Gap is expensive.

BUT! It doesn't have to be.

We just bought, wait for it, $307.70 worth of clothes. 3 shirts, one belt, two pairs of pants.

BUT. We only paid $46.63.

whoa.

That, ladies and gents is a savings of a whopping $261.07.

Talk about shock and awe. Needless to say, I'm stoked. We got some great finds at their clearance/Presidents day sale tonight. Go to your nearest Gap and take advantage! I mean really, can you pass up $5 jeans? Nope. Neither could we.

You can thank me later. :)

Life Verse

Ever since I could remember people have been asking me, "what's your favorite verse" or "what's your life verse?" and all I could say was, "All of them?" 


To me, I guess I just felt like they all should be verses to live by and I couldn't pick just one. A few weeks ago I was in Exodus and I found the most beautiful portrayal of life and God's intention for us. I guess you could say this verse embodies what I see as God's intention for my life. 


My "life" verse. Finally. [Not that I really needed one. It just touched me in a deep way.] 

Exodus 13:15

You have led in your steadfast love the people whom you have redeemed; you have guided them by strength to your holy abode.

Isn't that a glorious picture of the Christian life. It's not religious or ceremonial or works. It's just being led by His unending love to His holy abode. Being redeemed, falling in love with Him and letting his loving strength guide us down the path that leads straight to His arms. This is his heart. His intention for us all. And I can think of nothing more beautifully simple. 

May you all experience this life, this love, this simplistic glorious experience with the Loving Eternal King of your heart. 

The Homestead

so I realize I'm wayyy behind on posting pics of the new place. 

so, here you go. 

for your viewing pleasure. 

Kitchen.

More kitchen. [notice the ginormous pantry to the left. makes me happy.]

Dining area and viewing into the entry-way.

My craft desk and antique refinished mirror.

Living Room. [Outside the windo we have a large patio overlooking the courtyard.]

More of the living room peering into the dining area.

Couch. 

Bathroom

Retro.

Bedroom.

It's actually quite spacious

Our Canopy we created. :)

[a little out of order] Blanket box beside the couch. 

Hope you enjoyed our home tour! Come over and see us sometime. :)

Our Christmas

Was wonderful. We managed to get our two clans together to celebrate! I mean, seriously, who has in laws that get along?! So cool. Not only do we get along, we actually feel like family. Not awkward. I think it helps that we've all known each other so long. 


I know you're all wondering, "where's the pictures of the new apartment?!" Gosh, hold your horses. I have to clean the place first! I don't want to air my not-so-tidy living space out in the open for all the world to see. :P 


Random tangent: Funniest quote of the day, my boss declares he doesn't want his change of two pennies if they're not shiny because, "They'll be a disgrace to my pocket."


On another seemingly unrelated note, I tried a new product today at work. It's supposed to be like a pre-workout supplement/energy booster/ performance helper. Basically it tastes like tang, delicious. I apparently have little to no tolerance for caffeine because in no time I was amped up, shaky and giggling to myself for no reason! Seriously I couldn't stop laughing and I started tripping over stuff cause I was moving too fast. My manager was then quizzing me on some items I've recently learned and all my mind could think of at the end of my spiel was some ridiculous quote from homestarrunner.com. Don't ask how my mind made the correlation, but they stood there, staring at me... dumbfounded. The stuff is brilliant. They day flew by and I never once felt tired. Can you say, wired? (judging by the state of this blog the effects still haven't worn off.)




Anyways. Now that I'm done being ADD. I shall recount some of this years loot from Christmas:

• A crock-pot. (Yay! Someone to do the cooking for me. AND it's dishwasher safe, so I don't even have to wash it myself. How lazy is that? What can I say, I'm American...)
• Some super fun crafting supplies, like paper cutters, crocheting needles. 
• The Help (An AMAZING film, btw. Go, watch it now. Well, not now. After you're done reading of course!)
• My S-I-L and her husband bought us a Wii! Yay, no more joint custody of the other one, and I can get back to wii-fit. My body is thankful, Tom and Amanda!
• The mother of all gifts this year was a memory foam topper for our mattress! Halelujiah, we can sleep restfully again. The gift that keeps on giving. And lets be honest, sleeping is one my favorite parts of the day. My favorite past time just got better!

We are so blessed. 
OH, I'll have to post about our bible study's Crafty Christmas Party soon. I don't want to overwhelm you all right now. 


Hope that wherever you are, your Christmas was magical, filled with goodness and goodies. May your New Year be filled with passion, that whatever you do, that you do it your best. We're looking forward to a new year, full of new adventures, endeavors and less debt! Here's to changing the world in whatever way we can, loving people, and making our section of the world a little brighter and more beautiful as we go in the love of God. 

Peaceful Movement

So far we've spent two nights in our new place, and all I can say is it sure is peaceful! All told it only took 2 hours to get everything moved in! Is that some kind of record? Well, unpacking took much longer. Even still, everything was unpacked and realtively "at home" by the end of the day. 


Yesterday we slept in, decorated for Christmas and hung all our art on the wall. Now it really feels like home. I keep walking around feeling like I'm still in a temporary location and then it hits me, I'm HOME. I can relax, spread out and be myself. It's an amazing feeling, being in your own space. I really feel like it's a reflection of Jesse and I as a couple. It's something we've never been able to do before. Even when we lived at the Elizabeth house it wasn't "us." It was a house with a lot of family history that we had grand plans for making it ours, but they were a long way off and way out of our budget. Now we have a cozy little ground floor apartment, painted fresh new colors and full of our artsy, whimsical style. [Hopefully I'll be able to post pictures soon, for all you who live too far to visit. Except for you Brian and Christie! You don't live too far away, so no excuses!]


It's just so cute. Don't believe me? Come for a visit! Seriously. We can't wait to entertain! Our first guests come over tomorrow night for a game night. Yay!


I'm just so happy. 
So blessed. 
God has taken such good care of us. He is faithful. 


OH. And I got a job yesterday. How crazy is that? Everything's working out. Hab kein angst. (Have no fear.)

Season of Upheavel

Everything is changing! So much happening this month-ish. 


Jesse had a birthday! Wahoo, 25. My old man. :) We had a nice evening together, watching a movie at the local Dollar Theater. (which, by the way is now $2: false advertising!) We watched the movie "In Time" and it was actually really good and interesting. The people are genetically engineered to stop aging at 25, and when you work, you earn 'time' instead of money and however much you earn is how long you get to live. Like I said, interesting. And fitting to watch on Jesse's 25th!


My in-laws are in the middle of a massive move this week, as they have decided to move on the infamous Black Friday. dun dun dun. They're actually moving to the same street my mom lives on, so it will be great to have family in town, and more company for my Mom. :)


And, now, on to more exciting news, we have finally found an apartment! Yay! PTL. It's been a long time coming and a hard battle, but it is now finally becoming a reality. It seems like it is all happening at once, and in such a sloppy, non-organized manner that I know it must be the Lord calling us out onto the waves. For the German in me is screaming in terror and shaking at not having all the answers lined up and all the necessary precautions taken care of. Fortunately I have an amazing husband who is lovingly supporting me through all my mental turmoil. I am so grateful he is patient when I am doubtful and fearful. 


Apart from the fact that we still lack a table and chairs, I believe we have everything we absolutely need to be able to sustain life on our own four feet. (ha) 


AND, I also have an interview coming up to work at a local department store in the cosmetics department. How fun! This is an especially good opportunity since our condo is literally right behind the mall, so I could walk there in two minutes. I am also applying for another position as a part-time secretary, so we will see what turns up. If all else fails, I am still babysitting part-time, so that is much needed income. My old job in the bowling alley restaurant basically asked for me to come back, and I politely evaded the question as I value my sanity and my health. It was all I could do to not run away screaming. (To be fair it wasn't THAT bad, just extremely stressful and dramatic.)


Did I mention our apartment has a pool! Yippee! Free summertime entertainment. :) It also has a club room that we can reserve at no cost, so we would be able to hold larger gatherings and parties if we want to. 


So much is changing, and I hope for the better. It's just all happening at once, in a great muddy mess. It will be a wonderful blessing to have our own home. To be able to retreat and be together. To be able to grow as a couple and make memories in our own space. I'm so stoked at the possibilities of making it our home, decorating and putting our personal touch on it. 


Please pray for us during this time...
That we remain trusting in God,
That our finances will be in order and sufficient for our needs,
That our marriage would only grow and increase in sweetness as we walk through these trials,
That I would find a great job that works with my schedule and ministries, 
That Jesse would receive a much needed raise, and
That our home would be a place to fulfill many needs. 


Thanks to all of you who have already prayed so much for us! We are so grateful for your friendship and support. We are ecstatic to be able to finally have a home!

First (Annual?) Clothing Swap

So, my ladies and I had our first ever clothing swap this past Tuesday, and I must say, it was a smashing success! Everyone brought clothing they had planned on donating, and we all got a chance to pick through and get some new things. Fall is just around the corner, and something about the blustery season brings a fresh new desire for fashion. Well, at least for me. It was so fun, I'm sure this won't be the last clothing swap that we do!


Here's the kicker, my Mother-in-Law helps run a secondhand store here in town as part of her ministry with a local church and they've been looking for donations. Especially donations for younger girls/teenagers, since their selection is rather dull at the moment. So the collection we took up will go straight there to help many families who are struggling this year. The coolest part is that there is a family with two teenage girls that are in need of clothes for the school year, and the majority of the clothes we collected are in their sizes!!! How amazing is that? It's totally God, and I can't wait to drop off all of our things, since most of it is name brand and in really good condition. 

...This massive collection of shoes and clothes are soon to be delivered!

I'm really encouraged. Our group of ladies is growing in depth, love and size. They are all so sweet and are really pursuing their walk with the Lord, and it delights me. There is a lot changing and happening right now, and as I write this, I still am unsure of what's next for me, but I know that God is faithful, and I won't be wandering forever. We have seen this week so many good things that God has done and continues to do in the lives of those around us. I know an opportunity will turn up soon, and I'm excited.


OH! And I got a free bread machine! How awesome is that? My Mom and I were garage saling, and I expressed my desire to someday purchase a bread machine, and later that day we found a stray puppy... So, we went door to door trying to find its' owner and ended up at my Husband's bosses' house, who just so happened to have a bread machine sitting on his porch (? really). He gave me the machine, said he'd only used it once and it is in perfect condition! Talk about a quickly answered prayer. :) I've christened it, and so far it works, but I think I'm the one making mistakes. Although, it did turn out some pretty tasty pretzels! 


Sorry to ramble for so long, but I wanted to give you all an update. If there is anyone who reads this, of course.