a july bear

i can't speak for anyone else in my family, but i become a bear in July. if i could hibernate, i probably would. my emotions run high and all over the place. i can be grumpy to those around me (especially those closest to me - as Daniel can attest), even so far as to outright growl.

it's not even because it's so dang hot outside.

it's because the memories of July four years ago come flooding back to me. i'm sure many people think that 4 years is a long time ago - much too long to continue to grieve. however, the pain of the loss of a loved one (for me, my brother) doesn't diminish. you don't just "get over" the loss. in fact, in my opinion, it has hurt more as i consider what he has missed from our lives.

now, i realize he is with Jesus, and deep down i would not want it any other way. but in my selfishness, i want him here. i want to continue to grow up alongside him. to share in his joys and his hurts. i want my big brother back. that's not a hope that you "get over". ever.

coming from my experience, i'd ask of you this. show love to others. walk beside those weary in spirit. lift them up that they might learn to walk again. carry them if you have to. show them that they are not alone. there are so many hurting people out there. many who have lost loved ones. lost hope. lost themselves. help them find Jesus. because it is only in Him that they will find peace and in that peace, they will find hope and restoration.

it is in that hope, that i've found through Jesus, that i know without a doubt that i will see my brother again someday. am i still sad? yeah, sometimes i am. especially in July. so, i'm sorry if i am a bear to you. i really don't mean it. it's just... July.



take care of you for me.

in appreciation

can i just tell you how much i love my husband? he is so wonderful on an everyday basis, and as i've been sick lately it has only magnified his amazing, generous and caring heart. he has taken care of me like non other.

he prepares food for me and does the dishes. he has cleaned up the apartment and even took a day off work to care for me when i was at my worst. he took the couch so i could be comfortable in the bed and brought me water. he went and got my prescriptions filled for me and even picked up vanilla ice cream for my throat. <3 (that's true love right there)

yesterday when i had what was probably the worst migraine of my life, he came home and called the pharmacy and got me meds to take care of it. he did all that he could to comfort and care for me until the pain passed and i was okay. he even went to his parents' house to pick up some dinner - his mom (God bless her) made extra food for dinner so we didn't have to try and make anything.

i am more thankful than ever to have such a kind, loving husband. he has truly "stepped up to the plate" this week and has cared for me with such an unconditional love.


i love you, daniel brady <3




take care of you for me.

SO blessed!

i love my life. :)

i just love it.
i have a wonderful husband who loves me so very much.
i have a great family who love and help me.
my husband and i both have good jobs.
(in this day and age, just plain having a job is good)
we have a nice, warm apartment.
we can pay our bills each month.
we get to see our parents and siblings pretty regularly.
we have a great church family, sweet people who have adopted us as their own.
we have plenty to eat each day.
we each have a car to get us around.

we can go on trips, and go out to eat, and have friends over - or go to see them, we have hot water on a consistent basis and good advice from people who care most. we have skills and talents. we have education, hopes and desires. we try to help people who need it and have people whom we can ask for help if we need it.


God has greatly blessed us, and in this new year i pray He blesses each of you with the joys of life and love and happiness. I pray that He blesses you with wisdom and courage, honesty and respect.

random updates

wow am i getting bad at posting or what? i have barely posted anything this the wedding. life has just been chaotic. don't get me wrong, i love it. :) i love being married to my best friend. he is an amazing man and he makes me very happy.

so, i started a new job about 2 months ago. it's at a christian school, where i help in the office and do registrar duties. it's a great job and i'm very thankful for it. i love the people i work with and while it's a lot of stuff to learn, it's also very rewarding.

i'm still working at the church as the youth leader. i'm trying to plan some big activities (including mission trip for next summer and winter retreat) but we've had a good group of 6-8 consistently attending. They are great kids and i very much appreciate each one of them. we're helping out at the world vision storehouse on saturday and the 30hr famine is coming up in just a couple months. crazy!

our apartment is coming along nicely. it's amazing how much stuff you can fit in a one-bedroom. i think we're both starting to feel a little crowded, but it's enough space for just the two of us.

for thanksgiving we went to see dan's grandma in nc. it was a good trip (long drive) and it was fun to get to spend some time with her. she is such a sweet woman, i just love her. we came home monday and left again on friday for va. our niece, ashton, was baptized on sunday! :) yay! it was a good trip, but we're happy to be home. we'll be staying home for christmas, too.

Dan's birthday is coming up in just a short while - 2 weeks from today!! (yay!) he will be 24. which means in about a month and a half is my birthday! (i'll be 26) that's just crazy to think about...

anyway, i have plenty to do today, so i should get off the computer and get working.



take care of you for me.

quick hello!

okay, so it's been a while... over a month to be exact, because, i'm now mrs. amber brady!! life has been a bit of a whirlwind lately, but it's been great. i can't believe we did it... we're married! whoa. the whole last name change thing has been throwing me off, but... it's official with the dmv haha.

the apt is coming along nicely, we have a bit of floor space now, praise God! it was driving us both nuts having to squeeze through everything as we maneuvered through our little walkway - or what was left of a walkway... don't get me wrong, i still have clothes all over the couch, but we have a floor now!

so i don't have a lot of time to post anything - dan's been bugging me about posting on our new family blog... http://damberbrady.blogspot.com/ and i have yet to have time... so i'll probably hear about it for posting on my personal blog and not the family one. oops! :)

hopefully i'll find some time to write more soon, gotta go to verizon, my phone isn't working quite right.



take care of you for me!

30 days and counting

that's right! just 1 month until the wedding!! :) yay! just a few things going on right now. first, i hurt my ankle/knees. i'll find out tomorrow how i'll be getting down the aisle in a month. hopefully it's nothing more than i pulled some stuff, but i need to make sure that's all i'm dealing with.

i went on a mission trip to Philippi, WV last week. it was good. until i got hurt. got into a fight with the curb and it won. i ended up with a softball-sized ankle and crutches. long story short, i went to pick up some trash that was on the ground, i turned around to go toward the building and next thing i know i'm face first on the cement. busted up my knee, bruised the other real good and then the ankle starts swelling. took about 4 minutes to get to softball size. it was nuts. went to the hospital and they took x-rays and said it was just a sprain. i would be content with that except for a few things. 1. the doctor didn't even come into the room to tell me so, he stood at the door and didn't even ask if i had questions or anything. 2. the swelling's gone down, but the pain has increased - shooting pain up my calf to be exact. 3. i'm getting married in 30 days. i need to be able to walk. (not to mention honeymoon!)

oh, btw, first night of the mission trip and i felt like i was coming down with an ear infection so... off to the hospital to find out i had tmj. the hospital people recognized me when i went in for the ankle injury... don't think they had many people stop by during the week, though, either... haha

okay so... in other news, i need to have my dress altered, it doesn't fit. :( i can't decide on centerpieces. got stuff together (finally) to work on table numbers and i really need to get moving on favors. the reception person called me today and teased me because i haven't called her in 2 months. i said "oh, was i supposed to?" and she said when it gets this close the bride usually calls her every other day or so... i said, 'oh, i didn't have anything to say.' but we scheduled a meeting to finalize stuff. finalized the cake stuff. have to call the tent people again (i thought we had finalized it, but we didn't yet) started packing a few things to move... hard to do on crutches.

okay, well... time for bed. lots going on and even more to start working on. :)




take care of you for me.

burnt broccoli smells bad

so, 50 days until the wedding and i'm already burning food. haha. i guess it was bound to start sometime. i told dan to get used to it, too, because i'm sure this isn't the last time. we have these great (and expensive) pots and i wanted to try them out & learn how to use them. (i know that sounds dumb, but... they're super heavy duty and really pretty cool.) let me explain.

these are royal prestige pots. they have a whistle on them to let you know when the food inside reaches 180 degrees (i believe it is 180), anyway, they boast "waterless" and "greaseless" cooking. so, for the chicken i preheated the pan (you know it's preheated when you splash water on it and it beads and dances - sooo fun!) and just put the chicken in, no oil or anything. you brown the one side and flip them once, then put the lid on and let it cook for about 10 minutes i think.

so, the waterless cooking for the veggies... you put the veggies in and 1 tablespoon of water and open the whistle and cook on medium. well... i found out tonight that you're not supposed to preheat the pot for veggies like you do with the meat. it all just burned right into the bottom of the pot. :(

i think bar keeper's friend is our new best friend too... thankfully it's cheap. i think it's been around forever, or dan and i will have to look into getting stock in it somehow. the mess is all cleaned up now, but... wow was it bad. and it just smelled like someone was smoking in our apartment! thankfully we just got this cool new febreeze air freshener - brazilian bazaar or something like that... i can't remember the exact name - it was brazilian something-or-other.

speaking of brazilian stuff, guess what i got today!!!! dan and i had to run out to get a key made and walmart didn't have the right size key (but we did get some funny entertainment from the 2 guys looking for the key... lol) so we went to dicks, and they don't cut keys. while we were in the area, though, we stopped at a new store called planet pulse. we'd never been in, although it opened back in october. we were watching tv a while ago and saw an ad for them and they carry... wait for it... HAVAIANAS!!!! :) yesssss!!! and they're only $16 there!!! sweeeeet! my new favorite place to buy flip flops!!! i didn't really look what else they had. but i did impress the girls working there because i told them about brazil and how even the construction guys wore havaianas when they poured concrete... that's how popular they are there (of course down there they were 1/3 the price, too, but i'm not complaining because when i order them through brazilianstore.com they are around $35 i think)

so this is getting random-er by the second, but i kept meaning to write a blog recently and now everything is just spilling out of me. my sisters came up 2 weekends ago (end of may) for a bridal shower for me! :) it was so great! susan came up too and lindsey came down from erie and a bunch of my friends and family came over! it was so great! (not just because i got gifts - tho they were incredibly helpful for the new apartment) but i got to see them and talk with everyone, it was a great time! :) so, dan and i found an apartment just in time, too! haha it's just a little 1 bedroom in baden, but we don't need anything too big, it's just the 2 of us. it's a great little place and basically all furnished now, too - thanks to a few of dan's coworkers! it's so great! :D

this wedding planning must be really stressing me out because i was sitting there playing with my hair today and found a white one! i'm 25!! i pulled it out, of course, but kept it. i have to show rose. haha. my first white hair. :( i couldn't believe it.

oh, so i'm leaving in 11 days for a mission trip to west virginia. i was thinking today about how much i miss doing mission trips. it's been quite a while now - so weird. so, i'm excited to see what this trip will hold. :) when we get back i'll have just over a month before the wedding. how crazy am i? :op

dan and i start pre-marital counseling tomorrow. should be interesting... :) we have no real idea what to expect. i mean, kinda-sorta, but.. not. y'know?

okay, so i think that's enough for now... getting tired. i can't believe it's been so long since my last post - i have got to work on that... later. haha. i'm such a procrastinator... here i am procrastinating ending this and going to bed, even. wow. okay, seriously i'm done now. oh, and we did get a key made - at home depot, just so you know. :)




take care of you for me.

all i want to do is grow old with you

so, 79 days until i marry the love of my life! :) it's been coming fast, but sometimes i feel like it's not fast enough. i love him so much more with each passing day <3 it's becoming more real each day as we get more RSVPs in the mail, too! i get to marry him!! <3

i've had adam sandlers' "grow old with you" song from the wedding singer stuck in my head all morning :) [which is dan's ringtone for me when i call him]

i want to make you smile whenever you're sad,
carry you around when your arthritis is bad,
all i want to do is grow old with you.
get you medicine when your tummy aches,
build you a fire when the furnace breaks.
it could be so nice growing old with you.

i'll miss you, kiss you, give you my coat when you are cold,
need you, feed you, even let you hold the remote control.

let me do the dishes in the kitchen sink,
put you in bed when you've got too much to drink,
i could be the man who grows old with you,
i want to grow old with you.



i can't wait to be his wife. <3



take care of you for me.

365th <3

so, over a month... i guess it's time to post a new blog. i've just been too busy, then too tired (from being so busy), to type anything. but i'm determined to write one tonight because i just had a fabulous day! :)

today marked the one year anniversary of when i met dan <3 last year on a sunday night i met him at praise band practice at church. :) and my life will never be the same. he is so wonderful to me, i cannot thank God enough for him! we've had our ups and downs, but we're committed to each other.

we both had very good and productive days today, topped it off with a very nice dinner out at houlihan's, then off to bb&b to finish registering. after spending 5-6 hours at target the other day registering, we've got our exercise in... it wasn't nearly so long tonight, but it's a heck of a lot of work! i think we're basically done now (i hope) 95 days til we're getting married! :) yay!



there was something else i wanted to mention here, but i can't remember what it was. brandy just informed me that mr. fox passed away... and that's all i can think about right now. he was one of my high school history teachers... one of my favorite classes. :( it seems like there are a lot of people dying lately... makes me miss my brother more. *sigh*



take care of you for me.

wedding planning :)

Hello,

i seem to be posting monthly, but there's just been so much going on. i'm getting married in 4.5 months. i can't believe it! everybody says how time will fly, and i know... but, man! planning has been falling into place, instead of flowers the girls will carry parasols, we've decided on favors, programs... waiting on a sample for the invites, but that will be done soon (since they have to be mailed out in 2 months), checking on a tent/chairs, we've got a block of rooms reserved (or will very soon), oh and i've got some of the jewelry i'll wear and ordered my footwear, so that should be here any day now. got a cake topper and guestbook... working on centerpieces... still have to do a music playlist. nailing down a menu for the reception... have another 2 months or so until i can meet with florist and baker. so, it's all coming together. the only disappointment to this point is that my sister jill and her family won't be able to be there. :( jill will have a baby right around that time (she's due 3 days after the wedding) and they're not going to be able to make the trip.

sometimes when i think about it, it's hard for me to believe that i'm getting married... don't get me wrong, i'm very excited for it, but it's a weird feeling... if that makes any sense. not a 'cold feet' thing, but a 'i can't believe he wants to spend forever with me' kinda feeling. oh, and the whole 'i can't believe i have to pack up everything and move again in just over 4 months'! haha

it's going to be so great, though. not just because i'm marrying the man of my dreams, but that we'll get to spend the time with family and friends, all the people who are so dear to us - all our favorite people (or at least, most of them) :)

but that's how i've been spending a lot of time lately, trying to iron out details and get ideas. trying to picture dan's face when he first sees me walking up the aisle... :)



take care of you for me

welcome Ashton!!

the past two weeks i have been back and forth from pa to va... and back. twice. haha. Brandy had a beautiful baby girl, Ashton Jade, on tuesday feb 17th. the week prior, however, she was in the hospital to be monitored bc of a few complications. by the time i got down there to surprise her on the 10th, she had been there a week. i sure surprised her, though! haha. not to mention her nurse! i walked to the door and the nurse asked if i was going in that room, i said, 'yes' and she did a double take and said, 'y'know, you could be her twin'. i smiled and said, 'i am' and her jaw dropped she's like, 'seriously?' and i just laughed and nodded. it was so funny! Brandy just looked at me and said "what are you doing here?" but i know she was just shocked. :) i know it meant a lot to her that i came down to keep her company - even though she was just told she could go home. it just meant that we could hang out at her house til friday instead of the hospital.

so i got to the hospital that day just in time to take her home (where she stayed for about a week). i left friday morning on the 13th. monday came and she had a dr appt. her BP was still high, so they sent her to the hospital to be monitored, again. they decided it best to induce the next morning (the 17th). i got up on the 17th and decided to go back down to be with her. i got there with a few hours to spare, and Brandy gave birth at 6:18pm to little Ashton. and i mean 'little'. 6lbs 10oz. Brandy (and everyone else) was expecting a much bigger baby.

all in all the delivery was smooth (and after such a rough pregnancy, she deserved that!). AJ is healthy and everyone is doing well! :) thank God for kids!

speaking of kids... i stayed with Jill and Scott when i went down to va. and let me tell you, Luke and Leah have just gotten so much sillier!! not to mention cuter and bigger... they are so sweet and i think they really got used to having Rah Rah around - i'm sure they're expecting me to come next week...

so many more stories to tell... but i am so tired right now... so it will have to wait til another time.

take care of you for me.

busy busy...

hi :)

whew. what a crazy few days. every weekend seems to be so ridiculously packed lately. dan and i haven't been able to get to saturday night church since his birthday (dec 21)! so, more than a month later, i think we'll be able to go this saturday. so, what's been making life so crazy, you ask? let's see...

my birthday weekend. was great! :) it was a very enjoyable time. still can't believe i'm 25... but then it does tell me that i'm getting married soon. it's weird how that is. my brain kept telling me (last year) i'll be getting married NEXT year (even tho it wasn't very far away), so when it became 2009 it was a shock. then it was 'i'm getting married when i'm 25'... y'know? well... it is indeed 2009, and i am 25... and in just about 6 months i'll be married!

that brings me to wedding planning! it's starting to take over a little more of my time/thoughts/energy each day. i realize how close it's getting and try and make appointments and officially book people/make firm decisions. it's coming along very nicely, though. meeting with a photographer friday. still have to look into flowers and all that. lots of great stuff getting planned, it's going to be awesome! looked at tuxes, and got something of a quote on those (got a nice discount if we go with them) - including a free groom's tux and (get this!!) free ring bearer tux rental, too!!! i am SOOOO excited to see lukie in a tux!! haha!! :) i'd say 'that will make my day' but... uh... it will definitely make me VERY happy! he's going to look so completely adorable! (as long as i don't need to get a cars pillow for him to carry... though mater would match the color scheme... hmmm) i am so excited for all the kids to be present. i counted it up today and we have 35 kids invited. granted some will be only months old, but... that's a lot of kids. :)

speaking of kids, youth group. planning for the year, working out some events (famine and such), went on a retreat this past weekend - went very well! keeping busy. signed up and put in a deposit to go on the mission trip this summer. i haven't been on one for quite a few years. it's at the end of june, so it won't conflict with wedding stuff - tho i'm sure i'll have to ask wendy to put on tips for my nails, bc i'll break them all down in west virginia. yeah, going to wv. i don't care for the state. but i feel the need to come to terms with the state and i think it will help with closure. be praying for the group going down - i know God's going to do some great stuff in us. also looking at volunteering at a place in aliquippa. it's very interesting to me, and i'm praying for God to make it clear if that's where he wants me (along with concord). i know he's got something great in mind for me, and he's placed them on my heart. :) we'll see.

so, i started this day out incredibly stressed out. i couldn't think straight, i felt like i had just way too much information bouncing around in my head. so, i started taking things one at a time. if i could take care of something little and get it off my 'to do' list, then i did it. a lot of odds and ends kinds of things, but i did them. one at a time. and i feel better so far. i know there's still a bunch of things to do, but instead of getting all flustered and just complaining (not that i didn't complain at all...) then i did what i could do. what's that quote from mother teresa.... "i know God will not give me anything i can't handle. i just wish he didn't trust me with so much." my room got straightened up some, papers got sorted or thrown out, laundry got done, appointments were rescheduled... and here it is 9pm and i'm comfortably relaxing in bed. my heart is calm, i don't feel overwhelmed. what a day. :)



take care of you for me.

sweet bean paste, batman!

i just have to say that i just had the most fabulous food tonight! i went out with the brady's to chaya, a japanese restaurant in squirrel hill. :) yum. if you want good food - that's where to find it! dan and i shared a sushi and tempura combo dinner (joel and peg shared the same kind), harper had a soup and tempura combo and maggie had eel (i think that's her favorite) and to top it all off i got the most delicious ice cream! of course i can't remember the name for it, but it's the sweet bean paste covered with a rice... uh... i dunno it's rice, though... it's soft, like a marshmallow-y kind of texture with the dense, smooth, soft bean paste on the inside normally. this time there was ice cream in the center that was mixed with the bean paste. it is the most delicious thing i have ever eaten! i'll take that for a bday cake... not that i would turn down cake, tho... or kings has some real yummy sugarfree blueberry pie - very good stuff!

okay, so that was just a long babble about yummy food. i love good food. and good people. the combination of both tonight was wonderful. :) what a great birthday weekend so far!

ps. don't think the sweet bean paste sounds gross... trust me at first i wasn't sure i wanted to taste it (i think i even turned it down the first time... what a mistake!) it sounds odd, but it's very tasty!




take care of you for me

who's got it?

Okay, so I have been doing some research on diabetes. I've been kinda struggling with it lately. I hate it, and I hate having it. I want to get healthy, though, and I really don't want any of the potential complications from it. I was reading today from a number of diabetes education sites and found a very interesting list. This was a list of well-known people who have diabetes. I was surprised by some, I'm sure it's no secret, but... I just didn't know. It had a strange way of making me feel a little better. Maybe the idea that people can thrive with it, not just survive... anyway, I thought you might be interested to see it, too. (I only included the ones I recognized... there were many more I didn't know):

James Cagney
Randy Jackson (American Idol)
Waylon Jennings
B.B. King
Tommy Lee (Motley Crue)
Elvis Presley
Luther Vandross
Nick Jonas (Jonas Brothers)
Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead)
Aretha Franklin
Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac)
Ella Fitzgerald
Miles Davis
Johnny Cash
James Brown
Jackie Robinson (baseball)
Kendall Simmons (Pittsburgh Steeler)
Halle Berry
Dick Clark
James Doohan (Scotty from Star Trek)
Larry King
Mary Tyler Moore
Della Reese
Elizabeth Taylor
Mae West
Thomas Edison
Mike Huckabee
Winnie Mandela (South Africa)
Ernest Hemingway
Anne Rice
Laura Ingalls Wilder
James Conkling (helped in creation of the Grammy award)
Bill and John Davidson (Harley-Davidson motorcycles)

along with:
President of Egypt, a former leader in Egypt, the King of Saudi Arabia, the former mayor of Washington DC, the Prime Minister of Israel, the President of Syria....

quite a list, in my opinion. I just thought it was interesting to know. And now, you know, too.



take care of you for me.

In loving memory, Ruth <3

About 8 hours ago, I lost a dear friend. While I had only met Ruth 8 months ago (the same day I met dan, April 27th) she quickly warmed up to me that first visit. Ruth was the most loyal, sweetest dog I have ever known. I firmly believe she didn't have a mean bone in her body. My heart is heavy as I think back to our many memories: her excitement as I would walk in the front door, how she would jump up on the couch next to Dan and I when we'd be watching a movie, how she would 'bug' us all at the dinner table - her nose nudging our elbows or planted on my lap, the walks we went on this past summer, knowing she would jump up on Dan's bed and sleep with him every night, her licks and snuggles - the love she showed to all of us.

Things did not seem right when we came home from a week in NC (which was a fabulous time, by the way) and she could barely stand up. After a lengthy visit at the vet's office today, there was nothing else we could do. She didn't seem to be in pain, and while that should seem comforting, it does very little for me. She lived a long life, 11.5 years, but that does not make it easier to let her go. I can only pray that God will use this situation to His glory, that He will bless the Brady's through this hard time and send His Spirit to comfort them. He certainly blessed them with a wonderful dog and those loving memories that will remain in their hearts.

Whether it's true or not, I picture my brother, Dan, there to greet her as she came running into heaven. I can just picture Dan asking God for a dog for the past 2.5 years... and who better to send but the sweetest dog from the Dan I love to be with the other Dan I love. All I have to say is: for all the times she woke Dan (my fiance) up at all hours of the night, Dan (my brother) - you're in for some sleepless mornings...



take care of you for me.

i hate diabetes...

so much going on, i don't know where to start. dan's birthday is this sunday! :) last weekend we had a baby shower for brandy. i'm leaving next friday for north carolina with the bradys. which means christmas is next thursday!! a week from today!! wow! i'm basically done with shopping. i still need just a few more things, though.

i realized lately how poorly i've been caring for my diabetes. i'm kinda just tired of it, but i know i can't just wish it away. been working hard to exercise even more each day and eating better. back to really counting carbs and stuff. it's always hard when people around you aren't doing the same. don't get me wrong, i'm happy with the weight that i've lost, but... i know i need to keep losing if i want to get healthy.

i think that's what's been stressing me out most, lately. i was having issues with my sugar spiking and then dropping so low that i could barely function. i know that's how you get long-term damage and i need to stop that from happening. so, i've had to get much stricter with my food intake. especially this time of year, with christmas cookies so readily available. and i know i can have one. but i need to keep it at just that - one.

been keeping up with youth goup planning, wedding planning... have a youth retreat next month. nothing much new on the wedding planning lately, just still "dreaming" up stuff that i like... i didn't realize how many decisions were involved in all this. haha no, it's been good, though. i can't wait to have both of our families together to celebrate. :) i love this man so much. <3

we've been doing a "secret sister" thing at church! it's so fun! :) it's like secret santa but it's only ladies in the church, and it goes all year long. of course, i can't tell you who i have (duh, it's a secret), but it's so fun to do.

so, that's about all for now, just figured i'd update, especially now that i'm not in such a funk (probably due to a lack of christmas cookies...)


take care of you for me.

*sigh*

so, i feel as if i should post a new blog... it's been a while. i just kinda feel 'blah' lately, though. i want to write happy things, but i just don't feel like it. i'm almost done with Christmas shopping... youth group has been going okay. brandy and craig are coming up this weekend. :)

maybe that will cheer me up... to see some family.

*sigh* i just don't know.

i know i could list a bunch of things that are getting me down, but i can't imagine that that's all there is to it... a lot of little things bothering me. maybe that is it. every little stress of everything piling up. no wonder my shoulders hurt. that's a big load to lug around. anyway, maybe by the next blog i'll be out of this funk.


take care of you for me.

a word of caution...

so, i got in my car after youth group tonight to come home. my windshield wasn't quite clear - not smudgy, but... spotty, y'know what i mean? the logical thing to do is spray some washer fluid and wipe it away. until it didn't get clearer. it actually started looking more smudgy at first. then i realized it was turning to ice before my eyes. no, really, right in front of my face. it was only then that i looked down and saw the temperature was only 27 degrees (this was around 945)!

while it looked kinda cool actually, i wouldn't suggest it. i had to sit and wait for the defrost to melt it all before i could see enough to drive. i should have figured... it's winter after all!

so, that's it for tonight. youth group was good. i do love those kids. i'm just torn about next summer's mission trip. i love to do mission work (hence the degree), but it's to west virginia... :( i'm sure they're nice people there... but, i already voted them out of the union. so, it's like an international trip, i guess... but, we'll see if that's where God's leading me. i know i'll be kinda busy next summer... something on the calendar for the beginning of august, i think... ;)

take care of you for me.

workin hard

i've come to a conclusion lately. i need to show God that i can be faithful in the little things. every job i have applied for has fallen through. when i push for a job, i get fired. when i don't, i just plain don't get an interview. except for one job. i was hired as the youth leader at church. i know God has brought me to this. He has now made it clear to me that this is where He wants me - not out working somewhere else. at least for the time being. maybe something else will come along soon, but right now my job is as youth leader and i need to be faithful and work diligently at what He has led me to.

and, boy... does that include mistakes. just made a big one and i had to learn from it. *whew* but, there is forgiveness and now i know how to handle situations that might arise. the important thing is to keep a teachable attitude. keep in mind that God puts others in your path who know what they're doing and what they're talking about and allow them to direct you. He has placed so many good, Christian men and women in my life to help teach me and encourage me as i strive to do His will. what a great God! :)


take care of you for me.

cold! (both kinds!)

i'm not ready for the snow. it's too cold out. it's around 28 degrees here. i'd like the snow a whole lot more if it didn't have to be so cold to have it. i know, i know, i'm living in the wrong state. dan and i will just have to take a vacation every winter... this winter we'll be going with his parents to visit his grandma in NC for a few days after Christmas. i hope it'll be warm out down there. not holding my breath because that will be the weekend they have a freak snow storm or something down there. haha.

i'm already feeling the effects of the weather change. i think i'm getting a cold! :( i'm hoping it passes quickly. i mean, c'mon, i've been taking my vitamins and stuff!

and we've got a retreat this weekend! up at the highlands. it's going to be cold, so i hope i'm not sick for it.

been working on some wedding stuff. save the date cards and like that. :) should be good. and dan and i have been working on a playlist for the reception and stuff. so, if you think of any good ones, let me know. we won't be having the chicken dance, the macarena, or the hokey pokey... just so ya know. i think everyone will be pleasantly surprised with what we do have, though... :) dan and i have a surprise! i'm sooo excited and i want to tell you, but.... i can't! come and be amazed!

okay, so that's about it for now... gotta go get me some decongestant...


take care of you for me