Projects

I am a to do list kind of girl. I like being able to cross items off my list as they are completed. It's a sense of satisfaction. The problem is when I put too many items on my list. I'm not talking about the everyday items that need to get done, although some days those things can be overwhelming and long it's the extra things I'm talking about.
I like to make and do things. Those are the projects I'm talking about. It seems that I typically have many of them going on at one time. That thought came to a realization just a couple of days ago through two different events.
The first... I had my girls downstairs in the basement playing. We have recently been working down there rearranging and organizing. I have my craft area down there and was working on that. I have this wooden storage cart that we got at a school auction a few years ago. When I got it it didn't look so pretty, so I covered it with khaki colored contact paper with hopes and plans of making designs or something on it. That didn't happen. I have owned this piece for several years now and the contact paper was starting to peel and just frankly getting on my nerves. It wasn't pretty to look at and I was getting tired of it. So while Madelyn was playing with her little people and Lorena was napping I peeled all of that ugly contact paper off. It came of surprisingly easy. I decided I was going to paint it, but it has a couple of sticky spots that need attention and a light sanding done. After I was done with the peeling  I sent a picture to my husband with a comment about how I can't seem to only have one project going at a time. He responded with a smile and a comment like that seems like a personal  problem.  But that got me thinking of all the projects I have going on right now or want to get started right away, the list is quiet long.
The other thing that got me thinking was a conversation I had with Russ the other night (funny how God uses our husbands to shape us and make us think). He asked me if we had our fireplace last Christmas or not and did we hang up the stockings on it. I responded that we did, but we didn't hang the stockings up because we didn't want Madelyn to pull them down. So I then commented that I needed to get started on making our stockings soon. Russell just smiled and shook his head no. He kindly said that I wasn't going to be able to get those done this year since I am busy trying to make felt food for the girls. I half heartedly agreed with him, all the while thinking I can do it, I'll show him.
But all of these things have got me thinking about my list of projects. Here's the list of current on going started projects... a cross stitch baby crib blanket for Lorena, the felt food, the craft table down stairs (no further work has been done) and some pumpkin turkeys that Madelyn and I are going to make together.  Things to be added to the list... stockings, painted Christmas present for a couple of people, scrapbooks that are long overdue and the many cuteams ideas I've seen on pinterest.
I am realizing I am only one person, I can only accomplish so much on a given day, and more importantly there are two beautiful girls and a handsome guy who need and want my attention. I need to not have so many projects going on at a time or stress myself out about getting them all done.
So maybe tonight I can work on the felt food after the girls are asleep and since we are suppose to get a big winter storm tomorrow Madelyn and I will work on her project of turkeys.

You should write more....

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately, one in particular. I have been reading my beautiful cousin's blog, http://theefarmlife.blogspot.com, where she wrote for write31days. It was every encouraging and challenging. Take the time to go and read it!
So in the process of reading I have been thinking about writing in my blog again, wondering if I really have that much to share or would anyone even want to read it? I don't create new recipes, but I love to try the ones I find on Pinterest. I enjoy making crafts, not always original ideas. I have 2 beautiful girls but I'm not sure how much of them I really want to plaster all over the internet. Do I have anything worth saying.....
I am the director of our Wednesday children's program at church. Once a month we make a craft, this month since it is November we were going to make turkey with little small pumpkins. I was able to get most of the supplies from our craft room at church, but I needed smaller googly eyes (because everything is better with googly eyes). So my plan, what I wanted to do was go to Hobby Lobby by myself on Tuesday evening. Because frankly it is quiet a challenge taking a 2 and half year old and a 7 month baby there, only one fits in the cart and the other wants to touch EVERYTHING. That and I don't get out by myself very much these days, so to Hobby Lobby by myself. That's not what happened though, By the time the girls were in bed and I could go it was 7:30 and they close at 8:00. I didn't feel like rushing like crazy to get there and then have no time to look. So I decided to just go on Wednesday morning after Bible Study, not the ideal but it would do.
We managed through Hobby Lobby and as I was getting into the car and turning it on I saw Carolyn getting out of hers with her 2 year old in tow. I hopped out of the car fast and commented about taking 2 year olds to Hobby Lobby was so much fun :)
I told her that I had been reading her blog and was meaning to be an encouragement to her. She told me she had read through mine and I should write more. So I am. I am not sure what I am going to share. Hopefully God will lay things on my heart and I can be an encouragement to someone. I am not expecting to have a huge following, but maybe God can use me to touch one person. I pray that as I titled my blog so many many years ago spoonfuls of grace maybe God will use me to be a spoonful of grace in someones life. We all need it, every moment of everyday. So please stay tuned, I promise to try to be faithful in writing.
So this one is to you, by beautiful cousin Carolyn, keep writing! I love you!

Changes...

It has been a while since I have blogged. I haven't forgotten that I have had a blog I just haven't taken the time to blog and trying to decide exactly what I wanted to say. 
Things have changed since the last time I posted about the new job God provided. Changes that will be forever and are exciting and great.

Memorial Day weekend of 2012 will forever be a huge weekend in the history of our marriage....

Friday night, we confirmed what I was thinking and feeling. I was pregnant! God had blessed us with a new life growing inside of me. Our baby is due on January 21, 2013. We do  not know what we are having and are planning on being surprised. I have been healthy so far and praise God haven't suffered from morning sickness. My belly is beginning to pop :). We had our ultrasound 2 weeks ago and it made it seem even more real. The baby is healthy and growing as he/she should be. The baby is very active, he/she kept kicking and punching during the ultrasound and wouldn't be still for the tech. I don't feel the baby kicking very much with where he/she is laying inside but my midwife said that as the baby grows I will begin to feel it more. After seeing the baby move I came to realize what I thought was just the feeling of stretching and growing muscles and such is really the baby kicking. There are of few times the baby gets my diaphragm and I know it. 
We are so looking forward to God growing our family with this new little one. ( I can't get the picture from the ultrasound to upload.)

That was Friday, as I mentioned the weekend was huge. On Monday we talked to our Realtor about a house we wanted to see. He had been on vacation so we were waiting for him to get back so we could go look at the house. We scheduled to see the house early Monday afternoon. We found out that our Realtor showed the same house to another couple that morning who put an offer in. So we would have to decide quickly if we wanted the house. After looking at it, talking about it we put in an offer in later that afternoon. It was an exciting, nerve wrecking moment  not knowing if we would get the house especially with another offer. We waited till Tuesday afternoon till we heard. They accepted our offer. We BOUGHT a house, a place of our own! 

We closed in July and moved in, complete with a trip to Cleveland to finally empty out our storage unit that we had for almost 2 years. It has been like Christmas opening totes and boxes. We have found wedding presents that we are just now getting to use and its fun. 
We are unpacking, settling in and enjoying it.

God has been blessing us richly lately and I just wanted to share a small portion of the blessings received.  

New Job

I started a new job at the beginning of May. I had been looking since November, really before I quit at Cuna, and couldn't seem to find anyone who wanted me. Who afterall reads the resume's, applications and those questionaire you have to fill out. I think maybe someday I would like that job- it seems fairly easy to send the form letter that says we went with another candidate to people who are probably more qualified and will stick around longer than a few weeks.
So I would like to tell you the story of how I got my job. I had recently had an interview with a real estate company for an afternoon receptionist position and was waiting to hear back from them- as of today I still haven't heard back. Our pastor had a game night at his house for some of us younger people in the church. I was talking with Pastor Jon and he asked me about the interview and the other lady in the conversation asked if I was looking for a job. She let me know that her company was looking for a receptionist and I should apply. The next morning, Saturday, I sent her my resume and cover letter. By Monday afternoon I had an interview with the temp agency that they work with. The lady at the temp agency said that if this position didn't work out for some reason she had some other possibilities for me. I interviewed with the original company and did not end up with the position. I have to say that this was very difficult for me as this was the first face-to-face interview I had that I wasn't offered the position, the real estate position not included having not heard back yet. It humbled me and made me realize that I could not place my confidence in me and my ability to interview, but that it needed to be and must be in God alone.
I waited for a couple of weeks to hear back from the temp agency with other options. I tried to wait patiently, it wasn't always easy. I had one option that I turned down because it conflicted with my Tuesday night small group Bible study and I wasn't going to give that up.
Then on a Thursday morning the temp agency called and asked if I would be interested in a legal assistant position at a local law firm and ended up with an interview that afternoon. I went into that interview with more of sense of God being in control. I was interviewing with the attorney and she was descriping the position and the details. She started with the person will do this and that, half way through she started say you would to this and that. She asked me what my availability to start was and she said she'd see me on Monday. I walked out of the interview with the job, it was such a blessing not having to wait to hear back.
Monday was the first day of my new adventure as a legal assistant. This is something completely new to me and not quiet sure what was ahead of me. I work with the attorney that does the out of state forclosures- meaning not Iowa. I can't go into much detail due to confidentiality reasons.
I am enjoying my job. Everything I do is top priority and some things are an even more of a top priority. The day is very busy, before I know it its lunch time and then its time to go home. The day goes very quickly and is very busy. So unlike my last job where I counted down the hours of the day- seriously.
I am beginning to learn more and more of the foreclosure process. I am feeling confident in what I am doing and feel like I am getting the hang of what I am suppose to do and when and how. The attorney I am working has shared with me that she feels like I am getting the hang of things and I am doing a good job. One of the other attorneys shared with me at lunch that my attorney told the other attorneys at their retreat that she has high hopes for me and that I am already doing a great job.
It is very nice to feel appreciated.
God has provided me a good job, that pays well, that I am enjoying doing, has a 5 minute commute (as opposed to the 45 minute one before, that included a car killing deer at the end), and the chance to learn something new and use the God- given abilities I have.
It is neat to think that it all started with a fun game night at my pastor's house and how God used that to provide me with my job.

Friendships

I know that I have not written in a very long time. I have been thinking that I don't really have anything to say, after all I don't have kids to show pictures of or update on. But as friend recently reminded me, that doesn't mean I don't have things to share and blog about. I actually have several ideas and things I want to share, but I am saving them for later blogs. My goal is to blog a couple of times a week, so stay tuned :-).
I have in the last week experienced some great friend experiences and I wanted to share with you how they have touched me and impacted me.
Growing up I had a best friend, our birthdays were just 3 days apart, we went to school and church together, and spend a lot of time at each other's houses. Many of my childhood memories that aren't just with my family include this friend. In high school we were still friends though we started to develop our own interests. After high school I went to college and she got married. We lived in opposite corners of the country. This summer we were able to get together for just a few hours, that wasn't nearly long enough. We both enjoyed laughing, remembering and catching up. This past week she was back in town and of course getting together was on the schedule.
We met at 9:30 at Panera for breakfast/coffee and finally left about 1:30. That time went so quickly, we laughed, laughed and laughed some more, we talked about our growing up, school, people we went to school with, and what God is doing in each of our lives. It was a blessing to get together, it always is. It gave me some insight to some of the things going on around when we were in school that at the time I didn't know was going on with others, or that other people had some of the thoughts and feelings I did too. ( Like I wasn't the only one who felt like an outsider- it was a bit mind blowing to me actually.) We completely lost track of time, there was a breakfast crowd when we got there and then we were by ourselves. The next thing we knew was we were surrounded by people again and when we checked the time it was lunch time, and then we sat and talked some more.
What was even better was that we got to continue our conversation next day at lunch. We laughed more and more and shared even more with each other. It was hard to say good-bye, it always is, though there is a plan for later this summer to get together again.
And once again, the conversation will pick up right where if left off, that's one way that you know you have a true friend. There is never a lack of conversation, laughs and it does not matter how long you have been apart. I am so very thankful that God has preserved this friendship and has let it last for the past 32 years, and I am sure that the next 32 will be filled with even more laughs.
The other friendship blessing I want to share about happened yesterday. I have been developing friendship with the ladies at church, especially in my small group. Our pastor's wife and I get together every once in a while for lunch and to talk. I think we are a lot alike in many areas and have been in similiar experiences to share. She crochets, I have watched her and she will do that when we are over at their house to play games. I had asked her if she would be willing to finish the baby blanket that my mom had started but didn't get finished, so we could have it for the future. She said she would be willing to do that. When we got together yesterday she gave me the blanket all wrapped up in a box, and with that she included a letter. The letter was written to me as one that my mom would have wrote. This is something she told me she prayed about before writing. I can tell you first of all yes it made me cry! It was so very special and sweet and it sounded like my mom, because in the letter she included things that I had shared about my mom and I. She would have only been able to put those things in because she listened as I have shared with her.
God has blessed me with two different friendships, equally special and sweet. I am so very thankful that God has brought these two ladies into my life and granted a connection with each one of them that will span time, I know that we will worship God together in Heaven some day. I pray that I may be that kind of friend to others.

Craft room

Now that I have not been working and have been looking for a job I have been wondering how fabulous it would be to able to be creative and getting paid for it. I would love that job! Then I found Etsy.com. So I have been thinking and praying about it. I have had lots of questions running through my head about this....
Is my stuff good enough to sell? Will people want what I've made? Will I be willing to sell what I've made? What do I charge? When do I make things? How much time do I devote? Where will I work? How much do I invest to get started?
Russ is being very supportive about this endeavor, he thinks my things will sell and that I should try it. He even helped me create a space to work. I didn't really want to work on the dining room table with everything out all the time. So we changed my old bedroom into a temporary craft room. It was a bit of a challenge as you can see. Now I have a workable space of my own. I have done a little bit of work and just need to devote more time working in there.
I apologize the pictures aren't the greatest as I took them off my phone.

Before....

After

So that is my craft room. Now I just need to make things to sell. I am going to be making cards and possibly scrapbook pages. If you have any ideas or anything you want, let me know I could do custom orders if needed.

Christmas Cookies

It's time to for the Christmas cookies to start coming out of the oven. I actually made my first set last week, and the way they are being eaten I don't know if they are going to make it till Christmas time. I thought I would share my cookie list with a few links to the actual recipes.
My Christmas cookies are a few tried and true favorites that wouldn't be Christmas without. I like to try new recipes, but during this time when time is premium I stick with ones I know and my family loves!
So here is my list and why they make it on my list.
1. Sugar cookies (this is an old family recipe). Who doesn't love sugar cookies with frosting and decorations. I use a Christmas tree, Santa and bell cookie cutter. The majority of the cookies get frosted and just a few get sprinkles. Growing up my mom made these cookies all the time with an appropriate cookie cutter. I have become a sugar cookie snob. I will admit it. I do not like sugar cookies from the store and there have been very few homemade sugar cookies from others that I have liked. I prefer my own! This is a recipe that my mom didn't pass out and share. She shared many recipes, but not this one. I am not really sure why, but I don't plan to share it either :).
2. Peanut Butter Snicker cookies. I actually found this recipe in the coupon section of the newspaper while it college and made them with my roommate. They are now the cookies that I take to Christmas parties and cookie exchanges. They are yummy!!!! http://www.food.com/recipe/snicker-surprise-peanut-butter-cookies-15477
3. Ginger cookies. I do not like these, these are not my favorite, BUT they are my brother's. And for him it wouldn't be Christmas without these cookies, so I make them for him.
4. No Bakes. My mom only made these at Christmas time so for me they are a Christmas cookie. I know that lots of people make them year round. They are one of my favorites.
5. Peanut Clusters. Again these are not one of my favorites, but that is because I do not like nuts. These are simply peanuts in melted chocolate/almond bark and spooned out into clusters or clumps.
6. Chocolate covered pretzels. Enough said. I use white chocolate/almond bark, nothing too fancy, just simple.
7. Whoopie Pies. These are a new addition to the Christmas cookie list. Whoopie pies were introduced to me by my husband. He grew up eating them and I enjoy them now too.
8. Monster cookies. Not really a Christmas cookie, but we had all the ingredients and these are the ones already made and almost gone. This recipe came from Paula Dean and here is the link http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/monster-cookies-recipe/index.html
9. Molasses with Raisins. I have never actually made these before. This was a cookie that my husband wanted when I asked him what he wanted. I have to get the recipe from Grammy and make them for him.
10. Puppy cookies. These are cookies for my puppy. He likes cookies too. I found this recipe on pinterest. Attawolf loved them when I made them for him before and plan on making some for him and some for my brother-in-law's new puppy for Christmas. They were easy to make and have everyday ingredients, if you have a dog make them! http://www.pinkpistachio.com/biscuits-for-boyfriend/.
That's my cookie list. I have several recipes to make this week so we can enjoy them. If you try any of these let me know what you think.

God's timing

God's timing is not our own, He works on His schedule. He is never late, never early or have a missed appointment. He is always on time!

The Lord is teaching me about trust, self-reliance, and His timing right now. After much prayer and wise counsel I have decided to resign from my current job. My last day is Friday, and right now that seems like forever away. I had decided that working in a call center just was not best fit for me. Russ has recently started a new job, which allows me to resign and take the time to look for a new job that fits better. That's where what God is teaching me is coming into play. I am learning again to trust God to provide and not to be reliant only on myself. The only time I have ever quit a job without a new one to go to was when we moved from Ohio to Iowa. This is something new for me. Even after I turned in my 2 week notice I doubted my design, not because I didn't feel it was the right choice for us right now, but more because of the unknowns I will be stepping into. I know that in God's timing He will provide the right job for me at the right place. I have to do my part in applying and getting my name out there, and trust in His timing. I also have to practice relying on my husband to provide for me. This is a first for me, I have not that sort of provision or support since high school, in a way it is difficult. I don't know if that makes any sense. I am glad my husband is working and wants to support me, it's just taking my hands off and letting him- it comes down to a control issue. I know that God is using this time to shape and grow me.

God has provided some new friends into our lives. We have started going to a new church. We are involved with a small group of people who have become sweet friends. I know that God has brought this specific group of people for specific reasons. It has thrilled my heart to meet sweet Christian friends there who have brought much need sweet fellowship, encouragement and spurring onto growth. I am glad God brought us to Grace Brethren and I am excited in how God is going to use us there.

"I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,

And in His word I do hope."

Psalm 130:5

Still alive

I know that I haven't posted in a long time, basically it's because that not everything in life is blog worthy or should be.

There isn't a ton new in our lives. I am still working at the same place. Russ just got a job and starts next week. So we have started the house hunt again. We are both ready to find a house of our own.

We celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary. It doesn't seem possible that it has been a year. We got to celebrate in Chicago with our good friends Steve and Amy and their girls. It was a good weekend of catching up and spending time together.

At that time Amy got me addicted to pinterest. I am glad. I have made a few things from ideas I have gotten on there. I need to take pictures and actually. I have made several scarves from t-shirts, a wreath and a small cake plate. I am enjoying collecting ideas and recipes to try. So know it's finding the time and resources to try recipes and crafts. It has really gotten my creative juices flowing and I am enjoying that "ability" that God gave me.

I know this isn't a huge or deep post. Maybe more will come later. But I am not completely silent in blogger world any more.

Listening

I have realized anew recently that generally people don't listen. Not only do people not listen they don't know how to think or reason the words that were just said to him. Why is that? Do we not teach our children anymore how to listen, not hear? Because listening and hearing are completely different things. At this moment I am hearing the lady cooking on the Food Network. I can hear that she is cooking fish but I am not truly engaged with what she is saying. If I was listening to her I would be engaged with the recipe she was sharing and thinking about how I could make that myself and how to do that. People just hear, it goes in one ear and out the other. They are busy thinking of what their response will be or what is next on their agenda. Do we not teach our children how to think and reason, do we just tell them to do it and believe it because we say so. They did to learn how to think on their own, how to take facts and thoughts and mull them over in their minds and come up with their OWN thought and decision about it. Unfortunately I experience this on a daily basis on the phone. Somedays it is worse that others. Recently, I have made the intentional decision that I when I have children I will teach them how to listen, reason and think. I do not want them to come out of a conversation with someone not having learned anything new or even being able to know what they spoke about and reflect about it. I know that I still have to practice and learn to keep listening and not just hearing. Does anyone else see this problem out there or is it just me? This is something to think about and come up with your own decision. I would love to hear what you think!

Job

I got the job! I got the job!

This is such an answer to prayer. In order to put an offer on the house that we want I needed a full time job- not a temporary/contract job. Banks will not consider temporary income when considering income for mortgages, which makes complete since. Now that I have a full time position- officially starting on July 11, we just need Russ to also get a full time position then we can maybe buy a house.
The good news is that the house that we want is still on the market and has dropped in price. I know that if that is the house God has for us then it will still be on the market when we are ready for it and at a price we can afford.
My husband being the sweet loving man that he is got me a fantastic congratulations gift. Russ bought me a cricut!!!! I have wanted a cricut for a very long time. This paper cutting machine will be extremely usable for the crafting when it comes to scrapbooking and card making. I just wish I had all my supplies and time to play and use it. I got to play a little bit this weekend.
Now I have this dream of a craft room that will be in the house we hopefully can get.
Thank you Russ, for doing research and finding an excellent deal and giving me this special gift that I will enjoy for many years. I love you!

Time

Sometimes I wish I had more time in the day to get things done that need to be done and things that I just want to do. I know that you make time for the things you really want to do, but sometimes you still run out of time. One person can only get so much done in 24 hours in a day. And try as I may I am not the superwoman I try to be, and lovingly my husband reminds me of that.

If I had more time in the day what would I do....

I would cook a wonderful dinner every night for my family, like the ones they make on Food Network and then clean up the kitchen.

I would straighten up and clean up the house so that it wasn't so dusty and cluttered.

I would craft- whether that be sewing, embroidery, scrapbooking, card making, or trying something completely new.

I would keep up with everyone on facebook, blogs and emails.

I would spend quality with my husband Russ and my family.

I would be more involved in my church and serving God.

I wouldn't be tired when coming home from work, especially on Fridays.

I would be productive on the weekend's getting lots of extras done- like making sweets for my family to eat during the week, making a menu for those fabulous meals I would make, going garage saling for deals and special finds, planting flowers in front the house and all the other extra things that I want to get done.

But alas, I don't get much of that done. My house is not very clean and the clutter tends to drive me nuts. I would love to deep clean, but to do it in the evening just doesn't work like when I was single and on my own. I usually cook my family dinner, nothing close to gormuet but still tasty, but lately my husband and brother have been doing a lot of the dinner cooking. I do just a little crafting- last weekend I made a dress and have patterns and material to make a couple more dress and skirts, just haven't found the time to do it yet.

Weekends seem to go by too quickly- never enough time to get everything done. Monday comes around awfully quickly. I never seem to get everything done that I want to do. Sometimes there is just not enough time in the day.

How do I get everything done??????

Wedding Pictures

I have finally decided to post some of our wedding pictures and actually got around to doing it. After talking with my maid of honor this week, I realize that she as well as others have not gotten to see our pictures so I will post them here. I do want to say that our photographer Jolene Pilarczyk did a wonderful job. These are her pictures- and therefore copyrighted by her. The pictures are actually backwards from how I loaded them, so the beginning of the pictures are actually on the bottom, :( oh well.

Enjoy!!!!

My rings are very special! The middle diamond is mine wrapped between my Mom's and Grandma's diamonds. My wedding band is my Great-Grandmother's.

For my husband- O H I O !





























My husband thought it was very funny to dop some frosting on my nose.

My beautiful flower girls Abby and Hayley who actually threw fall leaves down the aisle.

Our wedding party:

Bridesmaids: Caitie (France) Rice, Amy Ross, Shelbi Millard, Belle Blair, and Maid of Honor Abby Peffer. Flower girls: Abby and Hayley Ross. Groomsmen: Carl Rice, Greg Pituch, Dave Carson, Ruben Troupe and Best Man Steve Ross.

In honor of my Mom who recently passed away my brother, Matt, carried a rose in her honor and placed it in the pew where she would have sat. I am so glad that I didn't get to see it- I would have bawled.

The first moment he saw me all dressed up :) special time together!

My grandparent's wedding topper.

Bringing me coffee in the midst of getting my hair done. They had been moving the rest of his stuff to the storage unit. It was a busy morning.

sinus infection

I really hate being sick. Sinus infections are horrible. I decided that I would like to cut my nose off, maybe I will feel better then. I have antibiotics which I think are beginning to help. The doctor was real assuring letting me know that I will feel start to feel better in about 10 days- woohoo!!! I can't wait. I want to feel better now and not have to wait that long. My nose is sore from blowing it, my sinus' are full and sore, my ears are sore, and just about every sinus cavity in my body, as well as my lungs and those muscles from coughing and coughing to bring the crap up. (I know that is gross and a little TMI- but I am sick and at this point I don't really care.) I just want to feel better, I would like to be able to go to sleep tonight and not wake up in a hour coughing and then a couple of more times through the night. I would like to wake up feeling more refreshed and ready to face the day. I would like to feel better, so that I can have a much better outlook on life and the tears will not come so easily. I do not want to feel crappy or icky anymore, I just want to feel better. I know that I am not facing a life threatening disease and that shortly in a few days I will feel better and go on living, so I am not thinking that I am worse off or woe is me. I just want to feel better, I am whining and I admit it, I just want to feel better.

Thursday's TV

I do enjoy my Thursday TV viewing schedule. I watch Big Bang Theory on CBS at 7:00pm. I am not exactly sure exactly why but that program makes me laugh and I sooooo enjoy watching and laughing at it. We quote from the program all the time.... "It WAS you...."it makes me laugh. Then at 8:00 I switch it over to the History channel to watch Swamp People. It is a program about the alligator hunting season down south in the bayou. It is rather interesting, you should check it out- it's addicting really.

Spring is Here

I saw my first daffodils today. There are outside of the door I use at work. They weren't out this morning when I walked in, but I was excited to think that there would be daffodils soon. Then when I walked out to go home there were some bright, sunny, beautiful daffodils there looking up at me. I smiled and beemed all the way to my car. Spring is here. The daffodils are here, the daffodils are here, the daffodils are here!!!!!!!

Update

I thought I would give a quick update on some of the things I have recently shared about.
We ended up trading Zippy (my car) in for a new Subaru Impreza that we get to pick up Wednesday night. We have had to wait to get a standard, we both wanted a manual transmission, so we waited patiently.
Yesterday we went to another open house at the house we have been praying about and thinking about. I fell more in love with the house this time and thought about how I would decorate and design and such. So now we are even more fervently praying about the house and making an offer. We would appreciate your prayers as well.
My job is continuing to go well. In just a few weeks I go back for some more training.
Russ and I are anticipating working with the youth at our church and praying on how God will use us there.
I think that updates the major points, oh and in case your wondering yes I am still on Kool-aid strike :) for those of you who know what that is :).
My puppy needs to go out and is looking at me like you said just a minute, I'm ready now, so I will go take him out and continue working on the laundry.

Abide in Me

"I am the vine and my Father is the gardener.

He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit,

while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes

so that it will be even more fruitful.

You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

Remain in me, and I will remain in you.

No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine.

Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

I am the vine, you are the branches.

If a man remains in me and I in him,

he will bear much fruit;

apart from me you can do nothing.

If anyone does not remain in me,

he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers;

such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you,

ask whatever you wish, and it will be given to you.

This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit,

showing yourself to be my disciples.

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.

Now remain in my love.

If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love.

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you

and that your joy may be complete."

John 15:1-11

We are having a revival at our church this week. It has been a great reminder of where our faith should be and examining ourselves to see if we are living the way that Christ has called us to live. Last night's message really spoke to me, it was the reminder I needed about abiding or remaining in God. To be quiet honest that is an area where I have failed most recently, and this was the reminder I needed of where I need to be and what I should be doing about it. The speaker, Luke Garrett, said that we are only as close to God as we want to be. That is so true and it got me thinking about how close am I to my God, what am I letting get in the way. He also gave us a challenge about praying every hour, not a long prayer, but just something simple like Lord, help me abide in you this hour. I tried today to do this, in the morning I did well, but as calls came in this afternoon unfortuantly prayer went by the wayside. I am determined to try again later. I am working on being sure that I abide in Christ. It was exactly what God knew I needed to hear, and I heard it.

spoonful of grace

I got to experience a spoonful of grace today at work and I wanted to share how God used one phone call I took today to impact my life. I take somewhere between 70-100+ calls each day, most calls I do not really remember as I help most members with similar things.
Today however I had a call that I hope that I do not forget anytime to soon. Because of security purposes I have to be extremely careful about what I share, so I will give just a general overview of the call.
I answer a call with Hello this is Joyce may I have your policy or certificate number please... and go on with the call. Today on this call a women answered told me the story of why she was calling. She was calling on behalf of someone else, she happened to go into a restaurant to get some soup, the owner not being able to speak very good English and asked her to call for him. By the end of the call I was able to help this family out.
I took this call right before lunch and quiet honestly it put me in a bit of a funk. I wasn't quiet sure what to think of the call and how the whole situation happened. I was able to tell my pod mate (one of the girls who sits next to me) about my call inbetween the calls we were getting. She commented about how nice it was that this lady called in. It got me thinking.
It got me thinking about how this lady went in for soup and she was able to help someone out in ways that she will probably not ever realize. I do not know if this lady goes into the restaurant all the time and knows the person well who she was helping or if she just happened to go into the restaurant today and was asked for help.
Regardless she was asked for and she gave it. She took the time out of her day to help this owner out. She could have very easily said no she was busy and had to go, and yet she didn't. It makes me wonder how many others may have been asked to help and said no. She said yes.
It made me think of grace. It also made me think that when someone asks for help and you assist you may never know what kind of impact it may have on them. It makes me think that I should not be so quick to say no. After all didn't Christ tell what we do to the least of these we do unto Him.
I know these thoughts are not very clear and a bit rambling. I however needed to share what I was thinking and what God is teaching me through one phone call I took today. I hope it makes sense and gets you thinking the next time someone one you may know and may not know asks you for help how you will respond. Thanks for listening to my thoughts as I process them out.

Trying again

Yesterday afternoon I tried typing out a long update for my blog and just when I had it all typed out I went to go post it and it was gone. So I will try it again.

It has been a long while since I wrote last- just about a month ago. So a quick update.... (or not so quick)
My job is going well, I am done with training until after tax season, then it is another 2 weeks of training. The calls have been going well for the most part. Thankfully we have a great help resource at ext 2012. I have used that quiet a bit and it is nice to have. It was nerve wrecking the first couple of days sitting out on the floor taking real calls from members. I have gotten some really good feedback from my manager, she says that I have a very professional sounding voice on the phone.
Russ's job is also going well. He has a lot of patience. It is a great blessing to have that amount of patience. I do not understand how he does his job, but I know that God has granted him this amount of patience so that he can work with these girls and help them. I know that this patience will also come into practice when we have children of our own (no not an announcement).
With our jobs going well we are beginning the process of looking for our own home. We have actually been looking for quiet a while just to see what is out there as options. We have seen a lot of homes that need a ton of work (which we don't mind) but cost more than they are worth, houses that are overpriced, houses that are not in the best of areas- my brother calls them the ghetto, and homes outside of our price range. So much to our surprise when we went to an open house on Sunday we saw a house that actually has potential. The house has character and is pretty much move in ready- we would want to change some paint and carpet, but no major projects before moving in. There are a few things that we would like to update and improve as time goes on like the bathrooms, kitchen and creating a master suite.
So now we are in the process of praying for wisdom about what God would have us do about this house. We are also looking into getting a mortage and seeing what all that entails. After that point we may proceed with an offer and all. We ask that you pray with us for wisdom. This is a huge purchase and it is a BIT overwhelming when I think of the enormousy of it all. The biggest purchase I have ever made was my car, which we are trying to sell (05 Hyundai Tiburon, 5 speed, 53K miles 7500 OBO- let me know if your interested or know someone who maybe). So I am very thankful to have Russ to walk through this process with. While I am excited to have our own place soon, it is a bit overwhelming. I am excited to see what God has for us and when in His timing it will all come into place. We will keep you posted on what happens.
I guess that pretty much updates everything. I will try to blog more consistently.