Wake Up!

I just wanted to share this. We would love to help you make a difference in your home and the lives of your family. Let me know if you have any further questions or check out our website!

weekend wrap-up

Today I returned home from a wonderful 2 days in the cities.  What a blessing this trip was.

I got to spend hours with my dear friend Catlin - what an encouragement she is! I have really been struggling lately with how I view myself.  I looked in the mirror and truly struggled to see BEAUTIFUL.  It was so saddening to me with how much I struggled to believe this with all my heart.  On our drive down to Bethany Church, she challenged me to come up with 3 things I love about myself. Man was this hard!  I was wonderful to spend time with a girlfriend and actually talk about things.  On Monday morning she and I went to Forever21 at the MOA and I bought a new wardrobe for very little money.  This is the first time in a LONG time that I have tried on clothes and actually felt good and excited about buying them, actually, this is the first time I have bought clothes for myself in a long time because I struggle so much with how I look.  God really opened my eyes and changed my heart in SOOOOO many ways.

Bethany Church was amazing, as usual.  Pastor Matt challenged us on helping the poor. Another eye opener and something laid on my heart. Check out his sermon!  I love how he is speaking to himself as well as the congregation.

We spent the afternoon at Ryan and Noelle's home sharing fellowship.  There were so many young married couples there, many of which are starting families.  We were able to talk about marriage, home buying, parenthood, and adoption.  What a rich time!

I ended my time in the cities with my sister-in-law, Raschelle.  It was nice to just relax and enjoy some time laughing and eating pizza and fro yo.

Praise the Lord for a beautiful time [despite the temperatures and humidity] and safe travels.

FAB Friday!!

So excited to have the day off my my hubby today! We are getting caught up on cleaning our house. LONG OVERDUE! Laundry, dishes, bathroom, etc! I am so excited to use all my Shaklee cleaning supplies in full force! They are WONDERFUL! 

I am hoping once the rain passes we can run to the driving range. I am learning to golf this summer! It is coming along pretty well I think. Then we are off to the fish fry! In northern Minnesota, every Friday night at every restaurant, there is a fish fry. I love to go to the Wilbert in Cotton. My mother-in-law works here and it is delicious!! 

Also this weekend I get to spend with my dear friend Catlin. She was in my core and was one of my room mates at the Honor Academy.  She was here for my wedding in August to do the reading and be my personal attendant and I was able to see her at another good friend's wedding in October! So excited to see her for a third time in less than a year :) We are heading to the cities to go to church at Bethany on Sunday and then hanging out with friends. It is going to be a wonderful girls weekend out :)

(pic by Laurel Lee)

I am also looking forward to getting coffee with Steph @ Sharing the Pages of Life. This will be the first "blog friend" that I have met!! I am also excited to hang out with my sister-in-law, Raschelle!!

This is definitely going to be a FABULOUS weekend! Hope you all have a fabulous Friday :)

I got my blog made over by Kelly's Avenue Designs! Check out her page - she is offering 20% off a full blog design through June 15th!! She is AWESOME to work with!

House Update: On Wednesday I helped install another new window in our home! The glass is so clear, and we can actually open them! 5 down; 2 to go... it is coming along! 

Out with the old...In with the new!

There have been a lot of changes going on in my heart over the past couple of months and they have begun to pour over into my living.  I desire to change, but it is so hard to do when life around me is so mundane.  I have become very aware of how I talk and the conversations I take part in.  I have noticed that my comfort level in everyday conversations around me has changed drastically.  I almost feel awkward when people around me are talking about going to the bars and other things that they did over the weekend.  My attitude and the way I carry myself has also seemed to change.  The Lord is doing something - and although I am not sure what it is - I want to be ready for it.  I wouldn't say I ever really turned from him, but the past several months of my life have definitely been consumed with other, less important things.

I have found a new friend! I feel so blessed as she too is a fellow believer in this faith that I strive to live and follow everyday of my life.  Just talking with her brings joy to my life.  It is nice to finally have people to join with that have the same beliefs as I, and she is in the nursing program, so he understands the stresses of my life far better than anyone else.  PRAISE THE LORD!!

Over the past couple months I have also been trying really hard to change the way that Jarrett and I eat.  Boy, oh boy is this a hard goal to accomplish!! I have been buying primarily organic foods and have started shopping at the local co-op.  I love it there!! Yes, it is a little spendy, but why not if it going to be better for my health in the long run.  I have been thinking a lot about our future family quite often, and this is part of the reason that I really want a change.  I do not want to feed my children things that, yet unnoticed, are harmful for their bodies.  It is a challenge for my husband to see eye-to-eye with me on this one.  He loves his food, and I have to admit that I do too.  But really eating healthy doesn't have to taste bad!! 

Oh... and one of our cars is not doing so well.  It is the car that we bought for Jarrett back in November.  Unfortunately we took it in today for some "minor repairs",  such as brakes and an oil change, and found out that the transmission needs to be rebuilt. Hm.... We are considering buying a new vehicle.  Since we only paid $450 for this car, it is almost not worth it to put in well over $1,000.  So I suggested to him that we look into a more "family friendly" vehicle for our near future and that he just take over my current Taurus wagon.  We are praying for a great deal and a great vehicle.  I am looking at a 2003 Saturn Vue that I found at a dealership here in town (what do you think Ria??)  And I also found a 2008 Honda CR-V that I really like, but it is a little bit over our price range.  Any suggestions?

Friday!

It is FINALLY here... This has been such a long and stressful week of VERY little sleep for me.  First week of clinical in long term care, an endocrine exam on diabetes melitus, a 3 pages paper to finish up, fixing my errors on my prep from this week...and today starting my prep for next week! It is a never ending cycle!! But it is now April and that means only 6 more weeks of school then its SUMMER!!

This afternoon I will be spending time at the nursing home making my assignments since I am team leader this week. Then off to a long shift at work.

Thankfully I have the weekend off :) Spending some much needed time with my hubby is on the agenda as well as cleaning my house! Saturday evening we are going to our friends' house (Seth & Renee) for dinner and hang out time! Sunday is church and then time with my in-laws; my sister-in-law will be in town too!! So, it will be a pretty laid back weekend, hopefully a bit less stressful. 

I have decided what April's give away is...

(Satin Hands in Vanilla Sugar!)

Also, 15% off all month. Stock up on anything you might be needing, or get a new "look" for Spring and Summer. 

Here is how to enter:

-follow my blog

-and leave a comment saying why you want it!

Pretty simple :) I will be doing my drawing on April 15th! And MAYBE there will be a second give away...we will see what the response is and if sales are good. Help support me and my husband as we are remodeling our house...I hope to make some extra money so we can do more with our house this summer. I am also wanting to take up one of my passions as a part time business from home, but right now finances and resources are the major problem! Praying for guidance