ABCs of Marriage

The move is going pretty well still, although we're not quite done. But we're doing better than we ever did at the last apartment as far as getting things unpacked and organized. I think it's b/c we don't have a hugemongous spare bedroom to just stack boxes and random junk in. We don't have the space to do that anymore, so we are being forced to unpack. We also don't have to room to leave picture frames and artwork laying around just b/c I can't decide where to put them. So I think we've already put more stuff up on the walls than we ever had up at the old place. lol. And it looks so good! Yay!

While I was unpacking a box in the office earlier, I found a bunch of random notebooks. I was flipping through them and found a bunch of interesting stuff. Like the notes from the college girls' class I taught at Juno one night. I was pretty impressed with myself, I must say. I'm not sure I could put together that good of a class anymore. lol. I'll have to post that one sometime later, b/c it's got some good thoughts in it. I also found the notes from the devo I gave in the girl's cabin at camp in Brazil 2 years ago. It was on Ecclesiastes. I got so much Bible reading done that week, mainly b/c there wasn't anyone to talk to besides Micah. So when he wasn't around and everyone else was talking and having fun in Portuguese, I sat all by my lonesome and read my Bible. And that's when Ecclesiastes became one of my favorite books of the Bible.

I also found the journal I kept from that first week at camp. I had forgotten how many mixed emotions I experienced that week. Like, I remember that it was tough, but reading it reminded me how much pain I was in that week. It was so overwhelming to me to be in a foreign country where I knew I would live one day, to be surrounded by people I didn't know who spoke a different language (which is stressful enough for me when they speak English), and to try so hard to communicate with people. I was mentally exhausted and on the verge of a massive breakdown by day 3 of camp. The breakdown came on day 4. lol.

I found something else in one of the notebooks that I don't remember writing, don't remember where on earth I got it from, but it's pretty awesome, so I thought I'd share it with you. It's the ABCs of Marriage.

Affirm him daily.
Be his biggest cheerleader.
Count the blessings I have in our marriage.
Don't criticize him.
Encourage his hobbies.
Fight for his reputation.
Give him my body, mind, and heart.
Help him with a project he wants to finish.
Inspire him to chase after his dreams.
Just gaze at him adoringly.
Kiss him all over his face and neck.
Love him in spite of his weaknesses.
Make sure he knows he's the only one you'll ever want.
New nighties never hurt!
Offer to rub his feet after a long day.
Pray for needs dearest to his heart.
Quit nagging!
Remember whey I fell in love with him.
Stay committed and faithful to him.
Take the initiative when it comes to sex.
Understand where he's coming from.
View him through God's eyes.
Write him a love letter.
eXamine my own heart daily.
Yearn for God and His Word.
Zealously protect my marriage.

Book reviews

So I saw one someone else's blog that she reviews books for Thomas Nelson Publishers. And when I looked into it a little more, I found out that anyone w/a blog can review books for free. They send you a book every month based on ones you request or genres you're interested in. You read the whole book, write a 200 word review, and post it to your blog and a consumer website like Barnes&Noble or WalMart. So I signed up. I'm always looking for new authors or interesting new books. And I figured this would be just as good a way as any to do that.

After I initially found out about being able to review books, it got me thinking. I think I'm going to make it a goal this next year to read at least 25 NEW books throughout the year. And I specify NEW b/c I like to re-read my favorites. I've read the Harry Potter series several times. Like, at least 5 times. More for the first few books. I'm about to re-read the Twilight series too. (We went and saw New Moon tonight, so it's got me wanting to read it again.) So yeah, 25 new books a year. And they can be any genre. Fiction, self-help, religious, non-fiction, whatever. Then if I do 25 w/no problem, I'll up the number. So now that I've decided to review for Thomas Nelson, that'll help w/my new book goal. I'm pretty excited. So be looking in the next month or so for my first book review. =)

The move is still going pretty well. Not quite done yet. We should get everything out of the old apartment tomorrow. Getting everything situated here is another story. lol. I spent about 3 hours on it last night after we got in from HSV and made a decent dent in it. I at least found our bed and part of the living room. lol. And Micah got our dryer working again! So we're also going to tackle this mountain of laundry tomorrow too.

Things have been super crazy busy this week, so Micah and I went on a date tonight to just get away for a little bit. We went to O'Charley's and then to see New Moon. I liked it better than the first one, although it still had some cheesy moments. New Moon was my favorite book out of the 4. =)

And now I'm beginning to crash after the extremely long week that we've had. Gotta get some sleep so I can work on moving tomorrow. I also have to get my class ready for Sunday morning, which might prove to be a little difficult. So I'm gonna sign out. Have a great evening and weekend!

The new place

So as I mentioned in yesterday's post, we're moving. We'll have the same landlord, which is good, b/c he's pretty awesome. And he's just transferring our lease for us. So that's good too. And it's just the next building over. So we didn't have to go very far. We're losing a good bit of space, but I'm ok w/that now b/c I'm realizing that the place we were in was just too big. We didn't have enough furniture to fill it up, so it looked pretty sparse. Not so in the new place! We're probably going to have to chunk a bunch of stuff, or put it in a yard sale.

We decided to move on Wednesday or Thursday of last week. Then as I mentioned, we were out of town last weekend, so we didn't get to do any moving then. I packed a few boxes and gathered a few things together before we left, but not much. So we got back Sunday night, slept in Monday to catch up on sleep, then went to Lowe's to pick out paint. The paint job was terrible in the living room. So I was adamant that I wanted it painted. Luckily, the landlord agreed to pay for the paint. But I got to pick out the color. =) So I started painting Monday a little after noon. Matt and Sarah (our Star Wars friends) came over around 4ish to help. The guys moved big furniture while Sarah helped me finish up painting. We got almost all of the big stuff, except for a big dresser, mattress, washer/dryer, couch, and a few small pieces. But we hadn't brought over a lot of small stuff yet. Maybe 10 boxes, some kinda small. I think it was mainly books. The only break we took was to watch the new episode of House while we ate supper.

So Tuesday I had to go back to work. Not fun. It was driving me crazy b/c I knew there was so much stuff that needed to be done at home. So I hardly slept at all the night before b/c my mind was all over the place. Got home and got to work again. Matt and Sarah came over again (they were lifesavers!) and the guys got the rest of the big stuff over, along with a probably 3 carloads of smaller stuff. We pretty much just brought it in and threw it down somewhere. We'll organize later. We're just trying to get stuff out of the old apartment as soon as possible.

Once again, I could barely sleep last night. And I had to go back to work this morning to my great dismay. When I got home, Micah was putting another load in the car. I cleared out the bedrooms upstairs so that we could vacuum. We were trying to hurry b/c the electricity was getting cut off tomorrow. But we ended up calling the electric company, and they're waiting til Monday to shut it off. So that'll give us some more time to finish up.

We're in HSV now, heading back tomorrow night. After work Friday, we'll work some more, and hopefully get the old apartment empty and clean. Then we'll spend all day Saturday trying to get the new place in order. That is gonna take a while, b/c we're gonna have to be stepping over stuff for a while. It's a disaster area. You shoulda seen us trying to pack this afternoon. lol. Stuff is everywhere. But I'm excited. Organizing and hanging pictures and moving furniture is my thing. I love it...no idea who I got that from though...;-) lol.

Well, that's the update. And I'm gonna wrap this up b/c this post is getting way too long. =) Happy Thanksgiving!

Whew!

Ok, so this isn't going to be a long post, but I just wanted to check in real quick. =) Things have been super super busy around here lately. And they aren't going to slow down quite yet. here's a quick run-down. I'll elaborate later.

-Went out of town this weekend. Left Friday night, got back Sunday night.

-I was off Monday, but it wasn't very restful. We decided to move into a slightly smaller apartment. It is owned by the same guy and is just in the next building over from where we were. So quite convenient. But before we moved in, the living room needed a coat of paint. The previous tenants had touched it up, but with a slightly different shade of paint. Genius. So needless to say it looked like junk. But the good news is that I got to pick what color to paint. =) So Monday was spent buying paint, painting, and moving a few things over.

-Back to work today. Came home, finished moving all of the big pieces over, and most of the little stuff.

-Took a break to eat pizza and watch our last Star Wars movie. So I'm fully cultured now.

-Back to work again tomorrow. Then home, shower, then off to HSV for Thanksgiving. Back here on Thursday night b/c I have to be at work Friday morning for the funnest day of the year! NOT!

-We had thought about going to Paragould for Thanksgiving for the weekend, but I'm not sure we'll survive another trip. lol.

And now it's bedtime. I'm super exhausted. I'll fill yall in on more details in the next few days. Happy Thanksgiving if I don't get back to ya by then!

Aspirations

Freed is now offering the Rosetta Stone software FREE to all students. You can take your computer by, they'll download the software, and then they can just add languages to your account. Now, I'm not technically a student, but they're letting me have it anyways. I called Micah the other day when he was getting it put onto his computer and the guy doing it heard how excited I was about it over the phone, so he agreed to put it on mine too. I was a student a few months ago, so close enough right? lol. I've been wanting the Rosetta Stone software for a while now so that I can work on my Portuguese. Well, the bad news is that they don't have Portuguese yet. If enough people are interested then they'll get it. So far, they offer Spanish, Italian, French, German, Mandarin Chinese, Russian, Greek, and Hebrew. And they might be getting Portuguese and Japanese soon. Micah and I got the first four on that list. Until they get Portuguese I'll probably pick one to work on. I'm thinking either German or French. Spanish and Italian are going to be too close to Portuguese and it'll just confuse me.

So coming back around to the title of the blog: aspirations. One of my recent aspirations has become to learn languages. I would love to be able to speak like, 7 languages. I have no idea where the number 7 came from, but that's just what I pulled out one day. I want to be fluent in English and Portuguese (got one of those down! lol) and be able to at least somewhat communicate in 5 others. If I get Spanish, Italian, French, and German down, I've only got one more to go! I haven't decided what I want the last one to be. Maybe Japanese just to have something different. =) So yeah, I'm super excited about getting all of the software for free, because it will make accomplishing that dream a whole lot easier.

There are so many things I want to do in my lifetime. And I think all of them are definitely attainable:

-I want to learn to paint. I just want to do artistic stuff in general I feel like that is something I could be talented at, but I just haven't had the opportunity to express it. I just need practice. I would love to have an art room one day, just to do whatever I want. White walls, white floor. I can throw paint on the wall if I want to. It'll just be my place. I want to learn to make pottery.
-I want to learn to play the piano. I don't have to be great at it. I don't have to write my own music. I just want to be able to sit down with a piece of music and play it.
-I want to homeschool my children. There are so many things that I want to teach them that I don't think public schools can/will. I want them to learn music and art at a young age. I want them to be able to learn languages or whatever else they are interested in. I want to teach them about the Bible and instill in them the values that I wouldn't trust to anyone else.
-I want to travel. There is a teacher at school who leads a tour in the Middle East retracing the apostle Paul's steps. That would be so amazing. I want to go to the Louvre. I want to visit old castles in Scotland. I want to go see Auschwitz. (Morbid, I know, but that time period is so interesting to me.)
-I want to pick a subject from the Bible and become an expert on it. I know I'll never be an expert on the whole Bible or maybe even half of it. But I can pick one small aspect of it and learn everything I can about it. I don't know what that subject will be yet...I'm still thinking about that one.
-I would love to write a book one day. I don't know what it will be about. Maybe the subject I become an expert on. Maybe just about my experiences becoming a missionary's wife and moving to a foreign country.
-I want to take amazing pictures.

There are so many more, but this blog is getting long enough as it is. So yeah...I'm really excited about beginning to accomplish one of these aspirations. Hopefully I'll get to work one some more soon. =)

Everything begins somewhere...

I know I have been wanting to blog for a while now. Every time I blog, I say something to the effect of how "I feel the need to put my thoughts in written form..."

I seem to never get past that first post to put me on the path to writing. I tell myself that papers are where I am the weakest in school. That is the first problem right there, I tell myself I can't or I struggle with...

I was listening to John Maxwell on cd the other day. Someone was talking to him about how they wanted to start writing but that they did not know how he could do it. John told the person to just start writing. He explained that his first book took him a year to write and it was only a hundred pages long. Each chapter he wrote was only about 3 or 4 pages long and he explained that it was a stretch for him to write those short chapters. He says it himself his first book was horrible.

After writing his first book John found someone to mentor him in writing. His mentor worked hard with him for two years and look how good a writer he is today. Just start writing.

That made me think about other things I want to learn and accomplish. We make up reasons or excuses for why we can't do things and tell ourselves that to the point that they become true instead of looking for why or how we can.

Truth is everything begins somewhere. When will you stop making excuses and just start writing?

"Marriage is like a pet boa constrictor..."

"...either you feed it every day or bad things happen."

I found this quote in a marriage article on MSN. Hilarious, but defintely some truth to it.

The article talked about 4 things to make your marriage spectacular. Here they are:
1. Understand each others' needs. Share your expectations with each other so that your spouse can try to meet those expectation.
2. Show him some love. Guys need affirmation. Pay him compliments.
3. Take 10. 10 minutes out of every day to just sit and talk. Not about chores or kids or bills. Anything where you can learn something will help you bond. Whether it's discussing what super power you'd want or recent political happenings.
4. Focus on the good. That doesn't mean you can't ever speak anything negative, but the good should outweigh the bad.

Now, I know that we have a lot to learn and there is always room for improvement, but I must say that I think we do pretty well at all of these things. It's just normal for us. But it's kinda sad because for so many couples, stuff like this is a big step. And it can do a lot to save their marriage. Like, this article didn't revolutionize our marriage by any means, but it could definitely do that for a lot of couples.

Even in the church today, so many people don't know how to interact with their spouse. It amazes me when I hear Christian women talking bad about their husband. Or Christian men talking down to their wives. In public! I mean, I know we haven't even been married quite 2 years, and that I'm still very young, but I know better than that.

Micah and I have talked about this a lot lately b/c we've been going through a class on marriage on Sunday mornings. And we've come to the conclusion that there is definitely always room for improvement, but that we have a better handle on our marriage than a lot of people who have been married for as long as I've been alive. And we've figured out why that is. We both have really good examples to follow.

My parents have been together since they were like, 14 years old. They got married young. In most cases, especially today, these marriages never last very long. My parents are still very happily married and flirt and goof around like they're still teenagers. I don't think I've ever seen my parents fight, which is something that is rare for anyone to be able to say. Unless you count the frequent wrestling matches. lol. *Funny story real quick:: I'm not joking about these wrestling matches. They happen quite often, and it's hilarious. Mom puts up a good fight and all, but she really has no chance. Sorry Mom, but you know it's true. lol. Well, there was one night years ago when they were wrestling around and Morgan, who was maybe 7 or 8, says "Why do yall fight so much? Yall are always fighting!" My reply was "Who are you and what family have you been living with all your life?" She didn't understand that they were just playing around. We still make fun of her for that. lol*

Micah's parents still have a very good relationship. They are another case in which, were it to happen today, it probably wouldn't last very long. I'm not sure the exact numbers, but I think they only dated for like 2 weeks before getting engaged. Ridiculous, right? lol. They got married like, 2 months after that. Crazy. Today, no one would expect that to last very long. But theirs has. Granted, I don't get to be around them that much, but I can tell just from the few weeks that I've been at their house or that they've been here that they have a great relationship.

So we're both very thankful for the examples that our parents have given us about how to treat each other and how to have a "spectacular" marriage. And I didn't need an article on MSN to tell me that. =)

Bittersweet

Tomorrow is going to be an emotional day. The congregation where I attended growing up has sold their old building and is in the process of building a new one. Tomorrow it the last service in the old building and as the Memorial Parkway congregation. After tomorrow, they will be Chase Park.

It's exciting at the same time though, because it's a new beginning. And there are going to be a lot of former members come back for the last service, so it'll be nice to see people I haven't seen in a long time. But it's definitely going to be emotional. And I know that the church is the people and not the building, but's still sad. There will be lots of tears. I have so many memories from that building::

-Playing w/Loni Beth under the blue stairs before they closed it off.
-Sardines in the dark with the youth group.
-Mine, Joshua's, and LB's 3rd, 2nd, and 1st birthday at the Thomas House.
-Flag football on the back lot w/Paul.
-Senior receptions.
-Wednesday night 5th grade Bible class with Will Johnson and the green pencils. =)
-Painting the youth room that terrible yellow and green checkerboard. lol.
-Dragging my fingers on the ceiling in the foyer when Dad would carry me. (You can still see the marks. lol)
-Going to visit Mammer and Glenda in the offices during the week.
-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the foyer w/Joshua, Jordan, and LB. Our secret lair was under the table at the far end of the foyer.
-The youth section.
-Lock-ins, watching movies on the big screen in the auditorium at 3 in the morning.
-Climbing the trees out front and next to the carport.
-Hanging out w/Tara, Maria, and Ashley in the pink bathroom upstairs.
-Hanging out in the "hot room" after services. lol.
-Climbing the poles in the foyer of the fellowship hall.
-Mother's Day Out.
-Playing on the playgrounds when I was a kid....and when I was a teenager. lol.
-Not to mention my wedding. Kind of a big deal. =)

So it's definitely going to be bittersweet. And I know that so many more memories will be made in this new building. But I'm still gonna cry tomorrow. lol.

One more LOTR quote...

So as I kept watching the movie, I came across another quote, which is my number one favorite from the movie. I like it because a friend introduced me to it when I was going through a rough time, before I had even seen the movie. And it was just very encouraging to me at that point in my life. Maybe it will encourage you too.

Frodo: I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.

Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.

That's all. I'm done for real now. Good night!

Sick days...

I was doing so good....so good. The year before Micah and I got married, I was convinced that the state of Tennessee was out to get me. For some reason, the allergy crud here is so much worse than in Alabama, for me at least. That year, I think I had the sinus crud 6 times. Yeah. That's every 2 months. Ridiculous, right? TN hated me. Well, since we've been married, I think I've only had it once. (I told Micah maybe he did do something good for me. lol) Until now. I've fought it off all year. Everyone at work and church has been getting sick. I guess TN was trying to make it up to me by not getting me sick. =) Until now.

I woke up yesterday morning with a really sore throat. My glands were swollen all day long. A little bit of sniffling, but not too much. Then after I got home from work it got a little worse, but it was still bearable. Micah went to the store to get me some medicine to try and keep the worst of it away. Along with the medicine, he brought me back a huge pack of Twizzlers. Those have been my favorite candy for as long as I can remember. He's awesome. =) Took the medicine last night. Woke up this morning feeling terrible. Sinus headache. Couldn't breathe too well. Throat still sore. So I took some medicine and headed off to work. That didn't last long. I was home by about 8. Good thing too, b/c it only got worse as the afternoon went on. The medicine that morning started working pretty well, but when it started to wear off, it wore off fast. And I crashed pretty hard. I am now on my 3rd dose of medicine today. Overall, I'm feeling better, but still can't breathe at all through my nose. I'll hopefully be able to go to work tomorrow. I only have one more sick day left this year. We'll just have to see how I feel in the morning.

One thing that has been pretty nice is getting pampered and waited on by Micah. lol. I'm usually the one taking care of him. Micah is gone to Memphis tonight, so I'm home alone. It's kinda nice though b/c I think this is the first time I've been here alone for any length of time since he has gone back to school. I decided it was a good epic movie night, so I put in The Fellowship of the Ring. =) I had the urge to watch it a few days ago. We were watching a show called the 50 Greatest Child Stars, and both Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggins) and Sean Astin (Samwise Gamgee) were on the list. So tonight was a good night to watch it. =) Here are some of my favorite quotes from the movie:

"A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to."

"I ain't been droppin' no eaves, sir. Honest!"