, and they are The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns, and some more are the Hunger Games Trilogy and Harry Potter. I'm sure that there are plenty more that I haven't listed. The Fault in Our Stars was the hardest book, emotionally, that I have read. I have never cried like that when I've read a book. Harry Potter made me cry a lot, but this book really puts you into the stories and you really know these characters and then it just rips your heart out.
I like reading fantasy novels, and I still read teen novels. I like love stories, but I don't like romance novels. I'm not into reading that kind of stuff, and that's why I still read a lot of teen novels, because they keep everything PG-13 for the most part. I have read a few R rated novels, but for story purposes and not "romance" reasons.
I've been trying to read more classics as well. I'm working on getting through The Great Gatsby right now and then after this I want to look into reading This Side of Paradise and 1984. There are plenty of other classics I want to read as well. I would like to read most of the Jane Austen novels as well, and if I can ever build up the patience I think I would like to try John Steinbeck again. My 11th grade honors english class KILLED that book for me. It did the same w/ The Great Gatsby, but I kinda actually liked that story. I had to read East of Eden and...ugh. That's all I can say about that book. It was so long and it just seemed so boring to me as well. There are still a few more that I want to read. I also want to read all of Shakespeare's plays.
I love reading. It takes me out of my world and puts me in the world of this story. I felt like I was in Pittsburgh when I was reading Perks of Being a Wallflower and I was w/ Charlie through everything that he went through. I was there for all of his laughs, tears, and finally his freedom. This is one of my new favorite books. I love it when books keep me thinking about them after I have finished them, and I love it when movies do the same as well. There are books that I read that stay w/ me forever, and characters that just haunt me, and I love it. I love it when an author is that talented that their stories become a constant part of your life.
Feel free to comment w/ any book recommendations for me :D
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Disney Nerd
I grew up on Disney when I was little. When I was sick when I was little I would watch the Little Mermaid all the time. I would watch that movie every single day. I never stopped loving Disney and I was never afraid to tell people who my favorite Disney princess was, and that's changed a lot as I've grown. My favorite princess used to be Ariel. then Aurora, then Belle, and now it's Rapunzel.
My love for Disney has grown as I have aged. I hate how some people think that if you're little girl grows up on Disney princesses that they're going to be spoiled little girls w/ unrealistic expectations. It is the parents job to keep them from being spoiled and the parents job to keep them from expecting too much. If they want to be president or walk on the moon one day, then tell the kid they can, but they hafta work hard for it show the other kids that they want it more. It is not the television's job to teach your kids how to live. That is the parents job. If the parents want the kid to grow up watching and loving Disney like I have then that's wonderful, but don't forget about the other responsibilities that w/ being a parent.
I watch Disney Junior a lot during the week when I watch Sean and Emily. I have to admit that I like the Disney Junior shows much better than I like the normal Disney shows. I watched Hannah Montana, Wizards of Waverley Place, Lizzie McGuire, That's so Raven, Even Stevens, Phil of the Future, and a ton more. Those shows were amazing, and now they have just a bunch of crap on there. The titles for the shows now aren't even that creative.
I'm gonna stop ranting though, and tell you why I love the princesses that have been my favorites. I loved Ariel, because my parents would call me a mermaid. I loved being in the water and I loved swimming, even though Ariel didn't want to be a mermaid anymore, I still wanted to be like her. I loved Aurora because I'm a sucker for a romantic story. Lately she's become my least favorite, but I loved her dress at the end, and that's all I got right now haha. I loved Belle because she is a book worm, and I related a lot to her. She always wants to see the good in people, people think that she's weird and out of her mind, but she falls in love w/ someone and people don't get it. At first people didn't get why I loved Chris because he was so quiet all the time. Belle brought the good out in the beast. That's why she was my favorite for so long, and honestly it's a tie for her and Rapunzel. I LOVE Rapunzel! I relate to Belle the most but, the way Rapunzel acts is very similar to how I act. She plays w/ animals, and she's not the most graceful, but she trusts easily, and I do that as well. She only wants to protect and keep the ones she loves happy, and that's me in a nut shell.
I can't wait for our Disney cruise. Chris has told me that I need to get a pillow case and some markers and give it to guest services and all of the characters on board will sign it! I can't wait for this cruise. Chris went on a cruise a few years ago and always said how wonderful it was, and we decided that we wanted to go on a cruise for our honeymoon, and what's better than a Disney cruise!?!? There is a pirate deck party and fireworks at night and so much more. There is an amazing restaurant on board that's based off of Ratatouille called Remy, and there are such subtle details and hints of that movie through out the pics that I have seen of this restaurant. I am ready for this cruise haha. Chris and I plan on doing more if we have fun and visiting Disney World and maybe even Disney World in Tokyo and in Paris one day too.
I want my kids to grow up w/ Disney just like I did. I don't care about all of the criticism that the princesses get or anything else like that. I am 23 and I grew up on Disney and still watch Disney while I'm sick or if I've just had a bad day, and it always makes me feel better. I like to think that I have turned out just fine, and I have other friends that love Disney just as much (if not more so sometimes) as I do :)
My love for Disney has grown as I have aged. I hate how some people think that if you're little girl grows up on Disney princesses that they're going to be spoiled little girls w/ unrealistic expectations. It is the parents job to keep them from being spoiled and the parents job to keep them from expecting too much. If they want to be president or walk on the moon one day, then tell the kid they can, but they hafta work hard for it show the other kids that they want it more. It is not the television's job to teach your kids how to live. That is the parents job. If the parents want the kid to grow up watching and loving Disney like I have then that's wonderful, but don't forget about the other responsibilities that w/ being a parent.
I watch Disney Junior a lot during the week when I watch Sean and Emily. I have to admit that I like the Disney Junior shows much better than I like the normal Disney shows. I watched Hannah Montana, Wizards of Waverley Place, Lizzie McGuire, That's so Raven, Even Stevens, Phil of the Future, and a ton more. Those shows were amazing, and now they have just a bunch of crap on there. The titles for the shows now aren't even that creative.
I'm gonna stop ranting though, and tell you why I love the princesses that have been my favorites. I loved Ariel, because my parents would call me a mermaid. I loved being in the water and I loved swimming, even though Ariel didn't want to be a mermaid anymore, I still wanted to be like her. I loved Aurora because I'm a sucker for a romantic story. Lately she's become my least favorite, but I loved her dress at the end, and that's all I got right now haha. I loved Belle because she is a book worm, and I related a lot to her. She always wants to see the good in people, people think that she's weird and out of her mind, but she falls in love w/ someone and people don't get it. At first people didn't get why I loved Chris because he was so quiet all the time. Belle brought the good out in the beast. That's why she was my favorite for so long, and honestly it's a tie for her and Rapunzel. I LOVE Rapunzel! I relate to Belle the most but, the way Rapunzel acts is very similar to how I act. She plays w/ animals, and she's not the most graceful, but she trusts easily, and I do that as well. She only wants to protect and keep the ones she loves happy, and that's me in a nut shell.
I can't wait for our Disney cruise. Chris has told me that I need to get a pillow case and some markers and give it to guest services and all of the characters on board will sign it! I can't wait for this cruise. Chris went on a cruise a few years ago and always said how wonderful it was, and we decided that we wanted to go on a cruise for our honeymoon, and what's better than a Disney cruise!?!? There is a pirate deck party and fireworks at night and so much more. There is an amazing restaurant on board that's based off of Ratatouille called Remy, and there are such subtle details and hints of that movie through out the pics that I have seen of this restaurant. I am ready for this cruise haha. Chris and I plan on doing more if we have fun and visiting Disney World and maybe even Disney World in Tokyo and in Paris one day too.
I want my kids to grow up w/ Disney just like I did. I don't care about all of the criticism that the princesses get or anything else like that. I am 23 and I grew up on Disney and still watch Disney while I'm sick or if I've just had a bad day, and it always makes me feel better. I like to think that I have turned out just fine, and I have other friends that love Disney just as much (if not more so sometimes) as I do :)
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Holidays
I am one that is all about holidays, even the ones that are mainly there for just commercial use. My favorite holiday is Christmas, but not for commercial use. I love it because God gave us the greatest gift out there. He gave us His son, and then His son died for all of us, so that we may not fear death. I love being w/ family during Christmas, and I love giving presents. I like getting them too, but giving them makes me feel so much better. Chris and I are thinking about getting creative on Christmas after we get married. We're thinking of going and helping others out possibly, and not exchanging tons and tons of gifts.
I also love Independence day. Nothing says summer like hanging w/ friends, having a barbecue and blowing stuff up. Ever since Chris and I have been together we always get together w/ our friend Nathan and we just start blowing everything up. We put all kinds of fireworks together, try to fire off 25 bottled rockets at once, and light a whole thing of firecrackers and throwing them. It's a miracle that none of us has ended up in the hospital yet.
New Year's is another fun holiday. We sometimes blow stuff up on this holiday, but not as much lately. I like looking back all night and remembering the pervious year and thinking what I can do to make the coming year better. I love giving Chris that first kiss of the year and toasting. It's always hard to think of resolutions, but I do, and I do my best to stick to them too.
I know that there are a ton of people that hate Valentine's Day, but I don't. I love any opportunity that I can get to give Chris a present. He has always been awesome and he gets me random presents every now and then, and he's always buying my dinner. I know most of you think "Well, he's the guy. He's supposed to", but I always like giving him stuff and treating him to stuff, because I don't get the chance to do it very often.
Easter is awesome. I kinda think of it as the sequel to Christmas. I love that we celebrate Christ's resurrection When I lived w/ my parents we would try to watch The Passion on Good Friday. Chris hasn't seen the movie, but I don't think that everyone has to see it. You should want to see it and not be forced into it, and I don't think he wants to see it, and he has his reasons, so I understand. It was very hard for me to see the first time. I don't like the Easter Bunny though. There should be more lambs on Easter in my opinion. When I was younger I loved going out and getting my Easter dress for Easter mass, and I still like finding cute dresses to wear for Easter services. I know that looking cute isn't what it's about. I am very thankful for the savior that we have :)
I also enjoy Thanksgiving. I love the time I get to spend w/ family, and it's not just my family, I get to spend time w/ Chris's family too. Somehow we manage to spend time w/ both families some years instead of just having to pick one. I'm not sure what we'll do if we end up in Baltimore, but we'll see.
Other holidays like Labor Day, President's Day, and Veteran's Day have awesome sales, and I try to make it out to take full advantage of them. I do like Veteran's Day. I like that our country has a day just to honor those who are serving or who have served and others that have died serving.
I can't really say much about Mother's and Father's day because I'm not a mother and Chris isn't a father. I used to try to make my mom stuff when I was little. I remember one year I tried to do breakfast in bed for her. My dad just wants to be left alone so that he can sleep in, and no complaining about what he wants to watch on TV. My dad's birthday falls on Mother's Day every now and then too, so I would do my best to be on best behavior for them when I was younger.
I know that's not all of the holidays, but those are the ones I enjoy. I can't think of holidays that I don't like. There are days I don't like, like the beginning of Daylight Savings Time. I am not a fan of losing an hour of sleep. Hope this post wasn't too boring haha
I also love Independence day. Nothing says summer like hanging w/ friends, having a barbecue and blowing stuff up. Ever since Chris and I have been together we always get together w/ our friend Nathan and we just start blowing everything up. We put all kinds of fireworks together, try to fire off 25 bottled rockets at once, and light a whole thing of firecrackers and throwing them. It's a miracle that none of us has ended up in the hospital yet.
New Year's is another fun holiday. We sometimes blow stuff up on this holiday, but not as much lately. I like looking back all night and remembering the pervious year and thinking what I can do to make the coming year better. I love giving Chris that first kiss of the year and toasting. It's always hard to think of resolutions, but I do, and I do my best to stick to them too.
I know that there are a ton of people that hate Valentine's Day, but I don't. I love any opportunity that I can get to give Chris a present. He has always been awesome and he gets me random presents every now and then, and he's always buying my dinner. I know most of you think "Well, he's the guy. He's supposed to", but I always like giving him stuff and treating him to stuff, because I don't get the chance to do it very often.
Easter is awesome. I kinda think of it as the sequel to Christmas. I love that we celebrate Christ's resurrection When I lived w/ my parents we would try to watch The Passion on Good Friday. Chris hasn't seen the movie, but I don't think that everyone has to see it. You should want to see it and not be forced into it, and I don't think he wants to see it, and he has his reasons, so I understand. It was very hard for me to see the first time. I don't like the Easter Bunny though. There should be more lambs on Easter in my opinion. When I was younger I loved going out and getting my Easter dress for Easter mass, and I still like finding cute dresses to wear for Easter services. I know that looking cute isn't what it's about. I am very thankful for the savior that we have :)
I also enjoy Thanksgiving. I love the time I get to spend w/ family, and it's not just my family, I get to spend time w/ Chris's family too. Somehow we manage to spend time w/ both families some years instead of just having to pick one. I'm not sure what we'll do if we end up in Baltimore, but we'll see.
Other holidays like Labor Day, President's Day, and Veteran's Day have awesome sales, and I try to make it out to take full advantage of them. I do like Veteran's Day. I like that our country has a day just to honor those who are serving or who have served and others that have died serving.
I can't really say much about Mother's and Father's day because I'm not a mother and Chris isn't a father. I used to try to make my mom stuff when I was little. I remember one year I tried to do breakfast in bed for her. My dad just wants to be left alone so that he can sleep in, and no complaining about what he wants to watch on TV. My dad's birthday falls on Mother's Day every now and then too, so I would do my best to be on best behavior for them when I was younger.
I know that's not all of the holidays, but those are the ones I enjoy. I can't think of holidays that I don't like. There are days I don't like, like the beginning of Daylight Savings Time. I am not a fan of losing an hour of sleep. Hope this post wasn't too boring haha
Monday, March 18, 2013
Makeup
Makeup is something that I have loved for as long as I can remember. There was one time when my family went to the beach one summer when I was little. We made a pit stop at my mom's best friend's house. That night my mom and her friend let me and her daughter give them makeovers. I was only 4 or 5, so it was a clown from the 80s kinda makeover.
My best friend when I was little got to use makeup before me, so when I would go over to her house I would play w/ it. Another one of my friends in school brought makeup to school, so she would let me borrow her makeup and I would go to the bathroom and put it on. My mom got mad at me when I would sneak makeup on. I didn't start wearing makeup until I got into the 8th grade. I remember the first palette my mom got me, as well the blush and the lip gloss and the pencil liner. I was so happy! I had always wanted to wear makeup
After I graduated from high school I found this wonderful makeup guru on youtube who goes by the screen name xsparkage. I watch all of her tutorials just about. She's done a series on Twilight characters, Disney princesses, Hunger Games district inspired looks, and all kinds of other inspired looks. I have learned a lot about makeup and the best ways to apply makeup from her.
When I was in D.C. in 2007 we were in a big mall near the Pentagon, and I went into a Sephora for the first time, and I found an amazing pencil eye liner from a brand called Urban Decay, and we never got a place around here that sold Urban Decay until Ulta opened. I was soo happy, and my makeup guru loves using Urban Decay. They have amazing products, and they don't test on animals either.
One reason why I love makeup is that you can hide how terrible you're feeling. You could have a fever of 101 and look like you're ready for a night out if you wanted. You can hide blemishes or pimples or even birth marks or freckles that you don't want to be seen. You can make yourself look as pretty as you want. You can even make yourself look like someone else if you know how to do it right.
When it came time to start planning out the wedding I wasn't sure about getting a makeup artist. Chris and I are on a tight budget, and I'm pretty confident in how I do my makeup, but my photographer recommended a couple, and the one I chose uses some Urban Decay products, and is even part of the Urban Decay professional artist program. If it wasn't for the fact that I really wanted to have airbrushed makeup on the wedding day I would be getting her to put the new Urban Decay Naked foundation on me. That stuff is amazing!
One thing that goes hand in hand w/ makeup is facial cleanser and stuff like that. Right now I use St. Ives for just normal every day wash when I haven't worn any or not a lot of makeup, but when I do wear makeup I use Mary Kay's Velocity and the Velocity moisturizer I use every night. Every now and then I'll do a mask or I'll buy some pore strips for my nose. I would really like to try Urban Decay's makeup remover one day. The only thing about Urban Decay is it can get a little pricey. The foundation I mentioned earlier runs at about $40. I fully believe though that Urban Decay products are worth every penny. They are true high quality products.
If you can't tell I am a huge Urban Decay lover. I have the Book of Shadows IV right now and some of the colors are almost out, and are just for this set, which kinda sucks. I went to Ulta yesterday and looked at replacing it w/ a similar color and one eye shadow is $18. Their shadows are special and very rich and apply wonderfully. They've just updated their formula for these new eye shadows and fall out is supposed to be less w/ newer shadows. If I just had $500 to blow I would buy so much of their stuff. I'm also wanting to try smashbox and too faced as well, so I would try a couple of those products as well.
I hope that you liked this little insight of how crazy I am over makeup :D
My best friend when I was little got to use makeup before me, so when I would go over to her house I would play w/ it. Another one of my friends in school brought makeup to school, so she would let me borrow her makeup and I would go to the bathroom and put it on. My mom got mad at me when I would sneak makeup on. I didn't start wearing makeup until I got into the 8th grade. I remember the first palette my mom got me, as well the blush and the lip gloss and the pencil liner. I was so happy! I had always wanted to wear makeup
After I graduated from high school I found this wonderful makeup guru on youtube who goes by the screen name xsparkage. I watch all of her tutorials just about. She's done a series on Twilight characters, Disney princesses, Hunger Games district inspired looks, and all kinds of other inspired looks. I have learned a lot about makeup and the best ways to apply makeup from her.
When I was in D.C. in 2007 we were in a big mall near the Pentagon, and I went into a Sephora for the first time, and I found an amazing pencil eye liner from a brand called Urban Decay, and we never got a place around here that sold Urban Decay until Ulta opened. I was soo happy, and my makeup guru loves using Urban Decay. They have amazing products, and they don't test on animals either.
One reason why I love makeup is that you can hide how terrible you're feeling. You could have a fever of 101 and look like you're ready for a night out if you wanted. You can hide blemishes or pimples or even birth marks or freckles that you don't want to be seen. You can make yourself look as pretty as you want. You can even make yourself look like someone else if you know how to do it right.
When it came time to start planning out the wedding I wasn't sure about getting a makeup artist. Chris and I are on a tight budget, and I'm pretty confident in how I do my makeup, but my photographer recommended a couple, and the one I chose uses some Urban Decay products, and is even part of the Urban Decay professional artist program. If it wasn't for the fact that I really wanted to have airbrushed makeup on the wedding day I would be getting her to put the new Urban Decay Naked foundation on me. That stuff is amazing!
One thing that goes hand in hand w/ makeup is facial cleanser and stuff like that. Right now I use St. Ives for just normal every day wash when I haven't worn any or not a lot of makeup, but when I do wear makeup I use Mary Kay's Velocity and the Velocity moisturizer I use every night. Every now and then I'll do a mask or I'll buy some pore strips for my nose. I would really like to try Urban Decay's makeup remover one day. The only thing about Urban Decay is it can get a little pricey. The foundation I mentioned earlier runs at about $40. I fully believe though that Urban Decay products are worth every penny. They are true high quality products.
If you can't tell I am a huge Urban Decay lover. I have the Book of Shadows IV right now and some of the colors are almost out, and are just for this set, which kinda sucks. I went to Ulta yesterday and looked at replacing it w/ a similar color and one eye shadow is $18. Their shadows are special and very rich and apply wonderfully. They've just updated their formula for these new eye shadows and fall out is supposed to be less w/ newer shadows. If I just had $500 to blow I would buy so much of their stuff. I'm also wanting to try smashbox and too faced as well, so I would try a couple of those products as well.
I hope that you liked this little insight of how crazy I am over makeup :D
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Animals
If you are around me for about 5 minutes you will learn very quickly that I am an animal person. I am not a dog person, or a cat person. I love all animals! I want to own all types of different animals through out my life. I want to have hedge hogs, chinchillas, hamsters, a slow loris, and maybe even a bird or a lizard one day too :)
All animals are a part of God's creation. I get kinda ticked when people say that animals don't have souls or it's just a dog/cat or w/e other animal. Yes, it is a dog/cat or w/e animal, but it is a part of this Earth and a part of God's creation. They all personalities and they all feel. They may not feel the same emotions we feel, but I'm sure that there are similarities. I can tell when an animal loves me and is happy to be around me. I can also tell when an animal is mad, sad, scared, and/or surprised.
I do believe that animals go to heaven when they die. I fully believe that they have souls. I think that God put them here as our faithful companions to love us when we feel like no one else does. I know that Sugar, Pepper, Taz, Pixie, and Prissy are up in heaven just waiting to see my family and me. I had a dream a couple of nights after I put Sugar down, and it was me playing w/ her in heaven. It helped me get over her. If I can see her and play w/ her in my dreams then I know that I can see her whenever I want to.
There is a cute story of this little boy that is about to go through his family putting down the family dog, and the vet is asking the boy if he understands why the dog has to die. The little boy's explanation is that God put us on this planet to learn to love and to be kind to one another, and that animals learn it faster than humans do, so they don't hafta to be here on this Earth as long, and that's why they die before us. I cried when I read that story, because it sounds true.
Animals just want to be loved and played w/ (unless it's a wild animal, they just want to survive). They all have a purpose on this Earth just like we do. They're like our little cheer leaders or our support team, which ever you prefer. When life has got us beaten down and we don't feel like dealing w/ it, a loving nudge from our wonderful pet always makes us feel so much better. I know after long day I feel so much better when I come home and Tora is purring as loud as she can and she wants me to pet her and love on her. The earlier part of that day seems like days ago once that happens.
People that abuse animals or hunt animals down to sell tusks/horns/fur just seem evil to me. I don't get how a person can take advantage of such innocent animals and kill them for just a part. I'm okay when people shave/sheer sheep for their wool, because from my understanding it doesn't hurt them, and causes no pain afterwards. Yes, I understand they may be a bit cool after it's done, but (correct me if I'm wrong) I believe their fur grows back pretty quick. When people test on animals for certain products I'm iffy about it. There is some testing that I'm okay w/ and some I'm not okay w/. I won't go all the way into detail, but if it harms them I'm not cool w/ it.
All in all, animals are awesome. If you don't own any animals you should at least go and buy a little hamster or two or maybe a cute little fish. If you have the time and money to get a cat or a dog do it. You won't regret it...unless you are allergic. You may regret it then. I'm allergic to both dogs and cats, but it's not too bad to where I can't own them. Tora sleeps near my face half the time, and I'm still alive :) I love that little kitten :D
All animals are a part of God's creation. I get kinda ticked when people say that animals don't have souls or it's just a dog/cat or w/e other animal. Yes, it is a dog/cat or w/e animal, but it is a part of this Earth and a part of God's creation. They all personalities and they all feel. They may not feel the same emotions we feel, but I'm sure that there are similarities. I can tell when an animal loves me and is happy to be around me. I can also tell when an animal is mad, sad, scared, and/or surprised.
I do believe that animals go to heaven when they die. I fully believe that they have souls. I think that God put them here as our faithful companions to love us when we feel like no one else does. I know that Sugar, Pepper, Taz, Pixie, and Prissy are up in heaven just waiting to see my family and me. I had a dream a couple of nights after I put Sugar down, and it was me playing w/ her in heaven. It helped me get over her. If I can see her and play w/ her in my dreams then I know that I can see her whenever I want to.
There is a cute story of this little boy that is about to go through his family putting down the family dog, and the vet is asking the boy if he understands why the dog has to die. The little boy's explanation is that God put us on this planet to learn to love and to be kind to one another, and that animals learn it faster than humans do, so they don't hafta to be here on this Earth as long, and that's why they die before us. I cried when I read that story, because it sounds true.
Animals just want to be loved and played w/ (unless it's a wild animal, they just want to survive). They all have a purpose on this Earth just like we do. They're like our little cheer leaders or our support team, which ever you prefer. When life has got us beaten down and we don't feel like dealing w/ it, a loving nudge from our wonderful pet always makes us feel so much better. I know after long day I feel so much better when I come home and Tora is purring as loud as she can and she wants me to pet her and love on her. The earlier part of that day seems like days ago once that happens.
People that abuse animals or hunt animals down to sell tusks/horns/fur just seem evil to me. I don't get how a person can take advantage of such innocent animals and kill them for just a part. I'm okay when people shave/sheer sheep for their wool, because from my understanding it doesn't hurt them, and causes no pain afterwards. Yes, I understand they may be a bit cool after it's done, but (correct me if I'm wrong) I believe their fur grows back pretty quick. When people test on animals for certain products I'm iffy about it. There is some testing that I'm okay w/ and some I'm not okay w/. I won't go all the way into detail, but if it harms them I'm not cool w/ it.
All in all, animals are awesome. If you don't own any animals you should at least go and buy a little hamster or two or maybe a cute little fish. If you have the time and money to get a cat or a dog do it. You won't regret it...unless you are allergic. You may regret it then. I'm allergic to both dogs and cats, but it's not too bad to where I can't own them. Tora sleeps near my face half the time, and I'm still alive :) I love that little kitten :D
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Our Bridal Shower!
I am so super pooped right now. I didn't sleep well last night since I was so excited for the shower today. I was so happy that I was going to be able to wear my Grandma Zink's pearls. They're too much of an off white for me to wear during the wedding, so I'm trying to wear them for other stuff leading up to the wedding.
My amazing flute teacher that I have known since the fall of 2002 threw it at her house, and my bridesmaids that are here in town helped her w/ everything, and almost all of them wore dresses. The ones that I didn't expect to wear a dress wore one, and the one I expected to wear one didn't so that was kind of funny.
The games were hilarious. There was one the I pinned on pinterest where Chris is asked questions, and I hafta guess what his answers are. When I get one right I get a smartie and when I get one wrong I hafta put a piece of gum in my mouth, and Miss Becca (flute teacher) got marshmallows instead of gum because of my TMJ. I gotta about 50% of them right, and I think I had like 10 or so marshmallows shoved in my mouth. One of the other games was where all of the ladies had to put a plate on their head, and they were supposed to draw what they think I'm going to look like in my dress w/out moving the plate, and Chris and I got to judge the winner of that, and the the other funny game was all of the ladies dividing into 2 teams and designing a wedding dress out of toilet paper and tape, and Chris and I judged that as well. The last one Chris and I had to leave the room and everyone had to remember what we were wearing.
The cake was beautiful and Daphne made us sausage balls bc they are AWESOME. I don't know why but every time we get together she has to or her mom has to make them. I love eating them. The punch was also wonderful as well.
We got some amazing gifts. We got a really pretty bakery entertaining set. It's got a cupcake tin, casserole dishes, and bowls. Then we also got a Gorden Ramsey pots and pans set, TV trays, silverware, dish ware, colander, lotsa towels. I finally got my turquoise tea pot that I have shown to almost everyone, and a really nice crock pot. We have some really nice wall art now as well. I have an iron that I get to use that I'm excited about :D We got some monogrammed coasters. I also got a beautiful crystal penguin thing.
We are so blessed and so thankful for all of the wonderful people we are surrounded by. I love my friends and family. I hate that there were some people that weren't able to make it, but I'm sure I will see them for the wedding.
Sandy went above and beyond and crafted a beautiful dream catcher. She took the thumb print guest book idea and went way out of the box w/ it. On the dream catcher is a tree, and then there are feather like leaves that are coming down from the dream catcher w/ the thumb prints and peoples names on the back. She also crafted a date night box for Chris and me, as well as a bouquet that I am going to use for the rehearsal.
Miss Becca set up a photo booth in her sun room, and we all had fun w/ that. I had pictures taken w/ everyone. I can't wait to see what all the pictures are going to be.
Everyone was awesome and so wonderful. Truly, thank you all from the bottom of my heart. We have 8 weeks to go now :)
My amazing flute teacher that I have known since the fall of 2002 threw it at her house, and my bridesmaids that are here in town helped her w/ everything, and almost all of them wore dresses. The ones that I didn't expect to wear a dress wore one, and the one I expected to wear one didn't so that was kind of funny.
The games were hilarious. There was one the I pinned on pinterest where Chris is asked questions, and I hafta guess what his answers are. When I get one right I get a smartie and when I get one wrong I hafta put a piece of gum in my mouth, and Miss Becca (flute teacher) got marshmallows instead of gum because of my TMJ. I gotta about 50% of them right, and I think I had like 10 or so marshmallows shoved in my mouth. One of the other games was where all of the ladies had to put a plate on their head, and they were supposed to draw what they think I'm going to look like in my dress w/out moving the plate, and Chris and I got to judge the winner of that, and the the other funny game was all of the ladies dividing into 2 teams and designing a wedding dress out of toilet paper and tape, and Chris and I judged that as well. The last one Chris and I had to leave the room and everyone had to remember what we were wearing.
The cake was beautiful and Daphne made us sausage balls bc they are AWESOME. I don't know why but every time we get together she has to or her mom has to make them. I love eating them. The punch was also wonderful as well.
We got some amazing gifts. We got a really pretty bakery entertaining set. It's got a cupcake tin, casserole dishes, and bowls. Then we also got a Gorden Ramsey pots and pans set, TV trays, silverware, dish ware, colander, lotsa towels. I finally got my turquoise tea pot that I have shown to almost everyone, and a really nice crock pot. We have some really nice wall art now as well. I have an iron that I get to use that I'm excited about :D We got some monogrammed coasters. I also got a beautiful crystal penguin thing.
We are so blessed and so thankful for all of the wonderful people we are surrounded by. I love my friends and family. I hate that there were some people that weren't able to make it, but I'm sure I will see them for the wedding.
Sandy went above and beyond and crafted a beautiful dream catcher. She took the thumb print guest book idea and went way out of the box w/ it. On the dream catcher is a tree, and then there are feather like leaves that are coming down from the dream catcher w/ the thumb prints and peoples names on the back. She also crafted a date night box for Chris and me, as well as a bouquet that I am going to use for the rehearsal.
Miss Becca set up a photo booth in her sun room, and we all had fun w/ that. I had pictures taken w/ everyone. I can't wait to see what all the pictures are going to be.
Everyone was awesome and so wonderful. Truly, thank you all from the bottom of my heart. We have 8 weeks to go now :)
Friday, March 15, 2013
Dancing!
When I was in 5th grade I took jazz and ballet. I had to quit ballet though, because my ankles weren't always agreeing w/ me. I probably saved myself from an early ankle surgery if I had continued. Another reason why I quit was because there were some very mean girls that were in my class as well, and I really didn't like being bullied all the time. I continued w/ jazz and there was only one other girl in my class, and the student teacher choreographed our whole routine for the recital. Our real dance instructor was hardly ever there, and I never really liked her, and I'm kinda glad that this school isn't around anymore. If I had continued w/ dance my mom said she would've moved me to the Dance Company.
I gave up dance in the 6th grade when I chose band. I never regret this decision. I love band, and I miss marching band every now and then. I don't miss band camp in the middle of the summer though and taking bets on how many rookies would pass out. I had a lot of friends on the dance team, and a very good friend named Maddy. I wanted to try out for the dance team my freshman year going into sophomore year. Maddy helped teach me as much as she could in a 2 week period. I didn't make it on to the team, but I think that it was best since it would've interfered w/ marching band.
My senior year I took culinary instead of concert band, and made a wonderful friend named Kaitlyn. She introduced Chris and me to ballroom dancing. I loved it. It was on a Halloween and her instructors were such wonderful leaders that I felt awesome doing a waltz and a tango. We have also learned how to swing.
We have continued the swing dancing since Katie has introduced us to this community. We also have a good friend that we've known since high school in it as well, and he goes and does competitions. He is helping Chris and I learn some more for the wedding. Katie is going to help us waltz better since we only know the basic steps and no turning or anything like that. Chris loves dancing w/ me. He hated the dancing we did in high school where it was just grinding and sexual. I didn't really care, because that's what everyone was doing. I can't wait for everyone that Chris and I love to see us dancing. It's going to be amazing.
I do find myself missing ballet though. I have so many friends that did ballet and went pretty far into it. I always wanted to try point, but after my ankle surgery in 2009 I don't know if that will ever be possible. I sometimes do some of the warm ups that we would do in class. I can still keep my arches up and do a pliet. I hope that I can one day find a beginners adult ballet class and just start all over. I miss dance so much sometimes. I really think if I had stayed w/ it I would've been really good, but then I would've never stayed in band and I wouldn't have half the friends that I have now.
Dance is wonderful. It's an awesome way to show emotion or to tell a story. I love it and I miss it so much sometimes, but I am so thankful that I do have someone that loves to dance w/ me when we do get the chances to go out and dance :)
I gave up dance in the 6th grade when I chose band. I never regret this decision. I love band, and I miss marching band every now and then. I don't miss band camp in the middle of the summer though and taking bets on how many rookies would pass out. I had a lot of friends on the dance team, and a very good friend named Maddy. I wanted to try out for the dance team my freshman year going into sophomore year. Maddy helped teach me as much as she could in a 2 week period. I didn't make it on to the team, but I think that it was best since it would've interfered w/ marching band.
My senior year I took culinary instead of concert band, and made a wonderful friend named Kaitlyn. She introduced Chris and me to ballroom dancing. I loved it. It was on a Halloween and her instructors were such wonderful leaders that I felt awesome doing a waltz and a tango. We have also learned how to swing.
We have continued the swing dancing since Katie has introduced us to this community. We also have a good friend that we've known since high school in it as well, and he goes and does competitions. He is helping Chris and I learn some more for the wedding. Katie is going to help us waltz better since we only know the basic steps and no turning or anything like that. Chris loves dancing w/ me. He hated the dancing we did in high school where it was just grinding and sexual. I didn't really care, because that's what everyone was doing. I can't wait for everyone that Chris and I love to see us dancing. It's going to be amazing.
I do find myself missing ballet though. I have so many friends that did ballet and went pretty far into it. I always wanted to try point, but after my ankle surgery in 2009 I don't know if that will ever be possible. I sometimes do some of the warm ups that we would do in class. I can still keep my arches up and do a pliet. I hope that I can one day find a beginners adult ballet class and just start all over. I miss dance so much sometimes. I really think if I had stayed w/ it I would've been really good, but then I would've never stayed in band and I wouldn't have half the friends that I have now.
Dance is wonderful. It's an awesome way to show emotion or to tell a story. I love it and I miss it so much sometimes, but I am so thankful that I do have someone that loves to dance w/ me when we do get the chances to go out and dance :)
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Love
I feel like this word is thrown around a lot, and I'm guilty of saying love a lot too. In Japan there is a way to say I love you, it goes Aishiteru (eye-she-tear-u (something like that)). No one in Japan says it though, bc it's an overly dramatic way of saying "I love you". It's like saying "I love you so much I would take a knife, gun, bomb, anything for you bc I love you w/ my whole heart and soul!" Married couples don't even really say it either. They use another way to say it. They don't play around w/ the phrase at all. A friend of mine explained it as being a "Shakespearean" way of saying I love you.
In America we say "I love that shirt!" or "I love your shoes!" we just throw the word around. When did we start doing that? When I think of the word love this is what I think of:
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT)
In America we say "I love that shirt!" or "I love your shoes!" we just throw the word around. When did we start doing that? When I think of the word love this is what I think of:
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT)
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
That is what comes to mind when I think of love. I think of such a powerful relationship that it not only changes you and wants you to be better, but it does that to the other person and it makes other people notice and it changes them too. That is what God's love and Jesus's love did. It was sooo powerful that it changed the world. God's love and Jesus's sacrifice was such an amazing act of love it empowered people to follow in their example. It changed them.
Chris's love for me has changed me into a better person, and bc of that I want to love him more and everyone else more. I want to be more selfless and I want people to see just how powerful of an emotion love is. Love consumes you. When you're in love you keep thinking "What can I do to put a smile on this persons face?" you're always wanting to make them happy. You want to show them just how special of a person they are to you. It's a wonderful feeling.
Chris and I have gone through some pre-marital counseling and we have read 2 amazing books. We have read Love and Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerchis and The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. Chris and I learned a lot by each other when we got through those books, and when we have arguments those books have shown us a healthy way to approach them and how to handle them. We also got a 5 Love Languages daily devotional Bible that we've slowly been working our way through.
I want to believe in love at first sight, but it's hard. Chris and I never experienced that, and we don't really hear those stories anymore. It usually sounds more like lust at first sight instead of love. Chris and I fell for each other quick, but it wasn't instantaneous by any means. I don't have any friends that have been in a relationship and stayed in that relationship that started as love at first sight. If you're reading this and you have experienced it, and you're still w/ that person and are even married to that person, then rock on. That's awesome, but that just doesn't happen anymore. High school sweethearts don't happen very often either, but look at Chris and me. We never did any of that on and off crap. We have always been on. We never took a break. There is a saying that I found that says, "I may have considered killing them, but never divorcing them," and that's the truth. Chris can drive me crazy mad sometimes, but I have (almost) never thought of leaving him. It has happened once though, but never since then. He's stuck w/ me for life now.
Cherish love. Divorce rates in this country are crazy. I want people to see that love is real and love can last forever. Being in a relationship is having a second job, but you hafta love this job. You hafta strive to be better at this job. When you wake up you hafta be happy about the person that you're waking up next to, and if you aren't living w/ them or aren't married to them then they're probably the first person that pops into your head when you wake up. Love is amazing and an all consuming emotion. Love makes you do crazy things that you normally wouldn't, but you love doing it. Be careful w/ love though. You may be head over heels in love w/ a person, but if that person doesn't love you back then love is going to hurt you. It's the most amazing emotion, and it can also be the most dangerous.
If you're in love w/ someone and they act like they love you then you're going to be taken for a ride. They are going to use you and use those feelings for them against you in any way that they can. Don't let love blind you so much that you can't see these heartless people abuse you like that. Don't let them get away w/ any kind of abuse or cheating if they keep claiming that they love you and they won't ever do it again. Keep your head on your shoulders!
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
My Maid of Honor
I have had the pleasure of knowing Sandy since 6th grade. We sat next to each other when all of the elementary schools in the Madison City school district got their bands together to put on a concert, and I sat next to this girl who has braids all in her hair.
We got to know each other a little bit in 7th grade, but we started to become real good friends in 8th grade. We had a couple of classes together, and we had some friends in common. We also got to go to Disney World together. While we were in Disney World Sandy wore her bondage pants and a Happy Bunny hoodie. Finally we got to be in band together in 9th grade so we got to hang out even more.
When we got to high school I went through this stupid phase, and for some reason I didn't want Sandy as a friend. I don't know why, and to this day I still want to kick myself in the face for what I did to her. Luckily, Sandy understand I do stupid things and still wanted to be my friend.
There was one time when we had lunch together in high school and she was sitting across from me, and Chris was sitting next to me, and I told her everything that I had gotten Chris for Valentine's Day in a normal speaking voice, and I also raised my voice a little since the lunchroom was loud, and Chris had no idea what I was saying! Sandy and I still joke about it.
If anyone ever gets to meet this girl, be thankful. She is one of the sweetest and most generous people I have ever met. She doesn't really hate people, but don't piss her off. She may have a sweet voice, but she can get scary sometimes. She's in her last semester of nursing school right now, and I'm so proud of her for getting this far. She is an extremely hard worker and a perfectionist at times.
Sandy knows how to play flute like I do, and she also can play piano very well, she's been learning violin and drums as well. She can also draw and paint, and I can't. I can't even draw a stick figure correctly.
It was a no-brainer when I chose her to be my maid of honor. She is the best person I can rely on to help keep my head on shoulders and not become a bridezilla. I told her if I am a bridezilla at all that she has full permission to smack me across the face, but having been planning this wedding for over a year has helped keep the bridezilla moments at bay. She's also going to be a nurse, and I am a clutz, so having a nurse right there by my side is definitely a plus.
Sandy has been through a lot in her life. She hasn't really dated much, and there was one time when a guy broke her heart, and all of her friends and I were ready to go and plan a murder. No one messes w/ her. After everything Sandy has been through I am so glad that she is still the sweetest person I know. I'm also extremely happy that I get to make her wear a dress for the wedding :P She never really wears dresses. She almost always wears a jeans and a t-shirt or her scrubs, and she's really starting to chose her scrubs more, and I don't blame her. Those are really comfortable. I'm trying to remember (other than prom) when I saw her in a dress last, and it's been awhile.
All in all though, Sandy is one of the best people I have had the pleasure of knowing for a long time. I am truly humbled to have such great friends in my life. She is a sister I never had, and she is a wonderful person to go to for advice. Her and Chris get along great, and sometimes they both kinda gang up on me and make fun of me, but in a playful manner. Thank you Sandy, for always being by my side, and for being by my side when I get to marry Chris. I wouldn't want it any other way. I love you so much!!
We got to know each other a little bit in 7th grade, but we started to become real good friends in 8th grade. We had a couple of classes together, and we had some friends in common. We also got to go to Disney World together. While we were in Disney World Sandy wore her bondage pants and a Happy Bunny hoodie. Finally we got to be in band together in 9th grade so we got to hang out even more.
When we got to high school I went through this stupid phase, and for some reason I didn't want Sandy as a friend. I don't know why, and to this day I still want to kick myself in the face for what I did to her. Luckily, Sandy understand I do stupid things and still wanted to be my friend.
There was one time when we had lunch together in high school and she was sitting across from me, and Chris was sitting next to me, and I told her everything that I had gotten Chris for Valentine's Day in a normal speaking voice, and I also raised my voice a little since the lunchroom was loud, and Chris had no idea what I was saying! Sandy and I still joke about it.
If anyone ever gets to meet this girl, be thankful. She is one of the sweetest and most generous people I have ever met. She doesn't really hate people, but don't piss her off. She may have a sweet voice, but she can get scary sometimes. She's in her last semester of nursing school right now, and I'm so proud of her for getting this far. She is an extremely hard worker and a perfectionist at times.
Sandy knows how to play flute like I do, and she also can play piano very well, she's been learning violin and drums as well. She can also draw and paint, and I can't. I can't even draw a stick figure correctly.
It was a no-brainer when I chose her to be my maid of honor. She is the best person I can rely on to help keep my head on shoulders and not become a bridezilla. I told her if I am a bridezilla at all that she has full permission to smack me across the face, but having been planning this wedding for over a year has helped keep the bridezilla moments at bay. She's also going to be a nurse, and I am a clutz, so having a nurse right there by my side is definitely a plus.
Sandy has been through a lot in her life. She hasn't really dated much, and there was one time when a guy broke her heart, and all of her friends and I were ready to go and plan a murder. No one messes w/ her. After everything Sandy has been through I am so glad that she is still the sweetest person I know. I'm also extremely happy that I get to make her wear a dress for the wedding :P She never really wears dresses. She almost always wears a jeans and a t-shirt or her scrubs, and she's really starting to chose her scrubs more, and I don't blame her. Those are really comfortable. I'm trying to remember (other than prom) when I saw her in a dress last, and it's been awhile.
All in all though, Sandy is one of the best people I have had the pleasure of knowing for a long time. I am truly humbled to have such great friends in my life. She is a sister I never had, and she is a wonderful person to go to for advice. Her and Chris get along great, and sometimes they both kinda gang up on me and make fun of me, but in a playful manner. Thank you Sandy, for always being by my side, and for being by my side when I get to marry Chris. I wouldn't want it any other way. I love you so much!!
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Friends :)
I don't have throngs of friends. I only have a handful of very close friends, and I wouldn't trade those relationships for anything. I have some friends that I've known since kindergarten and a few that I met when I was at Calhoun. These people are very special to me, and here is what I think should go on when we are friends w/ someone.
It's a 2-way road. You should both call/text one another. It shouldn't be one friends that's constantly trying to get in touch w/ the other, and the other is constantly blowing her off. That's not fair, and that's not a very good friendship in my opinion.
I don't believe in "frenemies". If you claim to be friends w/ someone then you shouldn't talk behind their back or anything else rude. You shouldn't try and sabotage an outfit just so that you look good and they look like an idiot. Who ever came up w/ that term needs to find some real friends. These kinds of relationships can seriously hurt a person and do some big time damage. I've never had one, bc I think that kind of stuff is just stupid. Being "friends" w/ someone bc of social status or something like that just shows how desperate for friends you are, and that person will take complete advantage of that and you, so don't let them.
I have a lot more guy friends than girl friends. Girls play mean when they get into fights, and I'm guilty of playing dirty as well, but I've had a few fights w/ a few guys friends and all we did was just sit down and talk it out, and sometimes we talked it out online. I've always known more guys than girls anyways since some girls, when I was growing up, thought that I was weird bc I was into guy things. I love to play video games, and I'm into anime, and some girls thought that it was too weird for them, but bc of those couple of "odd" traits I have some of the coolest guy friends I could ask for. They are like my other brothers. I love them so much, and I love when I can finally beat someone in a game, even if it is just a fluke.
The girl friends that I do have aren't super girly either. My best friend, if she could, would wear her scrubs to the wedding and just kick back like that. She is one of the coolest people ever, but I'll talk more about her tomorrow. She's so awesome she gets her own blog
Whenever you see these special people in your life hug them. Whenever I see my friends I always give them a big hug and a big smile, bc I am so truly happy to see them. When you're surrounded by toddlers all day, seeing another human that you can intellectually converse w/ is an awesome thing! I don't get to see my friends as much as I would want, bc so many of us have conflicting schedules or we don't live that close to one another, but when we do get together it's some of the best times I've had. My friends always know how to make me laugh and make me smile, and I am so grateful for them.
For all of my friends that are reading this, please know, I love you so much. You are amazing and I am so truly grateful for you and humbled, bc you are an awesome person. All of my friends are awesome and amazing people. I can't wait to see you guys at the wedding, and if you aren't coming then I promise to post tons of pictures so it'll be like you were there :)
It's a 2-way road. You should both call/text one another. It shouldn't be one friends that's constantly trying to get in touch w/ the other, and the other is constantly blowing her off. That's not fair, and that's not a very good friendship in my opinion.
I don't believe in "frenemies". If you claim to be friends w/ someone then you shouldn't talk behind their back or anything else rude. You shouldn't try and sabotage an outfit just so that you look good and they look like an idiot. Who ever came up w/ that term needs to find some real friends. These kinds of relationships can seriously hurt a person and do some big time damage. I've never had one, bc I think that kind of stuff is just stupid. Being "friends" w/ someone bc of social status or something like that just shows how desperate for friends you are, and that person will take complete advantage of that and you, so don't let them.
I have a lot more guy friends than girl friends. Girls play mean when they get into fights, and I'm guilty of playing dirty as well, but I've had a few fights w/ a few guys friends and all we did was just sit down and talk it out, and sometimes we talked it out online. I've always known more guys than girls anyways since some girls, when I was growing up, thought that I was weird bc I was into guy things. I love to play video games, and I'm into anime, and some girls thought that it was too weird for them, but bc of those couple of "odd" traits I have some of the coolest guy friends I could ask for. They are like my other brothers. I love them so much, and I love when I can finally beat someone in a game, even if it is just a fluke.
The girl friends that I do have aren't super girly either. My best friend, if she could, would wear her scrubs to the wedding and just kick back like that. She is one of the coolest people ever, but I'll talk more about her tomorrow. She's so awesome she gets her own blog
Whenever you see these special people in your life hug them. Whenever I see my friends I always give them a big hug and a big smile, bc I am so truly happy to see them. When you're surrounded by toddlers all day, seeing another human that you can intellectually converse w/ is an awesome thing! I don't get to see my friends as much as I would want, bc so many of us have conflicting schedules or we don't live that close to one another, but when we do get together it's some of the best times I've had. My friends always know how to make me laugh and make me smile, and I am so grateful for them.
For all of my friends that are reading this, please know, I love you so much. You are amazing and I am so truly grateful for you and humbled, bc you are an awesome person. All of my friends are awesome and amazing people. I can't wait to see you guys at the wedding, and if you aren't coming then I promise to post tons of pictures so it'll be like you were there :)
Monday, March 11, 2013
Babies
If you're family and reading this, please don't take offense to this.
I have heard that before I even leave my wedding I'm going to be confronted by tons of family and friends asking "When are you gonna 'expand' the family?" or "When are you gonna put a bun in the over?" or bluntly "When are you guys gonna have kids?". I'm gonna go ahead and tell you this. What Chris and I do after the wedding and beyond, is no one's business. When we decide to start a family I promise to tell everyone. This is me guys, I am the WORST secret keeper, unless it's super important. You guys will know after family has been alerted and all of that, since some of them may not use facebook and can possibly get their feelings hurt if they hear it second handed.
I have been watching my amazing niece and nephew ever since each of them has been born. I was thinking (prior to constantly baby-sitting) I would wait 2-3yrs after marriage to start. Now that I have watched them I have decided it could be anywhere from 5-6yrs! Watching these 2 has been rewarding and has also taught just how much work kids are to watch. I am in no way ready to have kids right now.
I have an implant in my arm that's a form of birth control, and it makes my body think that I'm pregnant. My heart wants to have a baby soon, but my head and my logic will kick in saying "Aww hell naw!". I am not. We, Chris and I, are not ready for a baby, and we won't be for awhile. If I do manage to get pregnant before planned or w/e, then that's that. The Lord will decide when Chris and I will start a family. I always have battles that wage between my head and my heart, and I've noticed that it's my heart that wants and my brain that will say something like "no, you don't really need this right now". It could be the other way around, I'm not sure. I just know that I'm always at war w/ myself lol.
I am looking forward to being a mother one day though. I imagine that it will be a scary and fantastic new experience. I know Chris is going to make an absolutely amazing father as well. We have agreed that our kids are going to be some of the best looking kids on the planet.
We have chosen names for our future kids, and they are Lily Amelia and Logan Alexander. There is some controversy over Lily, since Chris's sister claims that she's already called dibs on it, but we will see what happens when that time comes, and who knows when it will.
My point is: Please don't come to the wedding asking inappropriate questions about when Chris and I will start a family, bc frankly, it is none of your business
I have heard that before I even leave my wedding I'm going to be confronted by tons of family and friends asking "When are you gonna 'expand' the family?" or "When are you gonna put a bun in the over?" or bluntly "When are you guys gonna have kids?". I'm gonna go ahead and tell you this. What Chris and I do after the wedding and beyond, is no one's business. When we decide to start a family I promise to tell everyone. This is me guys, I am the WORST secret keeper, unless it's super important. You guys will know after family has been alerted and all of that, since some of them may not use facebook and can possibly get their feelings hurt if they hear it second handed.
I have been watching my amazing niece and nephew ever since each of them has been born. I was thinking (prior to constantly baby-sitting) I would wait 2-3yrs after marriage to start. Now that I have watched them I have decided it could be anywhere from 5-6yrs! Watching these 2 has been rewarding and has also taught just how much work kids are to watch. I am in no way ready to have kids right now.
I have an implant in my arm that's a form of birth control, and it makes my body think that I'm pregnant. My heart wants to have a baby soon, but my head and my logic will kick in saying "Aww hell naw!". I am not. We, Chris and I, are not ready for a baby, and we won't be for awhile. If I do manage to get pregnant before planned or w/e, then that's that. The Lord will decide when Chris and I will start a family. I always have battles that wage between my head and my heart, and I've noticed that it's my heart that wants and my brain that will say something like "no, you don't really need this right now". It could be the other way around, I'm not sure. I just know that I'm always at war w/ myself lol.
I am looking forward to being a mother one day though. I imagine that it will be a scary and fantastic new experience. I know Chris is going to make an absolutely amazing father as well. We have agreed that our kids are going to be some of the best looking kids on the planet.
We have chosen names for our future kids, and they are Lily Amelia and Logan Alexander. There is some controversy over Lily, since Chris's sister claims that she's already called dibs on it, but we will see what happens when that time comes, and who knows when it will.
My point is: Please don't come to the wedding asking inappropriate questions about when Chris and I will start a family, bc frankly, it is none of your business
Sunday, March 10, 2013
My New Family
When you marry someone you're also married into their family. I know that's already common sense, but some people hate their in laws and don't ever want to be associated w/ them. I don't think that's healthy for the marriage. I know that there are certain circumstances/situations where people don't talk to other family members, but I'm not talking about those kinds of families. I'm talking about where your average husband and wife were raised by an average family, and the husband/wife hates the others family for some reason.
I love the family that I am getting. I have been accepted and loved by Chris's mom's side and his dad's side. I have lived w/ Chris's mom now for over 2yrs, and yes, there are times where she can drive me crazy, and she knows that, but I love her and I am super grateful that she has let me live here w/ her and Chris. I love talking to her about what's happened in the day and what's been going on in general. I can also look to her for a good hug when I need one. She's a really good hugger :D
Chris's dad is fantastic. It sucks that he is all the way in Texas and we only get to see him so much a year, but when we do get to see him we always have such an amazing time. I love seeing how much Chris loves his dad when they're together. I also love Chris's step mom. She is super fun and is so easy to talk to, but I can talk to anyone w/ ease, it's just if they can talk back w/ ease to me is what I love. She also loves dolphins as much as I love penguins. She's just a fun person to be around.
I'm also getting a sister. Missy is amazing. She is one of my bridesmaids, and she lives out in Texas as well. If it wasn't for her and Rachel Clanton I wouldn't be marrying Chris. They pushed me to ask him out (if you remember from my Love Story post).
I have visited w/ Chris's mom's side a lot more since they live in this area. Ever since I spent my first Christmas w/ Chris w/in a couple of months of us going out they have just loved me and welcomed me w/ open arms. They like to know what's been going on in my life and just talking to me.
Chris's dad's side lives a little south from where we currently live, and by a little south I mean close to 3hrs. We've gone there for Thanksgiving an Christmas as much as we can. Chris's dad's brothers and sisters are a little more spread out, but a number of them live close to Clanton (almost right in the middle of Birmingham and Montgomery). They have had the same welcoming and loving attitude. No one has ever shown that they don't like me or anything.
There are a few people on Chris's dad's side that I haven't met, bc they live up on Pennsylvania, but I do get to meet one for the wedding, and I have met his Uncle Ric (he's up there) earlier this past year, bc he was visiting down in Clanton, and I couldn't wait to meet him. We got along great bc he drank red wine and made stuffed mushrooms.
I can't wait to see a lot of this new family that I get to gain at the wedding, and sadly there will be some family that can't make it, and that's okay! I understand that completely. I can't wait to see the family that won't be able to make it, and see them as an official part of the family.
I love the family that I am getting. I have been accepted and loved by Chris's mom's side and his dad's side. I have lived w/ Chris's mom now for over 2yrs, and yes, there are times where she can drive me crazy, and she knows that, but I love her and I am super grateful that she has let me live here w/ her and Chris. I love talking to her about what's happened in the day and what's been going on in general. I can also look to her for a good hug when I need one. She's a really good hugger :D
Chris's dad is fantastic. It sucks that he is all the way in Texas and we only get to see him so much a year, but when we do get to see him we always have such an amazing time. I love seeing how much Chris loves his dad when they're together. I also love Chris's step mom. She is super fun and is so easy to talk to, but I can talk to anyone w/ ease, it's just if they can talk back w/ ease to me is what I love. She also loves dolphins as much as I love penguins. She's just a fun person to be around.
I'm also getting a sister. Missy is amazing. She is one of my bridesmaids, and she lives out in Texas as well. If it wasn't for her and Rachel Clanton I wouldn't be marrying Chris. They pushed me to ask him out (if you remember from my Love Story post).
I have visited w/ Chris's mom's side a lot more since they live in this area. Ever since I spent my first Christmas w/ Chris w/in a couple of months of us going out they have just loved me and welcomed me w/ open arms. They like to know what's been going on in my life and just talking to me.
Chris's dad's side lives a little south from where we currently live, and by a little south I mean close to 3hrs. We've gone there for Thanksgiving an Christmas as much as we can. Chris's dad's brothers and sisters are a little more spread out, but a number of them live close to Clanton (almost right in the middle of Birmingham and Montgomery). They have had the same welcoming and loving attitude. No one has ever shown that they don't like me or anything.
There are a few people on Chris's dad's side that I haven't met, bc they live up on Pennsylvania, but I do get to meet one for the wedding, and I have met his Uncle Ric (he's up there) earlier this past year, bc he was visiting down in Clanton, and I couldn't wait to meet him. We got along great bc he drank red wine and made stuffed mushrooms.
I can't wait to see a lot of this new family that I get to gain at the wedding, and sadly there will be some family that can't make it, and that's okay! I understand that completely. I can't wait to see the family that won't be able to make it, and see them as an official part of the family.
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Tora
I know many of you may know that I lost my dog of over 14yrs died in September of last year. She was old and I put her down. I don't regret anything. That weekend we went to Petco and saw some really cute kittens. Chris and I talked it over and I needed another animal in my life. We got the okay from Linda and the weekend after that we went and found Tora. She was originally being called Fiona by her foster mom, but that didn't seem to suit her. I played around w/ Fifi, Lulu, and a few others, but Tora is what seemed best. Tora is Japanese for "tiger".
It helped getting over Sugar. Sugar had slept in my room w/ me since she was about a year old. I cried almost every night that week I didn't have an animal there w/ me. I needed that small cuddle bug that would sleep close to me.
The first night we had Tora was a NIGHTMARE. She ate some food the vet gave her, bc that's where I was gonna pick her up (and where the foster dropped her off), and then I gave her new food mixed in w/ old food. That's 3 different diets in one day. Her stomach was soo super upset. She was pooping so much. She wasn't making it to her litter box in time. I went through 3 shirts that night bc she pooped on me. We took her straight to the vet the next morning and get her on some medicine and she was de-wormed. I want to say she was de-wormed 2 or 3 times before it all finally went away.
She was super tiny when I first brought her home too. She basically walked under my dresser. She's gotten much bigger now and I haven't seen her go under my dresser in awhile, unless she REALLY wants a toy or something that's under there.
Tora is very different from Sugar (please note I never tried to replace Sugar, bc that would be impossible, and not right). For one, Sugar was a dog, and Tora is a kitten. Secondly, Sugar was dependent and content anywhere. I could put Sugar next to me, and she would stay there and sleep until I decided she needed to move. Tora, not so much. She is very independent and doesn't always want to cuddle or sit in my lap. Sometimes she will fall asleep across the room from me. It was hard to accept that an animal didn't want to fall asleep on me, but it's coming. Tora is a very independent kitten, and she's only about 7mos old.
She has such a personality. She was born from a feral cat and the foster trapped her and a the rest of her litter. I adopted her when she had just turned 6 weeks. I read Kittens For Dummies and it said to get a kitten at 3mos so that they can be over worms and other stuff, but I wanted a tiny kitten, and you don't get much tinier than 6 weeks. I went through a lot w/ Tora, and we still have more that we're gonna be put through I am sure. She went to the vet a month or so ago bc one of the older cats scratched her 3rd eyelid and cut across it, and barely missed her cornea. She is super lucky, bc it could've been so much worse.
She is best friends w/ Chris's dog Jack. She hated him originally and spat and hissed and swiped at him. She had never seen a dog before and had no idea what to think, but w/in a month or so, they became best friends, and now they play all of the time.
Tora still has a few more months to grow and then she will get to her full growth potential. I hate how much she's already grown. She is starting to finally shed now, but it isn't much. I remember hoping that she wouldn't shed at all, bc it took so long for her to finally begin shedding. She used to be so tiny, and her meow was so much higher pitched. We will take her w/ us where ever we may go. She sleeps w/ me every single night. She falls asleep on my chest then usually moves down right to the middle of the bed to where I can't move my legs. She meows to get out of my room every morning if there is any trace that someone is waking up. She can really get on my nerves sometimes, but I wouldn't ask for a cuter cat. I can get so mad at her, but it takes one look from her and I'm not mad anymore. She just has to come and rub on me and purr and all is forgiven.
We have spoiled her rotten w/ toys and scratchers. I plan on spoiling her more though. Chris got her for me, for us to have. He loves her so much as well. He never really took to Sugar, bc he thought that she was kinda dumb. She wasn't totally done, she was just kinda useless haha. She made me happy though. When I find myself thinking about Sugar a lot I will tear up. She was my first animal that I had that a very deep connection w/. I loved her so much, and I hope that I showed her that and she knew it. I now hope Tora knows how much I love her. I can't wait to see where she ends up in 10yrs or so :)
It helped getting over Sugar. Sugar had slept in my room w/ me since she was about a year old. I cried almost every night that week I didn't have an animal there w/ me. I needed that small cuddle bug that would sleep close to me.
The first night we had Tora was a NIGHTMARE. She ate some food the vet gave her, bc that's where I was gonna pick her up (and where the foster dropped her off), and then I gave her new food mixed in w/ old food. That's 3 different diets in one day. Her stomach was soo super upset. She was pooping so much. She wasn't making it to her litter box in time. I went through 3 shirts that night bc she pooped on me. We took her straight to the vet the next morning and get her on some medicine and she was de-wormed. I want to say she was de-wormed 2 or 3 times before it all finally went away.
She was super tiny when I first brought her home too. She basically walked under my dresser. She's gotten much bigger now and I haven't seen her go under my dresser in awhile, unless she REALLY wants a toy or something that's under there.
Tora is very different from Sugar (please note I never tried to replace Sugar, bc that would be impossible, and not right). For one, Sugar was a dog, and Tora is a kitten. Secondly, Sugar was dependent and content anywhere. I could put Sugar next to me, and she would stay there and sleep until I decided she needed to move. Tora, not so much. She is very independent and doesn't always want to cuddle or sit in my lap. Sometimes she will fall asleep across the room from me. It was hard to accept that an animal didn't want to fall asleep on me, but it's coming. Tora is a very independent kitten, and she's only about 7mos old.
She has such a personality. She was born from a feral cat and the foster trapped her and a the rest of her litter. I adopted her when she had just turned 6 weeks. I read Kittens For Dummies and it said to get a kitten at 3mos so that they can be over worms and other stuff, but I wanted a tiny kitten, and you don't get much tinier than 6 weeks. I went through a lot w/ Tora, and we still have more that we're gonna be put through I am sure. She went to the vet a month or so ago bc one of the older cats scratched her 3rd eyelid and cut across it, and barely missed her cornea. She is super lucky, bc it could've been so much worse.
She is best friends w/ Chris's dog Jack. She hated him originally and spat and hissed and swiped at him. She had never seen a dog before and had no idea what to think, but w/in a month or so, they became best friends, and now they play all of the time.
Tora still has a few more months to grow and then she will get to her full growth potential. I hate how much she's already grown. She is starting to finally shed now, but it isn't much. I remember hoping that she wouldn't shed at all, bc it took so long for her to finally begin shedding. She used to be so tiny, and her meow was so much higher pitched. We will take her w/ us where ever we may go. She sleeps w/ me every single night. She falls asleep on my chest then usually moves down right to the middle of the bed to where I can't move my legs. She meows to get out of my room every morning if there is any trace that someone is waking up. She can really get on my nerves sometimes, but I wouldn't ask for a cuter cat. I can get so mad at her, but it takes one look from her and I'm not mad anymore. She just has to come and rub on me and purr and all is forgiven.
We have spoiled her rotten w/ toys and scratchers. I plan on spoiling her more though. Chris got her for me, for us to have. He loves her so much as well. He never really took to Sugar, bc he thought that she was kinda dumb. She wasn't totally done, she was just kinda useless haha. She made me happy though. When I find myself thinking about Sugar a lot I will tear up. She was my first animal that I had that a very deep connection w/. I loved her so much, and I hope that I showed her that and she knew it. I now hope Tora knows how much I love her. I can't wait to see where she ends up in 10yrs or so :)
Friday, March 8, 2013
Honeymoon Cruise Expectations
For our amazing honeymoon Chris and I are going on a Disney Cruise! I have never been on a cruise before, but I am looking forward to it. Chris has been on a cruise, and he's always said how much fun he had on it. I've always been a huge Disney fan, so I thought it would be fantastic if we didn't go on a normal cruise, but a Disney Cruise.
We are going on a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise on the new Disney Fantasy! We visit St. Maarten, St. John, and St. Thomas, as well as Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. We will have 3 days at sea as well. If you are planning on doing a cruise w/ Disney, please know that it isn't the cheapest cruise line out there. If you're looking for a cruise to go on that's cheap, this isn't it. We are lucky and are surrounded by people that love us enough to pay for this honeymoon. If you want to know how much it was please send me a message, but I am not going to put that here.
We embark on May 18th (one week after the wedding) close to 4 in the afternoon. The first 2 days after that will be spent at sea. After that we spend a day at St. Maarten, and then the day after that we go to St. Thomas and St. John, then we leave and spend another day at sea, then a day a Castaway Cay, and we leave and get home.
Here are a couple of things that we have planned! We are going to the adult dining restaurants Palo and Remy. Remy is an 8 course meal, and cocktail attire kinda restaurant. I gotta dress just for it. Palo you would need to wear something like nice Sunday church clothes. We're also gonna get a massage. There are some amazing places on this ship though. There are close to 10 adult only bars! There are also 2 really neat other restaurants that we'll eat at called Animators Palate and the Enchanted Garden. Animators Palate starts out w/ black and white walls and sketches on them, but then the wall starts to light up and colors are added. You'll hafta do a youtube search for it. The Enchanted Garden has performances and the ceiling changes as well. These places are a part of our rotational dining.
Now, most people thing, Disney cruise, that means kids right? Wrong. We may see kids when we go to eat and maybe at pools every now and then, but there is a whole deck dedicated to kids, so if the kids don't wanna see their parents or the parents don't feel like dealing w/ kids they disappear.
Our room also has a private verandah that I am looking forward to sitting and reading a book on. The bathroom in the 2 are kinda split. We have a bathroom and a half. In one bathroom you have a sink and toilet, and the other you have a shower/bath and a sink. I'm look forward to that.
I still want to lose some weight before the cruise. In fact, I hafta. I bought a dress for Remy that is a little small, and I just need to lose about 5-10lbs to fit into it. We may need to take it out a smidgen but I still want to lose a bit. I also want to be able to put a bikini on and feel confident wearing it. We may go snorkeling, but some of the port adventures are RIDICULOUSLY expensive.
I'm looking forward to it though. I am super excited that I get to have the honeymoon of my dreams bc I am blessed to have such amazing people around me who were willing to provide this for Chris and me. If you're reading this thank you so much, I'm sure I've already said it lots though, but we really appreciate it.
Right now it's a sunny 72 in Castaway Cay, and we have 71 days until the cruise!
We are going on a 7-night Western Caribbean cruise on the new Disney Fantasy! We visit St. Maarten, St. John, and St. Thomas, as well as Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. We will have 3 days at sea as well. If you are planning on doing a cruise w/ Disney, please know that it isn't the cheapest cruise line out there. If you're looking for a cruise to go on that's cheap, this isn't it. We are lucky and are surrounded by people that love us enough to pay for this honeymoon. If you want to know how much it was please send me a message, but I am not going to put that here.
We embark on May 18th (one week after the wedding) close to 4 in the afternoon. The first 2 days after that will be spent at sea. After that we spend a day at St. Maarten, and then the day after that we go to St. Thomas and St. John, then we leave and spend another day at sea, then a day a Castaway Cay, and we leave and get home.
Here are a couple of things that we have planned! We are going to the adult dining restaurants Palo and Remy. Remy is an 8 course meal, and cocktail attire kinda restaurant. I gotta dress just for it. Palo you would need to wear something like nice Sunday church clothes. We're also gonna get a massage. There are some amazing places on this ship though. There are close to 10 adult only bars! There are also 2 really neat other restaurants that we'll eat at called Animators Palate and the Enchanted Garden. Animators Palate starts out w/ black and white walls and sketches on them, but then the wall starts to light up and colors are added. You'll hafta do a youtube search for it. The Enchanted Garden has performances and the ceiling changes as well. These places are a part of our rotational dining.
Now, most people thing, Disney cruise, that means kids right? Wrong. We may see kids when we go to eat and maybe at pools every now and then, but there is a whole deck dedicated to kids, so if the kids don't wanna see their parents or the parents don't feel like dealing w/ kids they disappear.
Our room also has a private verandah that I am looking forward to sitting and reading a book on. The bathroom in the 2 are kinda split. We have a bathroom and a half. In one bathroom you have a sink and toilet, and the other you have a shower/bath and a sink. I'm look forward to that.
I still want to lose some weight before the cruise. In fact, I hafta. I bought a dress for Remy that is a little small, and I just need to lose about 5-10lbs to fit into it. We may need to take it out a smidgen but I still want to lose a bit. I also want to be able to put a bikini on and feel confident wearing it. We may go snorkeling, but some of the port adventures are RIDICULOUSLY expensive.
I'm looking forward to it though. I am super excited that I get to have the honeymoon of my dreams bc I am blessed to have such amazing people around me who were willing to provide this for Chris and me. If you're reading this thank you so much, I'm sure I've already said it lots though, but we really appreciate it.
Right now it's a sunny 72 in Castaway Cay, and we have 71 days until the cruise!
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Parents
Now I'm gonna cover the rest of my awesome family. My parents are kinda awesome. Now, I do want to strangle them at times too, but that's any family member, right?
My mom has had it rough these past couple of years. She's had a lot of issues w/ her knees, and health in general. When I was growing up she was going to work and school full time. My dad did a lot in her absence, but my mom still managed to be there for us. She still came to basketball games, dance recitals, baseball games, music recitals, and in honor ceremony. She was there for all of us in spite of her busy life. She took me to almost all of my flute lessons as well. She came to as many football games to see march as she could, but that's when her health did begin to start getting to her, was when I was in high school. My dad did a lot of the cooking and some cleaning. My brothers and I were the ones who did cleaning, granted, I hated cleaning. I still did it though, bc if I wanted someone to come over I had to clean the whole house, and even if I wanted to go out my room had to be clean.
My parents have had it rough. My mom's health got real bad in 2011. She had to quit her job, and then my dad lost his too. He ended up getting a minimum wage job to try and help them, but it didn't work. They lost their house this time last year. They had to give up 2 dogs, and now they live w/ my nana. My dad did get a better job and is an electrician again, but it's still hard on them. He gotta car a couple of years ago, and he's had nothing but problems w/ it. My mom wants to work again too, and I really think she can one day.
My mom and I have had a rocky relationship. We fight the same. We start screaming and are determined to hurt the other person. We had some really bad fights before I moved and a REALLY bad one last year, but since her health has gotten better, so has our relationship. She's been really helpful w/ the wedding and what not, and has been more supportive as well. I'm really proud of how far she's come this past year w/ her health. She still has a long way to go, but I know she can do it.
My dad and I have always been close. I've been a daddy's girl for as long as I can remember. We went to a couple of daddy daughter dances when I was in brownies. I can talk to my dad about anything and he won't pass judgement...most of the time lol. He's had a lot of life experiences, so it's easy to talk to him. He always knows how to make me laugh, even if I'm pissed off at him in particular, he will make me laugh. He is where I get my stubbornness from. He can be a real butt head sometimes, but that's just part of his-uh...charm. Yeah, we'll call it charm.
Like my brothers though, I wouldn't trade my parents. They have been there for just about everything, and one of the happiest moments is going to be when my dad gives me away in a couple of months. I love my parents and I am proud of them, and proud to be their daughter
My mom has had it rough these past couple of years. She's had a lot of issues w/ her knees, and health in general. When I was growing up she was going to work and school full time. My dad did a lot in her absence, but my mom still managed to be there for us. She still came to basketball games, dance recitals, baseball games, music recitals, and in honor ceremony. She was there for all of us in spite of her busy life. She took me to almost all of my flute lessons as well. She came to as many football games to see march as she could, but that's when her health did begin to start getting to her, was when I was in high school. My dad did a lot of the cooking and some cleaning. My brothers and I were the ones who did cleaning, granted, I hated cleaning. I still did it though, bc if I wanted someone to come over I had to clean the whole house, and even if I wanted to go out my room had to be clean.
My parents have had it rough. My mom's health got real bad in 2011. She had to quit her job, and then my dad lost his too. He ended up getting a minimum wage job to try and help them, but it didn't work. They lost their house this time last year. They had to give up 2 dogs, and now they live w/ my nana. My dad did get a better job and is an electrician again, but it's still hard on them. He gotta car a couple of years ago, and he's had nothing but problems w/ it. My mom wants to work again too, and I really think she can one day.
My mom and I have had a rocky relationship. We fight the same. We start screaming and are determined to hurt the other person. We had some really bad fights before I moved and a REALLY bad one last year, but since her health has gotten better, so has our relationship. She's been really helpful w/ the wedding and what not, and has been more supportive as well. I'm really proud of how far she's come this past year w/ her health. She still has a long way to go, but I know she can do it.
My dad and I have always been close. I've been a daddy's girl for as long as I can remember. We went to a couple of daddy daughter dances when I was in brownies. I can talk to my dad about anything and he won't pass judgement...most of the time lol. He's had a lot of life experiences, so it's easy to talk to him. He always knows how to make me laugh, even if I'm pissed off at him in particular, he will make me laugh. He is where I get my stubbornness from. He can be a real butt head sometimes, but that's just part of his-uh...charm. Yeah, we'll call it charm.
Like my brothers though, I wouldn't trade my parents. They have been there for just about everything, and one of the happiest moments is going to be when my dad gives me away in a couple of months. I love my parents and I am proud of them, and proud to be their daughter
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Siblings
I am a middle child. I have an older brother named Phillip, and he's about 5yrs older than me. I have a younger brother named Josh and he's about a 1yr and a half younger. They are completely different from me. I love them, and sometimes I want to strangle them, but that's all siblings, right?
Both of my brothers are more logical and analytical thinkers. Phillip is an engineer and I'm not 100% sure what my brother does, but I know he's also in school right now. He took an intro to engineering class back in high school. They are both super smart. In grade school through high school they made As and Bs w/out even trying. Phillip did study more when he got to college. I, on the other hand, didn't. While they graduated high school w/ 3.5 or higher GPAs I had a 2.9. I have always struggled w/ school. I am smart, but not math wise or anything like that. I was always good at English and stuff like that. I could write a 5pg paper in one night and not hafta proof it but twice and get an A or a B on it (depended on the teacher).
They both have gotten married before me. Phillip got married to Daphne in Hawaii in 2008. It was awesome, bc the whole family got to go. I love Daphne. She is the sister I never had. She keeps Phillip in line and doesn't deal w/ his crap. I love my brother, and he knows it, but he can be a stubborn butt head a lot. They have 2 wonderful kids that I watch every week named Sean and Emily. Sean will be celebrating his 3rd birthday Monday! Emily will turn 2 September 15th.
My younger brother got married in 2010 to Timberlin. They went to the court house and got married, but we were all there for them. Josh was 18 (almost 19) and Timberlin had just turned 17. Our family was a little scared since it seemed like they rushed into this really fast, but Josh was also joining the airforce and would be leaving for bootcamp about a month after the married. They just had their first baby boy, Sebastian, on Thanksgiving of 2012. They are stationed out in Las Vegas, and it sucks! Timberlin wasn't due until Valentine's Day of this year, so it's been a little rough for that little man, and us. We all wanna meet him and hold him, but for now FaceTime will do.
I was a butt head older sister. I was mean to Josh growing up. I would dress him up and make him play barbies w/ me, and much much more. When we got older we had a huge fight, and Josh and I never really talked after that until Timberlin came in the picture. We've been getting better and talking a little bit more, but we never just call to say hi or check on each other. I blame myself for a lot of that, and I know it's my fault, but maybe one day we'll have a better and closer relationship.
Phillip and I would butt heads all the time, and at the same time I wanted to know everything he was doing and who he was dating. Every time he brought a new girlfriend over I would talk her ear off and try and tag along w/ Phillip and who ever it was. When he was going out w/ Rachel it was pretty bad, but Rachel was cool and didn't mind, but Phillip did every now and then. When he started going out w/ Daphne she was kinda shy at first, but I've really warmed up to her. I can talk to her about things and she comes at stuff from an unbiased point of view. If Phillip has really ticked me off I usually go to her for help, and it works. She helps me calm down and see things from his view.
Phillip helped raise Josh and me. During the summer mom and dad would work full time and Phillip would be stuck at home baby-sitting us. He gave up a lot, and he would take Josh and me to school as well. I love my big brother and thank him for everything he did. I remember just sitting in front of the TV most summers and playing games w/ them or watching Dragon Ball Z. It's bc of my brothers that I am a gamer, and that is awesome. It's also bc of them that I'm into anime as well.
I love my brothers and I wouldn't give them up for anything, no matter how much I may want to kill them :)
Both of my brothers are more logical and analytical thinkers. Phillip is an engineer and I'm not 100% sure what my brother does, but I know he's also in school right now. He took an intro to engineering class back in high school. They are both super smart. In grade school through high school they made As and Bs w/out even trying. Phillip did study more when he got to college. I, on the other hand, didn't. While they graduated high school w/ 3.5 or higher GPAs I had a 2.9. I have always struggled w/ school. I am smart, but not math wise or anything like that. I was always good at English and stuff like that. I could write a 5pg paper in one night and not hafta proof it but twice and get an A or a B on it (depended on the teacher).
They both have gotten married before me. Phillip got married to Daphne in Hawaii in 2008. It was awesome, bc the whole family got to go. I love Daphne. She is the sister I never had. She keeps Phillip in line and doesn't deal w/ his crap. I love my brother, and he knows it, but he can be a stubborn butt head a lot. They have 2 wonderful kids that I watch every week named Sean and Emily. Sean will be celebrating his 3rd birthday Monday! Emily will turn 2 September 15th.
My younger brother got married in 2010 to Timberlin. They went to the court house and got married, but we were all there for them. Josh was 18 (almost 19) and Timberlin had just turned 17. Our family was a little scared since it seemed like they rushed into this really fast, but Josh was also joining the airforce and would be leaving for bootcamp about a month after the married. They just had their first baby boy, Sebastian, on Thanksgiving of 2012. They are stationed out in Las Vegas, and it sucks! Timberlin wasn't due until Valentine's Day of this year, so it's been a little rough for that little man, and us. We all wanna meet him and hold him, but for now FaceTime will do.
I was a butt head older sister. I was mean to Josh growing up. I would dress him up and make him play barbies w/ me, and much much more. When we got older we had a huge fight, and Josh and I never really talked after that until Timberlin came in the picture. We've been getting better and talking a little bit more, but we never just call to say hi or check on each other. I blame myself for a lot of that, and I know it's my fault, but maybe one day we'll have a better and closer relationship.
Phillip and I would butt heads all the time, and at the same time I wanted to know everything he was doing and who he was dating. Every time he brought a new girlfriend over I would talk her ear off and try and tag along w/ Phillip and who ever it was. When he was going out w/ Rachel it was pretty bad, but Rachel was cool and didn't mind, but Phillip did every now and then. When he started going out w/ Daphne she was kinda shy at first, but I've really warmed up to her. I can talk to her about things and she comes at stuff from an unbiased point of view. If Phillip has really ticked me off I usually go to her for help, and it works. She helps me calm down and see things from his view.
Phillip helped raise Josh and me. During the summer mom and dad would work full time and Phillip would be stuck at home baby-sitting us. He gave up a lot, and he would take Josh and me to school as well. I love my big brother and thank him for everything he did. I remember just sitting in front of the TV most summers and playing games w/ them or watching Dragon Ball Z. It's bc of my brothers that I am a gamer, and that is awesome. It's also bc of them that I'm into anime as well.
I love my brothers and I wouldn't give them up for anything, no matter how much I may want to kill them :)
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Life as a Christian
Being a Christian has never been easy, and has almost always included some form of suffering for everyone. Jesus was hated, tortured, and killed bc of his teachings. There are thousands of people across the world that have gone through the same thing, bc they follow His word.
I was raised Catholic. We were your "seasonal" Catholics. We went to mass on Easter and Christmas. The Catholic church I went to had an amazing youth group. I had a lot of friends, and did a lot w/ them, but I hated mass. I almost fell asleep just about every time. The Catholic faith wasn't for me, and I really wasn't sure what else was out there, so I just stopped believing. I knew there was a God out there and that was it. I told this to my mother, and then that summer I spent 2 months w/ my grandparents in Florida, and they are highly religious people. When we got back mom had started going to a non-denominational church, and a small change was starting to take place inside me.
I came to Christ back in 2003. I was w/ the youth group, and we went to a re-enactment of Mercy Me's I Can Only Imagine. They did a play to it kind of. It had the stage be heaven, and the isle up to the stage were kind of the gates. You see everyone rejoicing in heaven and meeting w/ old loved ones, and then there are more people that want to enter, but other people (the angels) were pushing them back. The place behind where we sat represented hell. I couldn't stop crying. I found my youth minister and we talked and we prayed and I cried and cried. My boyfriend at the time wasn't Christian, but I thought if I stayed w/ him then maybe he would come to Christ. He never did, and that's why we broke up.
After our break up I lost a lot of people that I thought were friends, but weren't and they didn't really believe either. I told myself that it would be okay, and then months later Chris and I started going out.
Being a Christian doesn't mean you have to be perfect, but it's admitting that you're not. It's saying I need Jesus to help me get through this life, bc I'm not perfect and I know I can't do this on my own.
Once our youth pastor left I kind of stopped going to youth group, and after I graduated high school, even a little before, I stopped going to our church. There were a few things that I heard that I didn't like and I started to turn away from that church. I still remained in faith. I would read my Bible and have that relationship w/ Jesus, but life started getting hard. I was always helping out my mom, and I was just becoming super lazy and I just stopped going. A couple of years ago Chris and his mom started going to a church called The Brook. This church has been so amazing. Our old church started getting too big and I didn't know anyone after our youth pastor left. The youth group got cliquey I love our pastor at The Brook. He's very real and very down to earth when he preaches. I look forward to Sunday and the sermons. I also couldn't pick anyone better to marry Chris and me.
Now I'm going to talk about some controversial Christian topics. If you don't agree w/ some of this, please don't leave a hateful or rude comment, just share your opinion in a mature way. I used to be against gay marriage, and in some ways I still am, but at the same time I'm not. I am on the fence about this. God loves us, and loves us all, and that includes homosexuals. Jesus, yes, would tell them that what they're doing is a sin, but he would still love them. I have a couple of gay friends, and I just want them to be happy, and some of them want to get married. If they keep it civil and not religious I think I would be okay w/ that. It is not my place to say "You're gay, so you're going to hell," bc there are gays out there that believe in Christ. Abortion is another topic, and I'm also on the fence about this as well, bc some situations that I've read about, I honestly don't know what I would've done if I had been placed in their shoes. I am more pro-life, but it boils down to this; it's her body. I don't agree w/ women that get abortions bc they baby is a consequence of a one night stand, or they're too young to deal w/ having a baby, or they just were stupid and didn't use a contraceptive/birth control and got pregnant. I don't agree w/ abortion at all in those circumstance. I think you should own up and deal w/ the consequences If you don't want the baby then please put him/her up for adoption. There are tons of couples out there that can't conceive and would love to have that baby.
I try my best, to live a life of love. Jesus came here and taught us the greatest lesson of love. He gave his own life, just so that we could live. I am sorry for the people that are out there that aren't believers and see people like the Westboro church and see those "Christians" and that becomes their image of Christians. We're not like that, at least the ones I know aren't. When I go out, I only hope that I come across as a loving Christian. I know that I'm not perfect. I cuss, and I sin like any other Christian, but I know that my sins have also been paid for. I know that one day I am going to heaven, and I can't wait for that day, but I will.
If you're reading this and you aren't a Christian, but you want to ask me more questions about my faith, PLEASE DO!! I love talking about this stuff!
I was raised Catholic. We were your "seasonal" Catholics. We went to mass on Easter and Christmas. The Catholic church I went to had an amazing youth group. I had a lot of friends, and did a lot w/ them, but I hated mass. I almost fell asleep just about every time. The Catholic faith wasn't for me, and I really wasn't sure what else was out there, so I just stopped believing. I knew there was a God out there and that was it. I told this to my mother, and then that summer I spent 2 months w/ my grandparents in Florida, and they are highly religious people. When we got back mom had started going to a non-denominational church, and a small change was starting to take place inside me.
I came to Christ back in 2003. I was w/ the youth group, and we went to a re-enactment of Mercy Me's I Can Only Imagine. They did a play to it kind of. It had the stage be heaven, and the isle up to the stage were kind of the gates. You see everyone rejoicing in heaven and meeting w/ old loved ones, and then there are more people that want to enter, but other people (the angels) were pushing them back. The place behind where we sat represented hell. I couldn't stop crying. I found my youth minister and we talked and we prayed and I cried and cried. My boyfriend at the time wasn't Christian, but I thought if I stayed w/ him then maybe he would come to Christ. He never did, and that's why we broke up.
After our break up I lost a lot of people that I thought were friends, but weren't and they didn't really believe either. I told myself that it would be okay, and then months later Chris and I started going out.
Being a Christian doesn't mean you have to be perfect, but it's admitting that you're not. It's saying I need Jesus to help me get through this life, bc I'm not perfect and I know I can't do this on my own.
Once our youth pastor left I kind of stopped going to youth group, and after I graduated high school, even a little before, I stopped going to our church. There were a few things that I heard that I didn't like and I started to turn away from that church. I still remained in faith. I would read my Bible and have that relationship w/ Jesus, but life started getting hard. I was always helping out my mom, and I was just becoming super lazy and I just stopped going. A couple of years ago Chris and his mom started going to a church called The Brook. This church has been so amazing. Our old church started getting too big and I didn't know anyone after our youth pastor left. The youth group got cliquey I love our pastor at The Brook. He's very real and very down to earth when he preaches. I look forward to Sunday and the sermons. I also couldn't pick anyone better to marry Chris and me.
Now I'm going to talk about some controversial Christian topics. If you don't agree w/ some of this, please don't leave a hateful or rude comment, just share your opinion in a mature way. I used to be against gay marriage, and in some ways I still am, but at the same time I'm not. I am on the fence about this. God loves us, and loves us all, and that includes homosexuals. Jesus, yes, would tell them that what they're doing is a sin, but he would still love them. I have a couple of gay friends, and I just want them to be happy, and some of them want to get married. If they keep it civil and not religious I think I would be okay w/ that. It is not my place to say "You're gay, so you're going to hell," bc there are gays out there that believe in Christ. Abortion is another topic, and I'm also on the fence about this as well, bc some situations that I've read about, I honestly don't know what I would've done if I had been placed in their shoes. I am more pro-life, but it boils down to this; it's her body. I don't agree w/ women that get abortions bc they baby is a consequence of a one night stand, or they're too young to deal w/ having a baby, or they just were stupid and didn't use a contraceptive/birth control and got pregnant. I don't agree w/ abortion at all in those circumstance. I think you should own up and deal w/ the consequences If you don't want the baby then please put him/her up for adoption. There are tons of couples out there that can't conceive and would love to have that baby.
I try my best, to live a life of love. Jesus came here and taught us the greatest lesson of love. He gave his own life, just so that we could live. I am sorry for the people that are out there that aren't believers and see people like the Westboro church and see those "Christians" and that becomes their image of Christians. We're not like that, at least the ones I know aren't. When I go out, I only hope that I come across as a loving Christian. I know that I'm not perfect. I cuss, and I sin like any other Christian, but I know that my sins have also been paid for. I know that one day I am going to heaven, and I can't wait for that day, but I will.
If you're reading this and you aren't a Christian, but you want to ask me more questions about my faith, PLEASE DO!! I love talking about this stuff!
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