An Unceremonious Christmas Tree Lighting

It only took 22 days into the Holiday season, but we finally put up our little Christmas Tree. I don't know about anyone else, but to me it feels like the Holiday season is going by faster than usual. I love Christmas, but for some reason I feel like I can barely catch my breath this year; we're not even halfway done shopping for gifts and Christmas is less than a week away!

This has been a great December so far and will continue to be the busiest one yet: my best friend had her baby shower for baby #1, we traveling to Oklahoma to see my Dad's family, and right after Christmas, my college roommate is getting married! We are definitely in that stage of life where everything is on the upward slope; life is really just beginning and I can't wait to see what happens in 2015!

Our Christmas Card 2014

Photos Taken by my sweet sister Kelsie @ The Candid Photobooth

We've done yet another DIY Christmas card this year and I am so proud of how it came out! Kelsie is a budding photographer on the side and we love getting our pictures taken(yes, we're attention-hogging theatre kids) so another Holiday shoot was a must. She did a beautiful job with our photos two years ago so now that we are back all living in Texas it was super easy. I love the light airy quality of her editing style and I added in a few Christma-y touches of my own with Picmonkey and ipiccy.com. I can't wait to print these and get them sent out to our family and friends!


Happy Holidays!

Let The Morning Bring Me Word

*I found this print on Pinterest, but sadly the link led me no where. If you recognize its owner, please let me know!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Yesterday morning I was greeted with good news. I have been fully accepted into the Masters in Reading Program at UT Tyler. I applied a little while back, turned in all of documents and waited. 'You must have an interview' they said(well, not quite like that but you know...) and I had to wait again until our internet officially worked. Interview: check. I was hoping to hear word before we left for Break, but no such luck. That's when I started feeling really doubtful. I told myself a lot of very negative things and put myself down. I thought maybe they didn't like my lack of experience or the fact that I waited five years after graduating to start my masters again. I worried. A lot. Just like I always do. I began to lose hope and faith in myself and God. I was so promising in school and now I'm a failure. I didn't sleep Sunday night at all--I sat in the bathroom floor, in the dark, and cried. Loudly enough that my sweet husband came creeping in to hold me until I fell asleep. Where is He leading me, I felt so lost.

But wouldn't you know, my answer arrived. I came to work Monday morning determined to email the Admissions department if I didn't hear back that day about my acceptance. Nothing at 8am.

 *Mild freak out ensues as I decide what kind of email I should send: Sweet and urgent or scathing and accusatory. I chose the former.

I log-in to begin said email and there it is. I don't even click it open; I speed read the preview looking for one word and find it instantly.

 Congratulations. 

That one word melted away so many feelings of regret and sadness. I have been praying that God would lead me where He wanted me to go, that He would give me a path. I'm interested in so many things that I don't often know where I belong. I'm hoping that this is His answer to my questions and my longings to be successful and whole. I have been missing a career path since I graduated and I want so badly for this to be the right choice. God has opened a door for me and shown me His love; I now must pray that I can rise to His challenge. 

Weekend Waco Exploring!!!!

This weekend the weather was gorgeous here in Waco so the hubs and I decided to spend most of our free time outdoors. We explored the parks around the Brazos River, walked downtown, and made our way to the zoo just off the river. I was pleasantly surprised at how much there is to do downtown and I can't wait to visit the places we walked by!

Mud Island Memphis Part One

Yesterday we had a rare day off so the hubs and I trekked off to Memphis for a little daytime adventure! We ended up at a place called Mud Island across from Downtown--it tells the history of the Mississippi River and is an almost complete replica of the real thing. We Epic-ally crossed through Illinois all the way to the Gulf of Mexio on our "excellent journey." (Yes, that's a Bill and Ted reference)

No Memphis pictures are complete without the Pyramid.

My sexy husband--what a looker!

Tromping through Interstate 40--He felt like Godzilla!

A river within a river withing a river....Inception Much?

Walking through the Gulf of Mexico....

 

When I feel like modeling...

Mud Island was a fun little spot to walk around. I will admit it could use some work--it's been around for quite some time without any real updates but the weather was warm and sunny and it made for nice change of pace. I'll post some more pictures tomorrow of our stroll through Downtown!

Dueling Toothbrushes

There's an unspoken war when the paste is running low.
Who will give in and toss it, Heaven only knows.
"Not I' says Wife pinching from the top.
"Nor I" declares Husband, squeezing one last drop.
Until one day, Wife settles the score.
Out it goes and the war is no more.

All the Feelings...

Oh man, I have ALL of the feelings right now. It's finally starting to hit us that we leave Tennessee in 5 weeks. Five Weeks ya'll. When we got back from our last Nashville trip, we really started to realize that there might not be another trip before we leave. Although we haven't really been as many times as we would like to, we have developed favorite places to go and it will be sad to leave them. Fortunately, we're going back to DFW and there are plenty of restaurants, malls, and fun things to do there. There is just something about Nashville though. It has this feel to it that I've always loved and honestly, if being near my family wasn't a factor, I would probably move there in a minute!

With all of the change on the horizon, I've also been laying awake most nights digging up my past. There are decisions I've made that I regret and I wish I could go back and change. I always make choices and then immediately wonder if I've made the wrong one. My faith is not what it should be and I am ashamed. The hubs and I talked about John 14 yesterday and I feel so much like Thomas. He asked Jesus how in the world would they know the way if they didn't know where they were going? Jesus tells him that He is the way. Perhaps if I will put my feet in His steps, I will finally find my way to the Peace that He offers.

If you pray, please say one for us as we prepare our home and ourselves for the long road ahead. If you don't pray, just think on us for a moment. Either way, the positive thoughts of others can do a lot of good.

I'm praying for the families that have been affected by the tornadoes sweeping the south. There is a lot of uncertainty ahead and my heart goes out to them....

Ready for Spring Break

We Made It!!!!

Thank goodness 4:30 Friday afternoon rolled around because I didn't think I was going to make it. The week before a holiday holds so much anticipation that waiting can be unbearable. Losing Millie made the first part of the week really rough coupled with all of the phone calls and visitors in the office I was beyond ready for the "Final Countdown."

This spring break is going to be awesome because we're heading to Atlanta to see the zoo and the aquarium. We're also hoping to visit the world famous Varsity Drive-in downtown and I can't wait to get my hands on their Orange Drink! Hopefully I won't take a hundred years to post pictures from the trip!

We finally had the most gorgeous weather today and we took full advantage by taking a walk around campus. I only wish it would hang on for spring break but it looks like we might get some more winter weather. On the bright side, we picked out our outfits for easter and just like last year, I ended up with two dresses...They outnumber everything else in my closet for sure--I might have a problem...

Top it all off with Greek-style turkey burgers, Reese's eggs, and 27 Dresses and we've got the perfect weekend!

My sister made a sweet little movie with some of the pictures she took for us out at Chickasaw State Park. She even used the song we walked down the aisle to when our wedding ceremony was over! LOVE IT!!!

http://animoto.com/play/wO3k1jIJTlbplsY55dH2eg

The Emmitt Has Arrived!

My birthday present FINALLY came in the mail today. Commenced taking pictures. Hilarity ensued. Behold the goodness: