Should I Call it Ike or a Garage Sale?

I'm not really sure why, but…… seeing all of this footage and these photos from our friend Ike makes me think of a garage sale. Maybe it's because there is some sort of subconscious correlation between huge messes and garage sales for me?! Or maybe it's because I don't like storms or garage sales. There was a time, when I was a little girl that I loved garage sales. My MiMi would take me with her and she would give me a dollar and I would come home with like twenty things! But those days are over. The love for garage sales is long gone. (On a side note, my MiMi and my husband LOVE garage sales. They have even been known to go garage sale-ing together. We call it GS-ing. They're precious, I know. When Mark and I were dating and MiMi found out that Mark loved garage sales, it was an instant bond for them! The first time that they went GS-ing together, I was told by my MiMi that I had to marry this man!) Thanks for that discernment MiMi ;-)

A couple of days after the storm I was out riding my bike and I got to thinking about garage sales. How did garage sales start? Whose idea was garage sales? Why do people have garage sales? People have garage sales because they are a good way to accomplish two goals at once. One: to make extra money and two: to get rid of stuff. People mostly have garage sales to get rid of stuff they don't want anymore. And if they don't want it anymore, then it is trash to them right? So how is it that people will actually pay money for something that is considered trash to someone? It was a mystery to me. But then I realized: it’s because to the GS-loving darlings like my Mimi and Hubby, it is treasure. For them, they see something that to someone else it may be trash, but to them, it's the greatest prize. They are able take things that may be otherwise useless to someone else and turn it into something new and extremely useful or exquisite. This painted a beautiful picture in my mind of how God views us the same way my GS-ing duo view garage sales. He is able to see in us what other people can’t. He is able to take someone’s trash and turn it into His treasure. When someone or something has tainted us, worn us down and thrown us out, He is there to scoop us up, dust us off and make us new. When to others and sometimes even to ourselves we are useless, He reminds us that our lives are touched by His hand, and we do have a purpose. When the decisions we make lead us to a breaking point, where we feel like we can never be whole again, He doesn’t throw us away. Instead, He picks up the pieces, puts them back together, and we are made whole in Him. Why? Because we are his treasure. His most prized possession. He desires us, delights in us, and rejoices over us. He promised that when we are in Him, we are a NEW creation. Our bodies may not be new, but when we give our lives to Him, he promises to make our souls new; to wipe away all of our sins and forgive every single one of them. I am in awe of that promise. Just as my beloved GS-ers give things a second chance when they pay for someone else’s trash, our God gave us a second chance when he paid the ultimate price through His son by putting Him in our place. A debt we owe! Friends, I don’t think I will ever to be able to wrap my mind around this. In Him, we are re-created, redeemed, and sanctified by the power of the Holy Spirit. I pray that we never take lightly the fact that he always gives us a chance to begin again.

I am reminded of some lyrics from one of my favorite Mercy Me songs:

"And by Your blood that washed over me
By Your grace that came down to kiss me
You have cleaned my heart and my soul
For Your glory You made me
Made me beautiful"

Thank you Jesus for my second chance! Thank you for not throwing me out, but instead seeing a life that is worth salvaging. And thank you for revealing yourself to me even in a bike ride.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” - 2 Corinthians 5:17

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” -Ephesians 4:22-24

My Surprise and My Other Surprise....

Ok so since we got married four years ago I have been begging Mark to go to Schlitterbahn. I love that place, and I love to be in the sun! Well, those of you that know my gorgeous red-headed fair skinned man know that being in the sun for 8 hours in not first on his things-he-loves-to-do-list. Having to re-apply sunscreen every hour is not exactly his idea of fun. I have tried to be sympathetic to this but we have had to have many compromises because one of the only things that I have going for me is that my olive complexion soaks up those sun rays and can turn three shades darker almost instantly! There have been times when we have gone to the pool together and my husband takes both of our towels and literally covers his whole body. He will lay there in his man made cocoon while I relish in the cancer rays with no sunscreen (this will probably come back to bite me later) Poor Precious. All for the sake of spending time with his sun-bathing sweetheart.

Anyway, on the night of our anniversary he gave me a beautiful single-spaced typed letter (although I wanted to, he wouldn't let me share, he said it was too personal) and a sweet card. And what was in the card? That's right folks! A voucher for a trip to the hottest coolest time in Texas! My man was such a good sport about being in the sun all day. We had an absloute blast just hanging out together .We splurged and ate and ate junk the whole time. It was nice to get some time away with to relax and enjoy time with my beloved.
One thing I didn't splurge on though was a water camera. This is the one and only photo we have. It was taken by the people there, its not that great, and was ridiculously overpriced, but I had to have a memory of the day! Note the little girl in the background. We told the lady to crop her out, but she didn't. Mark said it's ok cause the little girl is so cute he didn't mind having her in our picture ;-)

Oh and the other surprise...................................................................................................................
There is going to be another baby in our family!!
*
*
*
*
*
No, it is not mine! I am not pregnant! But my sister is and I am soooooo excited to be an aunt again! Another baby to kiss and hug and cuddle and love! April 14th can't get here soon enough!

Me and My Man, 2 people+2gether = 4 years

Two and a half weeks ago Mark and I celebrated our four year wedding anniversary. I cannot believe that we have been married for four years already. These have been some of the best four years of my life. We have laughed together, cried together, rejoiced together, wept together, mourned together, smiled together, dreamt together, loved together, learned together, grown together, prayed together and done life together. I am to the point where I don’t remember my life without Mark and can’t picture it without him in the future.
This year for our anniversary he told me that I was not allowed to buy him anything because he had a surprise planned for me. When I asked him what in the heck I was supposed to get for him, his exact words were, “Well, you’re just gonna have to be creative.” Great. Sometimes I can do creative, but not when there is pressure! So after racking my brain all that kept coming to me was how I couldn’t remember my life before him. Which prompted me to then try to think of all of the things that he brought to my life. I decided to compile all of these thoughts and make him a book called “Before you.” However, in lieu of our fourth anniversary, it was actually spelled Be-Four You. So my dear internet, I am about to share something pretty personal…the entries in the book I made for Mark. The one and only rule is that you can not make fun of my cheesey-ness or sappy-ness, ok? Oh and be-four is spelled the way it is intentionally ;-)


Be-four you, I didn’t know that I would learn how to love myself because of the way that I am loved.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that I could ever be someone’s priority.
Be-four you, I didn’t have a personal handyman ;-)
Be-four you, I didn’t have a buddy to do fun things with such as sleeping on the futon mattress in front of the fire, slow dancing just the two of us at home, or spontaneously hopping a plane to another state to buy a vehicle!
Be-four you, I didn’t know the beauty of being united as one with the person God created me to be with.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that something could become important you just because it was important to me.
Be-four you, I didn’t have a “Sunday Ritual.”
Be-four you, I didn’t eat Chinese food. J
Be-four you, I didn’t get to enjoy your amazing voice.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that I would have someone to stand by my side and support me in every endeavor; large or small.
Be-four you, I didn’t know the joy of having someone to share my life, my goals and my dreams with.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that someone would accept and love me no matter what kind of baggage, emotions or habits that I carried.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that I would get to marry my best friend.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that I would have someone who would take care of me in every way; whether it be financially, emotionally or even just getting me Saturday morning breakfast or getting something out of the car for me sometimes… or a lot of times.
Be-four you, I didn’t know it was possible to lose myself by staring into your beautiful blue eyes.
Be-four you, I didn’t know how to manage money. ;-)
Be-four you, I didn’t have our precious Asher and Allie.
Be-four you, I didn’t know what it would be like to have nothing else in the world matter except being in the presence of the man I love.
Be-four you, I didn’t know I would marry someone with such a cute butt ;-)
Be-four you, I didn’t eat hamburgers on Saturdays; a family tradition that I have come to love.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that hearing kind words or compliments from my beloved’s mouth would be enough to refresh my entire spirit.
Be-four you, I didn’t know what it was like to have someone go out of their way to be sweet to me just because they wanted me to know I was loved.
Be-four you, I didn’t know what it was to be loved unconditionally.
Be-four you, I didn’t have someone to hug and kiss anytime I want.
Be-four you, I didn’t know that I would spend my life with someone who not only loves me more than they love them self, but always lets me know.

Happy Anniversary my man! I love you Mark; always and forever and all the time. Thanks for being mine.

P.S. Are you wondering what his surprise to me was? Well then stay tuned! Knowing that I need to post the surprise will give me the incentive to post sooner than 3 weeks from now ;-)

An Unplanned Post...

Its crazy to me how life can just so quickly throw curve balls at you. The kind that hit you smack in the face and just sort of stun you for a while.
The first was that my Paw Paw had to be admitted to the hospital yesterday. He was having some unstable chest pain so they decided to admit him. This morning he underwent a cardiac catheterization with stent placement and he is doing wonderful. I'm not too concerned about this situation.
What is weighing heavily on my heart right now is the news I received when I ran into an acquaintance as I went to visit my Paw Paw in the ICU. This acquaintance informed me that his wife was also currently in the ICU. She was recovering from an intentional overdose. She tried to take her own life. This news has deeply upset me and I'm not sure why. I don't even really know this woman. I have met her once and talked to her on the phone a couple of times. She is seemingly one of the sweetest happiest people you would ever meet. I certainly would have never suspected that she suffered from such depression. I think I am in shock. But it's always those that we least suspect who seem to have a deep and dark struggle inside them. I guess they hide it the best. I think the reason I am upset is because I am burdened and hurting for this family; for whatever has caused her to have an unsettled heart and mind, for her husband and her three beautiful children. I don't even really know what else to say right now.

I am sorry dear internet that this is such a sad post. I do have another entry journaled that I plan to post, but this was just on my heart and mind tonight. Please pray for this precious family.

Customer Service At Its Finest

Ok, so I am confident when I say that I am not the only one that has been beyond disappointed with customer service, or should I say lack of these days. This is an issue that I have had for quite some time and quite frankly, I’ve had enough! I mean I know that you can not expect a lot from high school and college employees, but what has it come to? What is wrong with the work ethic of America? Why does nobody want to work and since when is it ok to get away with being lazy and actually getting paid for it?!!? How do we ever teach kids what it means to truly work for something if we are paying them not to? Ah! I could go on forever, but instead, I will share with you three different encounters that have all happened in the last week….

Scenario 1
Guy behind counter talking on cell phone.
We walk up to counter.
Guy still talks on cell phone.
We are standing there waiting for him to get off. We wouldn’t want to interrupt.
Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.
Finally, about a minute later he gets off and says, “Oh did y’all want to order something?”
Oh no, we just came up here to see what you were saying to your buddy on the other end of the phone….

Scenario 2
Me and a friend were doing some shopping and then proceed to checkout.
We get to checkout counter and set all of our stuff down on the counter.
Cashier has her cell phone in hand, texting. She literally looks at us, neither says nor does nothing and then looks over at her fellow teeny-bopper friend and says, “How do you spell mustard?”
My friend and I look at each other and you could tell we were both wondering if this was really happening.
She finishes her text puts her phone down and then says “Oh hi, how are y’all doing?”
I didn’t respond. I just gave her “the look.”
In the middle of checking us out, her cell phone rings.
Seriously?
She answers, but surprisingly tells the person on the other end that she can’t talk.
She finally finishes checking us out with of course no courtesy or respect.

Scenario 3
Me, to the very Abercrombie looking cashier: Yes sir, I bought these glasses while out of town, but I have a gift card for them that I didn’t have with me at the time so I would like to return them and re-buy them with the gift card.
Mr. Abercrombie: Well I don’t really think we do that.
Me: Well then just give me my money back for them then.
Mr. Abercrombie: O.K. I can do that.
Me: And then I will just buy them right back.
Mr. Abercrombie: Oh…ok.
Me: See, so what’s the difference.
Mr. Abercrombie: Well I guess you’re right, but that’s just a really weird request.
*Ok, maybe I’m just being sensitive, but I took offense to this. We are talking about 40 bucks here! You wouldn’t think it was weird if it meant $40 in your pocket!*
Anyway, he proceeds with the transaction.
Once it was all done, cash was in hand and gift card was swiped, I was walking out the door and I turned to him and said, “Just in case anyone hasn’t told you, it’s pretty rude to tell a customer that they have a weird request.” He responded with a laugh which made me sure that my comment didn’t phase him one bit. But at least it made me feel better.

And Mark gets upset when I want to report incidences like the three mentioned above to the managers….
What would you do??

On the other hand, I guess it's not always horrible. I did call Lowe’s today to report some exceptional service we got there.

Why I Do What I do...

Here is a conversation that happened between me and one of patients yesterday....

Mrs. M: Crystal, I just want to tell you that I love each and everyone of you so much.
Me: Aw. Thank you Mrs. M we love you too.
Mrs. M: Y'all are always just so sweet to me and take good care of me and I tell you, with y'all taking care of me, I don't worry at all.
Me: Thank you Mrs. M you are so sweet to us and I am so glad that we make you feel good about your care.
Mrs. M: And let me tell you something else, I pray for y'all all the time.
Me: Thank you Mrs. M, we need that!
Mrs. M: Well y'all do so much and I do pray for y'all and think of all a lot and I am just so thankful to have y'all.
Me: We appreciate that Mrs. M. We really do.
Mrs. M: You know, I have seen so people be so horrible to their doctors and nurses and I just don't see how they can be that way when they oughta be thankful for someone who has done so much to take care of them.
Me: Mrs. M, thank you so much. We really do appreciate that. Thank you for always being so sweet to us. You make it a joy to take care of you.
Mrs. M: Well I mean everything I said, sugar.

In a midst of crazy hours, long days, not- so- sweet patients, and feeling like it doesn't matter to some patients what I do, it's conversations like these that remind me exactly why I do it all.......

A Blog-Worthy Birthday!

Well, this post is about three weeks late, but two Mondays ago, I turned 25. A whole quarter of a century old. Turning 25 was a little harder than I thought it would be, but all in all, this birthday day was so great for me that I want to have it in writing so I can remember every little detail of this day forever!

To give you a little preface, when Mark was asking me what I wanted for my birthday, I told him "nothing" because one, I don't need anything. And two, the older you get, the less birthdays matter the less it feels like your birthday. Well boy did he prove me wrong! The day started off as I got woken up to his beautiful voice singing me happy birthday. Then, I go into the bathroom to take a shower and he has written Happy Birthday all over my mirror with dry erase marker. While I was in the shower, he snuck out and got me breakfast. Which happened to be my favorite guilty pleasure….Whataburger breakfast platter with extra hash browns instead of a biscuit, complete with a diet DP. And he got it right on! (I know, I know, my whole week's calories in one meal, but hey it's my day to indulge). Once my breakfast was delivered, he was on his way and I was left to finish getting ready. Well, when I got out to the car, it was FULL of balloons!

I could barely get in! I literally laughed out loud at that one. That totally caught me of guard. Then I found a card on the steering wheel. Inside the card there was a CD. I put the CD in and what do I hear? "They say it's your birthday….."(you know the rest of the song:-) What a fun way to start my day! The rest of the CD was a combination of songs from Mark that were "our" songs along with some other birthday songs. My day was off to such a fun start. When I got to work, one of the girls was waiting for me with a gift in hand. She gave me some crosses to add to my cross wall. Then a fellow nurse gave me an Ulta gift card! Shortly after, our office manager comes with some coffee in hand along with a new cookbook! Boy does she know me! And right after that, another lady brings in flowers and a blockbuster gift card! The morning got even better when I got to see my very favorite patient! When early afternoon came, so did an Edible arrangement from my sweet husband! It was so cute and so not expected!

Not long after that, I walked into the kitchen of our office and found a sundae bar! What a fun alternative since I can't have cake! So ice cream sundaes with all the toppings it was for me!

That's when my boss gave me a very generous gift card to the spa!

I had a good day at work and then I was headed home. All I was told is that I had to be ready at 6:30. So after work I went home and gussied up. I was then chauffeured to Abuelo's (who has an awesome gluten free menu!) Awaiting at a table were my brother in law, Mom, and MiMi (my dad and brother were out of town). We enjoyed a nice dinner and finished it off with some flan! Yummo! When we got home, I thought the night was over, but to my surprise my man brings out an amazing gf cake that he made all by himself!

This is fondant my friends, made from scratch. He really put a lot of effort into this. Who's the Ace of Cakes now?? Don't worry, I didn't eat the cake, I found my stopping point on sweets for the day. :-) Instead, I waited to have it for breakfast the next morning! Along with my cake was a card a yet another CD full of sweet songs. Mark took me and the CD into our room and we danced! He knows that I love to dance, but he doesn't really like to, so we never do. I thought that was very thoughtful of him. And that my friends is the story of my quarter of century marker day. My day was so memorable. Thank you to everyone for making it so wonderful with cards, calls, and emails. And thank you to my precious husband for all that you did to make my day truly special.

His birthday is Tomorrow. How will I ever top that??

a recipe that i just HAD to post!

Hey friends: I have tried to let you all know, but my blog has a new address. (I might post more on this later, but basically it has to do with privacy issues with a person that I encounter every day plus google, you can probably figure it out). However, I have not really posted a lot lately, because I am just sort of having that feeling of "so who cares about what I have to say?" I know it's a funk........I'll get over it.

Anyway- back to the real reason I posted: this awesome recipe! I can always count on Southern Living for a great recipe. I tried this new recipe tonight and my husband and my brother-in-law (who is staying with us) RAVED about it! The best part is that it was quick and easy. So, I wanted to share it with my internet world.

Spaghetti with Sausage and Peppers
8oz. uncooked spaghetti (I use gluten free, you use whatever you choose!)
1 lb. mild Italian sausage, casings removed (don't cheat and get the Jimmy Dean kind, go for the real stuff!)
1 medium onion, cut into eighths (once I cut it into eighths, I cut them in half again)
1 medium-sized green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 medium-sized red or yellow bell pepper, cut into strips
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 28oz. can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
1/4 tsp. salt (I use sea salt...yum!)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, cook sausage in large dutch oven or skillet over medium-high heat 8-10 minutes or until meat is no longer pink, breaking sausage into pieces while cooking. Remove sausage and drippings from skillet and drain onto paper towels. (To remove casing from sausage: cut through the casing lengthwise on one side of each sausage. Remove meat.)
3. Saute onion and next 3 ingredients in hot oil in skillet over medium-high heat 5-6 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in tomatoes, salt, and pepper; cook 4 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in sausage, pasta, and cheese. Transfer to serving platter and serve!

This definitely gave spaghetti a new twist! I hope you love it as much as we did!

maybe i could quit my day job?

Ok Dear Internet, here's what I would do if I didn't need a real job! This is the cake that I made for my nephew's birthday. For months he has been talking about having a football birthday party. So what better to go with football party than a football cake?!

We had a great time......he loved the cake.......and I can't believe he's 4!

a unexpected delightful date!

Shortly after I got to work on Wednesday I got a phone call from the doctor I work for telling me to reschedule all of his patients that day because he was very sick. He had already called and cancelled all of his procedures at the hospital and wasn't able to see patients in the office that day. My first thought was YES! I actually get to take a LUNCH break today! That my friends is the one and only reason I was excited. Most days are so busy that us nurses work right through lunch (eating in between patients) and still work overtime. (This is another blog in itself!) I have learned that's just "one of those things" about working in a busy practice, and have adapted accordingly. Every now and then I can get away if I really need to run an errand, but never for a WHOLE hour. So....what did I do? I called my man to see if he wanted to meet me for lunch. He said yes! Well, being the frugal man that he is, and since he so lovingly packed BOTH of our lunches that morning, he thought we should eat what he had already packed for us instead of going out. So what did we do? You guessed it! We brought our lunches to the park and had a picnic! It was so nice to get to be with him in the middle of the day. Sometimes I struggle with working so much because I feel like it takes away from our time. So this hour with him was so precious; and what made it even better is that it was like a surprise date! So dear internet, that is all, and while it is probably not that exciting to any of you, these are the little things in life that bring me joy. I've gotta figure out how to make this happen more often!

UH OH.....

After the loud and scary storm last night, this is what we woke up to this morning....

I hope I don't have to take back all of the Christmas presents I bought so that I can replace the shed and all of its contents :-)

On top of this mess, it's wet and COLD in College Station. But thank you Jesus that this happened to our shed and not our HOME.

my first gluten free thanksgiving

Well, as some of you know, about 6 months ago I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance/celiac disease. This is a genetic and autoimmune disorder that does not allow my body to digest wheat, rye, barley and some other grains. (More info here: http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/celiac-disease/celiac-disease-topic-overview) This has eliminated about 90% of all food that I used to consume and has made cooking and eating quite an adjustment. It is difficult for me to eat a lot of "casserole type" foods due to the fillers. One of those things that is now a no-no for me is turkey's greatest companion: dressing! So.... in order for me not to miss out on one of the critical elements of this day of giving thanks, my precious mother (who hates to cook) stayed up all night last night making dressing with NO wheat/gluten! She made sure to include only ingredients that I could eat. Thanks Mama! It wouldn't have been Thanksgiving without the dressing! It turned out GREAT and I had to get a picture of her with her prized recipe! Isn't she adorable?

We also had: cream cheese artichoke dip (for an appetizer), fried turkey, prime rib, shrimp, sausage, roasted green beans, green bean casserole, potato casserole, yams, and marinated mushrooms. Ya think we went a little overboard? Can you tell my dad likes to cook? And to finish it off: some fruit and this wonderful pumpkin cheesecake that I made. It was DIVINE!

Did I mention that there were only SIX of us there!? We ate way too much and then all slept for about 3 hours! Our one day out of the year to be shamelessly gluttonous!

Hope everyone had a great day and an enjoyable time with the ones you love!

Life in College Station as we know it...

Life in College Station is…..sweet, beautiful, gorgeous, awesome.
I am loving being in this town. Work is busy and challenging at times, but overall it is really great. I am so blessed to not only have found my calling, but that God has given me the strength to pursue it. We have established a routine which is nice. I have been cooking pretty much every night and we haven’t had fast food in months. It feels good. I have been taking a jazz class which has been very fun. I was really missing dance, so it’s nice to be able to go for an hour and a half each week. There is a great park right by our house with tennis courts, a pool and a walking track, so we have been spending a lot of time there. Mark is making some big changes as far as further education and career and we are looking forward to what unfolds in that area. My family is here and I get to see my nephew all the time which is truly one of the best things about being here. I love hanging out with the little guy. His sweet spirit refreshes me.

We have been here for six months and still have not found a church. But we haven’t really been looking. And to be really honest; it doesn’t bother me one bit that we don’t have a “church home”. There are people that say we should, and there are plenty of people who have invited us, but how do I tell them that I am not interested!?! I am not sure why we have not been in a hurry to find a church. Maybe it’s because we loved our last church so much that we don’t think anything else can compare. Maybe it’s because we are afraid of getting sucked into “serving” way more than we want to. Maybe I like spending Sunday mornings with my man. Whatever it is, I haven’t figured it out. But…I think it’s ok. I know that it will come in time. I think God understands. He knows my heart is still His.

In other news: my Christmas shopping is done and my tree is UP! :-)

3 amazing years...

Yesterday Mark and I celebrated our three year anniversary. It is hard to believe that three years have already passed. Sometimes it seems like it's been forever, and other times it feels like just yesterday we were at the altar making that sacred promise to each other. We had a great night last night on our anniversary date, reminiscing about our life together thus far and dreaming of what's to come (no babies yet :-). There is nothing better than going through life with my love and very best friend by my side, and I am so honored to share my life with such an incredible man.
Thank you Mark for always being so amazingly supportive of me, for choosing to love me every day (even though some days are easier than others :-), for always letting me know that you love me, for desiring to honor your Lord with your life and through our marriage, for serving me continuously and wholeheartedly always, for being my best friend, for putting our marriage first, and for being selfless no matter what. I am grateful for the last three years and am looking forward to many more anniversaries with you. I love you forever.

sweetness is....

Falling asleep in the arms of my love
The perfect cup of coffee
Breakfast with my dad
A phone call from an old friend
Helping and loving people every day
A long relaxing bath
A new hair cut and color
Sitting on the front porch in the rocking chairs with my grandparents at their house
Not having anything to do on a weekend afternoon
Gifts left in my room by my mom when I come home
Being in the same town as my family

What a sweet life. Thank you Jesus.

traditions

We have breakfast for dinner on Sunday nights. Tonight we had link sausage and eggs and I made pancakes for Mark. He told me to make them "reeeally reeeally light brown." That's how he likes them. I am not really sure how this tradition started, but we have been doing it since we first got married.

We also have hamburgers every Saturday night. This tradition goes all the way back to when Mark's dad was growing up. They had them every Saturday when he was little, and then he continued the tradition on to his family and then Mark and I have continued it also. I know it's kind of weird to have your weekend meals planned out like that, but it really does make for a more relaxing weekend.

Another tradition we have is that we have date night every Friday (that is when we are in town). I wonder if this will continue when we have kids? I hope!

One fun Schinzler tradition is that on the first or second weekend in August a whole bunch of us go down to Rockport for the weekend. We fish and go to the beach and swim and EAT. Tons of fun. The first time I went Mark and I had been married for three weeks and we slept in a twin bed together!

A fun tradition that we had when I was growing up is that the night before Easter, my brother and I would go in the backyard and pick a whole bunch of grass and bring it in to make a nest for the Easter bunny. Mark and I still do this too!

And alas, Mrs. Hinojosa, if you read this, you will be happy to know that we have followed in y'alls footsteps and make sure to keep our tradition of Sunday "naps" :-)

What are your traditions?

And those 3 or 4 of you, (you know who you are) who tell me all the time that you read my blog, time for you to give some input! I want to hear your traditions too :-)

just life...

A solid two months since I have blogged...I feel as though that some sort of indication of how my life has been lately. I have had no time. No time to journal, or gather my thoughts. No time to do what I want to do. No time to just sit. I am truly not trying to be a complainer but I feel very overwhelmed lately by the feeling that my life is being dictated by a clock and a calendar. There is always some where to be or something that needs to be done. I am struggling to be a good student, good wife, good church member, good servant, good family member, and good friend. And I feel like between all of these, I am being pulled in so many directions. My weekdays start at 5a.m. and my weeknights and even weekends are completely devoted to studying. Mark and I have tried to reserve Fridays for date night, which has worked pretty well up until we had to be out of town every weekend in March. And my inability to say No has turned my Saturdays into major chaos because on top of having to study, I commit myself to other things whether it be friends, church or family. Then my Saturdays end up being non-stop because I am squeezing so much into one day. And Sundays....well of course are church, then lunch, then nap then study. So those days are pretty much routinely full. All of this and I don't even have kids! Jesus help me! What will I do when those little munchkins come along? I know that I am in a season right now and that in 22 days when school is over, that will be a major time constraint that will be lifted. But for now, I'm tired. Drained. In every way. These past two months have been quite a whirlwind. I have had a Grandfather have major back surgery, a Grandmother in ICU, a mother have two hospital visits, a step-aunt commit suicide and a family dealing with the effects of it, a husband have a "scare" with some health issues, and did I mention that I am trying to make it through 4 more weeks of nursing school? I guess I just feel like I have a lot on me right now, and maybe a little frustrated because I feel like some people in my life don't understand the load I am carrying. It might not sound like a lot to some people, and maybe I'm a whiner. Maybe I am just a big fat wimp. Maybe I am being selfish. Maybe I just need to seek my Lord and the greater purpose in all of this. Life has been crazy, scary, hard, heavy, tricky, challenging, demanding, testy, tough. Help me Lord to find joy in the journey.

On a positive note, there was some fun in the month of March. My beautiful, dear, red-headed, life long friend Brooke got married and I was honored to stand with her on that day. Then two weeks later I got to go to Indiana to see my precious and sweet and pregnant friend Barbie. We shared in her baby shower with her and I am so grateful that we got to do that. It was nice to be able to get away for the weekend and to spend some much needed time with her.

Thank you Lord that even though I don't always see it, you have given me an abundant life!

i'm goin on a trip!

I got a ticket to Indiana! To see a great Friend! Woo Hoo!

IN it? or OF it?

What does it truly mean to be in this world and not of it?
I mean yeah, I guess you could say I’m different… People know that I go to church on Sundays, and that I don’t curse, and that I have an awesome relationship with my husband. But do they know that all of these are an amazing result of my relationship with my beautiful Savior? Do they know that it is because of what he has done in my life? Do they know it’s because of my desire to serve Him and be a good reflection of Him? Just because I don’t participate in all of the things that other people do, does that mean that I am truly being righteous? Because right now, to me, I am just different. I am constantly surrounded by people who care about all the “stuff.” People who don’t care so much about going to church as much as they do about what they are going to wear to church. Instead of clothing themselves with humility, they are clothing themselves with Abercrombie, Gap, and Express. People who pay thousands of dollars to try to look like the girl on the cover of the magazine. Since when is being a beautiful child of the King not enough? People who find it necessary to let everyone know their financial status. Store up your treasures in Heaven.
The problem is, is that it is so easy to get sucked into. And I have to admit; at times I have been guilty of all of these things. So what do I do? Where do I draw the line? Is it ok to want something nice every now and then? Is it ok to go and get a new hair cut and want to look nice because it makes me feel good? Is it ok to bless someone financially even if it means people will know how much you gave? This is a tough issue for me lately. I feel like I have been drowning in people who desire the things of the world. And although sometimes I crave those things, I don’t want to be pulled in to this greedy existance. I want to influence the world, not let it influence me. What I really desire are the things of God. I want to invest in the things of Eternity. So what does this look like? I don’t think I really need straight answers. I think the bottom line is that I need to continue to seek to be like my Lord. When people look at me, I want them to see HIM.

Lord teach me what it means to be righteous. Teach me what it means to be like you even when I feel like I am in a world where it is so hard not to be.

happy new year!

wow....it's been a while, but i have been really sick with green stuff coming out of my mouth, nose, and even my eyes...so my new years consisted of a date with my husband and couch, a bunless boca burger, a toast with crystal light in a plastic champagne glass and in bed by 10:30!

but...happy new year everyone!