fast-forward. rewind. pause.

The past month had been a whirlwind in the most positive way. We had family visiting, got married, went to a dear friends wedding, honeymooned in Hawaii & now are in full remodel mode at home. Seems like a tiring month but I enjoyed every second and each emotion we have felt through the process.

David & I are settling into the swing of being husband & wife in the real world. Its been an enjoyable transition filled with laughter, team work and learning. We are only one month into our marriage and I feel like I have learned numerous lessons, I can only imagine the lessons ahead. We are excited for our remodeling to be finished so that we can live in the house comfortably and have friends over more frequently.

Here is a bit of a recap on the past month: 

Taylor & Jen's Wedding- June 30, 2012

 

 

hawaiian honeymoon-july 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

currently.

shane's birthday bbq.

 

beauty.

As our journey into marriage continues so does the hectic lives we currently live.

On our to do list:
     -Emptying out the living room & bedroom to prep for priming
     -Starting priming and paint the living room
     -Put paint on the walls of the bedroom
     -Empty kitchen  cabinet so that we can tear them out
     -Start boxing things that will be donated
     -Get wedding invitations in order and sent out
     -Graduate college!

We could not get all these things done without the help of friends and family, so I am endlessly thankful for the help we have received thus far. Everyone has been so willing to come help. We are very blessed and I feel like we say that all the time but each time we mean it.

Despite the joy and the blessings we have also been faced with difficulty as my grandmother (who's home we are moving into) had been admitted in the hospital. It brings a new perspective as we are beginning a new part of life so is she. I have been saddened as we move through the house and I think of the memories I have there with my grandparents. I am honored to walk in their home and call it our home in the near future, but I am saddened that my grandmother had to leave her home behind. She is a beautiful, talented and rambunctious woman that I hold so dearly to my heart. I have been beyond blessed in the times we have spent together and the happiness she has brought to David & my life. Whoopie is such a great grandmother to myself and my cousins. We have set other plans aside to bask in the times we have to spend with her. We are unaware of what the future holds but one thing my family has always taught me is that family comes first and in this time we are holding her dear to our hearts. Please keep her in your prayers in the days to come.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

-Isaiah  41:10

Busy busy bee.

Once school starts it turns out to be harder then I imagined to balance wedding planning, work, and graduating. However, I also think if my life slowed down I would be lost in the lack of chaos. Here are a few recaps on the past few weeks of life.

Slowly David & I have been realizing the process of moving out and making our own home is reality. I know this is a common theme through all my posts but its a process to work through. We are now spending money and time planning and purchasing home goods. We have collected enough furniture over the past weeks to furnish our bedroom which is exciting news. But we are still working on the rest of the house. Paint is our next venture and I am terribly excited to begin the process. :)

Today I am thankful for all of our friends, they have been nothing but supportive of everything we are planning. Each and everyone of them offers their help as we enter the world of remodeling/repainting/redecorating, but also in planning the wedding. We are ever so thankful for their hearts of service. David & I both share the desire to make our home a place of welcome-ness where we can bless others as we have been blessed. Hopefully the Lord honors this desire.

3 months & 18 days til' the big day! 

Here are some pictures of my fabulous friends over the past few weeks.

Hannah endured coming with us to buy our bed frame but fell asleep.

 The Baker couple accompanied us on a double date to Ikea, coupled with the most amazing meal for dinner.

My Matron and Maid of honor hopped to planning my bridal shower while Jen was home for the weekend.

Making our home.

Brain on overload with ideas of how to decorate my very own home in a mere 5 months, this is my current inspiration for the bedroom. Still on the hunt for that turquoise quilt.

While we were in Arizona I came across some fun pieces to add to our soon-to-be home! Here they are:

Our breadbox: We found this at a lovely little antique store. The funny thing is that I liked it, but David fell in love with it. As we were leaving the store he turned to me and said, "let's just get it!"

Vintage Tins: So, I have been on the hunt for some of these old tins, but all the ones that we have found are filled with rust. Not these! They are in mint condition & I was THRILLED to end my search.

Our trunk: This is definitely what I was most excited about! This old trunk was a mere $59. I want to put it at the end of our bed. However...we could not fit it in my tiny Honda Civic and it is temporary stuck in Arizona until my brother and sister-in-law come for the wedding.

Everything we found was on the same street in Phoenix, Arizona. There were multiple antique/vintage stores and I was in heaven.

Road trip: Arizona.

So this past weekend David and I took a 12-hour drive to visit my brother, sister-in-law and handsome nephew. Let me tell you the drive was well worth the quality time we all had together.

To put it simply, David & I are absolutely in love with little Will. He is such a happy little fella, his parents are blessed. We had lots of fun playing with the baby and seeing the reality of what it is like to be a parent...we are definitely not ready for that commitment yet! But we are excited to be able to be apart of this boy's life and have him as a Ring Bearer in the wedding.

Our family is far from perfect but it was a blessing to see how the Lord has brought us from trials into times of joy. This trip was a sweet time for me to talk with my brother about the journey David & I are entering in June. I have been longing to get to talk with my brother about the chaos of marriage and it was so encouraging to hear his advice. I also enjoyed laughing and sharing sweet moments with my sister-in-law. The trip over all was a success!

Baby Will.

Meet my nephew, Will the Fourth.

He is such a happy little boy, and I am in love with him.

We are blessed to be spending the next few days in Arizona with this 

little fella and his parents.

Ally turns 10.

Today is my lovely little cousin Ally's 10th Birthday. On this occasion I thought I would take time to reminisce the baby girl I remember. Ally was such an adorable baby, our family jokes endlessly about the size of her head on that tiny body but she has now grown into it. :) Ally is such an intelligent girl, she always corrects my grammar as I speak, and reads texts over my shoulder (very quickly). I have been blessed to be able to spend lots of time with her over the past few years and see her more as a little sister then a cousin. Writing this post brings tears to my eyes as I think of how she is growing up into a beautiful young lady. I am proud to be her older cousin and look forward to supporting her in the years ahead. I love her so much! Here are a few pictures of her over the years.

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Reflection on registry.

So it turns out the blissful thought of registering for whatever we want is not as simple as I thought. Is it too expensive? Will people think we are snobs? What if no one buys us this? All these questions add stress to the joy of scanning different kitchen accessorizes, bedding, cups, flatware and on the lists goes. However there has been a good realization; I am becoming an adult...

How can this be happening? I am walking around Crate & Barrel choosing what I think David and I will use in our home. This is a surreal realization. I am going to become the "woman of the house." I feel as though the past twenty-one years of my life have flown by and in the blink of an eye I am planning my wedding. This is an event I have dreamed of for years, and now it's become a reality. There is no hesitation in the thought of spending my life with David, just in the fact that on my own I am going to be an adult, accountable to God, my husband and myself.

New Revelation.

So I thought I would share this wonderful verse with all of you. This is what we talked about at church yesterday & I was floored by the reality of what Christians are called to do in this world. 

2 Corinthians 3:2-3

"You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts."

As Christians we are a living breathing letter of recommendation for Jesus. We are the main source of interaction between the Lord and the world. That is a huge responsibility, when I sit back and think about it I am overwhelmed. My resolution this year is to pursue loving all people as Christ loves me, and to build relationships with others instead of judging.

endless thoughts in a scattered brain.

For some reason I feel it is required that the creator of a blog obtains the following: a parent, creative, beauty and a wide vocabulary. Here there is none of that, but I want to share my thoughts. I write in a journal but this is more accessible. So here goes the writing of a soon to be college graduate & wife at the age of twenty-one.