An Oops and a Goal

I may have committed the biggest faux pas in the history of weddings. I know what you're thinking, and yes, my wedding was over a year ago. That means this faux pas has been a year in the making. And I didn't even know it. We celebrated our anniversary about two weeks ago. Around that time, I decided to look through a box of wedding things just for fun (extra invites and ribbon, to do lists, and credit card-sized agendas). I couldn't bear to part with these things so soon after the wedding, and since Husby moved his things into our house and needed to be unpacked ASAP, I thought it was one box that could be set aside. I wanted to enjoy looking at these things one more time before I parted with them. As I dug through the box, I happened upon them. Thank you notes--written, sealed, and addressed, but never sent. Oh. my. word. The horror! I could not believe it. I acutally enjoyed the process of writing thank you notes (all 23843 of them!).

This afternoon, I added these labels to the back of 40 thank you notes:

Then I put stamps on them and sent them to the people who showered us with love before our wedding. Talk about swallowing some pride. I still cannot believe that I'm sending thank you notes a year late! (Did I mention that all the others went out within a week of receiving the gifts?!)

So, I had so much fun organizing our under-the-stairs cloest this weekend that I've kind of been on an organizing kick. I just love it when things have a place; life is so much easier! About twice a year, I purge things that I don't want. Between Husby and I, we usually have several trash bags full. Over at Young House Love, they've set a goal to purge 100 things (via donations, Craigslist, Ebay, trash). I love this idea and feel that it's attainable. Sure, it may take some time to go gather 100 items, but my goal is to have it done by Thanksgiving. Like YHL, I plan to keep a list of everything that'll make an exit from our home.

Maybe if I rid our house of 100 items, I can find things easier. Like thank you notes. And send them out before it's been a year.

The Weekend

Oh, I love a good weekend. Friday was an early release day at school. Normally, the worker bee in me would stay and get ahead. Not so on Friday. I left work and headed to Dallas to meet up with my college roommate, Adriane. Our plans? To hear Shauna Niequist speak, author of Bittersweet: Thoughts on Grace, Change and Learning. It was such a nice way to spend an evening, and oh so refreshing for my soul.

Shauna read a handful of passages from Bittersweet, and then we had a great question and answer time. My favorite chapter changes every few days, but one of my favorites is "Things I Do." I feel--as a woman--pressure from society to do: work 40+ hours per week, keep a clean house, cook fabulous meals, workout, maintain relationships, and on and on. Evidently, this is common. Shauna addresses this in her book, along with advice she was given:

"It's not hard to decide what you want your life to be about.

What's hard is figuring out what you're willing to give up

in order to do the things you really care about." -Bittersweet

This really strikes a chord with me. For the girl who wants to do it all, it's a challenge to be willing to give up doing. Shauna creates an ever-evolving list of "Things I Don't Do." What a great idea! On our way home, Adriane and I came up with our own lists. Though I want it to be a list that changes over seasons, here are Things I Don't Do:

1.) I don't bake. I don't like to bake. It requires precision and time that I don't like to give. And one small mistake can throw it all off (unlike cooking).

2.) I don't use cloth napkins. I know that it's super classy to bring the paper towel holder to the table, but that's what we do. I don't like washing more linens than absolutely necessary. And I sure don't want to iron these. So, for now, it's paper towels.

3.) I don't shop at Wal Mart. I know it's convenient and less expensive, but I don't like it. I prefer making two less stressful stops at Target and the grocery store.

4.) I don't finish reading books that I don't enjoy. They're not worth my time.

I feel liberated saying that I don't do things. I like it!

Adriane and I enjoyed shopping on Saturday morning and had more conversations about life. Then we visited my sweet friend, Christine, and her husband and oh-so-cute baby, Luci. After a quick trip to their fabulous farm store, Urban Acres, I headed back home. I arrived just in time to change clothes and head to a wonderful wedding.

Yesterday, after church, Husby and I did a little rearranging around the house. In the winter, our home gets pretty chilly. The coldest spot is the dining room; it hovers around 55 degrees. Brrr! We decided to move our dining table into our living room so that we won't have to eat a the bar for the next five months. That meant changing the layout of our living room. Twice. Then we organized the closet below our stairs. Husby assembled a new shelving unit, and I got to make order of all the stuff. He doubted my abilities to fit it all back into the closet. I guess it might take more than a year of marriage for him to have confidence in my organizing/packing abilities. I mean, who else can fit 55 pounds in a carry-on bag? That's talent, my friends.

I hope you had a great weekend. Happy Monday!

I Think I'm Back

Oh my goodness. October was the longest month on record! I was never so happy to see November roll around. It doesn't hurt that it brought cooler temperatures, either. (I was finally able to wear a dress with tights and boots. Yea, cooler weather!)

Perhaps you read here that I had my wisdom teeth removed and assumed that I recovered. Well, let me tell you, I didn't. The day of this post, I had dry sockets that were diagnosed as bruising. (Psst...a dry socket is where the blood clot over the removed tooth releases and exposes bone and nerve. Ouch!) So, I lived in pain for four days until another dry socket formed. Then I knew the problem. And had it fixed, which is not at all fun or pain-free. All was fine until I contracted a stomach virus. This all happened during the busiest work week of the year for me, since we had so many November 1 deadlines to meet. I pushed really hard to make it each day, and succeeded until Thursday of last week when my boss pretty much told me I had to go home. It was SO hard for me to leave my kiddos. Thankfully, my boss who's on maternity leave was able to cover for me. On Friday morning (after having dry sockets packed again), I was back at work and felt like a new woman. And we met all of our November 1 deadlines. And I still have painful dry sockets that can't be packed again.

The end...but keep reading.

Husby and I celebrated our first anniversary in October. We decided to do the traditional gift, which is paper. Wanna see what it was?

Paper tickets to see Shrek the Musical! Clever, huh?! It was such a fun musical. And at the end, the whole audience stands and sings "I'm a Believer." So fun and so funny! With our Shrek tickets, we had access to the State Fair of Texas. Husby had never been, so we decided that it was a perfect time to go. A few pics (minus the Big Tex pics since Blogger hates them and won't upload them correctly)...

Love it!

Gross. We did not eat this.

On one of the rabbit cages. I think I might see if this method works. :)

It was a fun way to spend our anniversary together. Oh...we also used public transportation in Dallas to get to and from the hotel and Fair Park. Let's just say that Dallas folk don't quite know how to use public transportation like the people of San Francisco or Chicago or New York or Budapest or Vienna or Prague.

This weekend, I'll spend a night away from Husby. I'm going to hear Shauna Niequist, author of Bittersweet, speak on Friday night. I'm so excited. Have you read it yet? You should. It's absolutely wonderful. My college roomie and I are hanging out for the day on Saturday, and then on Saturday night, we have a wedding, and I don't have a clue what I'll wear. I probably need a new outfit. Don't you agree?

Recovery

On Thursday, I went under the knife. I had my wisdom teeth removed. I know, I'm like 13 years late in having this procedure done. So this weekend has been days on end of recovery (read: hydrocodone-induced naps). I don't feel like I should complain; I mean, it's not childbirth. But I think mouth pain could be some of the worst pain ever. My sweet Husby has taken excellent care of me. Although last night he said he misses me. Evidently, I'm not uber-fun when on drugs. My mom came over yesterday and stocked our fridge full of soups (broccoli cheese, white chili, and butternut squash) and parfaits and such. And my mother-in-law made a delivery of corn chowder, banana pudding and Christmas magazines. Do I have a great team or what?!

In the time I've had to recoup, I've enjoyed redecorating rooms (inside my head). If you've been reading long, you know that I've struggled to come up with my style. You know--country, modern, traditional. And I still don't know 100%, but I do know that I'd like not to get tired of anything too quickly. I found this picture in Country Living magazine a few months ago, and I loved it immediately:

I don't love everything about it, but I do love the headboard, the white bedding with pops of color and the stencil on the wall. I decided that it would be a great starter for a bedroom (since we have white bedding, which I love). I've contemplated having a headboard custom made into a similar shape, since this carved headboard would be way out of our price range. And THEN, guess what I found from Ballard Designs? You won't even believe it!

It's almost the exact headboard (minus a few decorative birds). And it's more in our price range than a custom-made headboard. Then I've daydreamed about fabrics. My main problem with fabrics (bedding, included) is their permanency; I like to change things out. Pretty often. BUT if it's inexpensive, then I wouldn't feel as bad about doing a little change-out. I do like these from fabric.com:

So other than decorating rooms in my head, I haven't done just a whole lot. Husby did convince me to play xbox with him; then wanted to know if I preferred XMen or Justice League. Is there even a difference? I'd like to share that my skills still haven't developed past Super Nintendo.

A (sort of) Quick Update

Mercy. Time is flying! I've been so, so busy at work that I don't have much free time, even at home. Things like cleaning house, cooking and doing laundry somehow trump blogging. Dang it. In the next two weeks, my 45 seniors will submit over 100 college applications. That's a lot. And it's not all.

Also on the docket: having my wisdom teeth removed this Thursday. Ugh. I've had horrible headaches the past few months, and we seem to think that this could be a cause, so we're starting with the obvious. I'd love prayers for a smooth procedure and quick healing. (See above: 45 seniors submitting 100 college applications by November 1. I have to be back at work next Monday.) My oral surgeon seems hopeful that things will go well. I'm hopeful that he knows what he's talking about. And do you know that the I.V. scares me more than the procedure? Ha! Oh, and I learned today that if you're a newlywed, and you keep a doctor's appointment a secret, co-workers think there's a baby involved.

Over the weekend, Husby and I celebrated a year of marriage. On day 364, I learned that he doesn't like Cheez-it's. On day 365, I learned that he's allergic to tissues, which is why he uses handkerchiefs. I'm most sad that he doesn't appreciate a Cheez-it. Poor thing.We went to the Big City [Dallas] to celebrate. Thanks to Hotwire, we had a pretty nice hotel room for the price of a Motel 6 (or Hotel 6 as Husby calls it). I'm for sure doing that again! I love a good deal. I'll share more about our trip later.

I was so, so happy last night when I read my September issue of Real Simple Magazine. Yes, I'm behind. (See above: 45 seniors/100 applications. They're my life.) I must say that just seeing the magazine peek out of the top of the mailbox makes me grin. But this had a Bed Bath & Beyond coupon in it! I swear I used to get 1-2 per week, but I've waited for about 7 weeks and didn't get a single one. I needed it to use with gift cards we received for our wedding to buy this:

It's the InStyler--a rotating hot iron. I can't use a regular straight iron because it singes my hair; I'm hopeful that this will do the trick. My hairstylist used one on me a couple of hair cuts ago, and I loved it. I can't wait to use it tomorrow.

Oh! Guess who I saw today at school... the prince of Saudi Arabia. Isn't that cool?! He was in town for some medical procedure (so goes the rumor). I thought that was pretty dang cool! That probably won't happen again. :)

And one last thing...today we celebrated a birthday at our house. We have a six year old. I just can't believe how time flies!

Crickett, at six years old, you are:

Able to tear the squeaker out of a new toy in less than 30 minutes.

Eating way too much. We actually switched your treats today so lower your daily calorie intake.

 I'm sure you'll be so happy about that over the next few days.

Waking me up at about 4am to get into our bed. (I have to lift you up since you're so short.)

Picking up your empty water cup and throwing it across the floor when you want more.

That sign language just isn't working.

Completely against any physical affection between me and your dad unless you're in the middle.

Okay, I just couldn't resist. Y'all have a great week. I'll be back more consistently at some point.

One Year...

This time last year, I was one day away from being a wife. It was a fabulous, cooler October day--much like today. I couldn't wait to marry my fiance. One year later, I'm still just as proud to be his wife. Our year of marriage has been fabulous. I love being with my best friend EVERY DAY. And isn't he just so handsome?!

Life

I cannot BELIEVE that we're almost a full week into October. Time is flying! I don't think I've ever been so incredibly busy. Most of my days are 10 hour days at work, sometimes longer, and there's ALWAYS more to do at home. But I love it. I LOVE college application season. It's crazy and hectic, but it's my job to remain calm and supportive and keep my game face on so that my seniors won't flip out. I love having six kids in my office at a time. I [secretly] love answering 18 questions per minute. I love when they eat all of the candy corn out of my candy dish--mostly so I don't eat it.

Since I started getting up before 5am about three days a week for a workout, I've lost my ability to sleep late. It's a sad thing, really. On Saturday mornings, I'm ready to go by 7, if not before. And then this morning...this I think I became an adult. I've always felt like there would be SOMETHING that makes me feel grown-up. I haven't found it until today; it's not paying bills or guiding 46 seniors through 250 college applications by various deadlines. I've been told repeatedly that having kids doesn't really do the trick, either. Do you know what it is? Waking up on a non-workout day at 5:24am and thinking, "I could get the kitchen cleaned and several loads of clothes washed." AND THEN ACTING ON IT. That's right girls, I found the rite of passage. And I passed through. Scary.

If you haven't seen this video, your heart will be blessed to hear her story. Gianna Jessen is a survivor of a late-term, saline abortion. I searched, but couldn't find a video with both parts that actually works; so you have it in two parts. Gianna is speaking in Victoria, Australia on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria. I love when she says, "What sort of man do you want to be? A man obsessed with your own glory or a man obsessed with the glory of God?" Wow. Amazing. Powerful. Convicting. Just watch.