Call me Miss Bargain Shopper please…

Saturday a nice little day. While Justin was at work I went with two girls from Life Group to see Bride Wars. It's a total chick flick, but a cute move! Later that evening Boyfriend took me on a date. :) We went to a local place we like then we headed to Kohl's. We decide to go to Kohl's because I "needed" an outfit for the First Pitch Banquet next weekend. I was on a mission for the perfect outfit. You know how it is when you are looking for something specific you can't find it. But when you walk into a store to just "look" you want EVERYTHING! After finding NOTHING for the banquet we made our way to the home decor section. That is where I found a deal! I ran across this....You can't see it really great in this picture, but I'm sure you have seen something similar. It was a tad out of my price range for something I just stumbled upon. BUT THEN....Justin notice the 50% off sign. Oh yes, that price making my heart smile. I knew at that moment I was taking it home. HA I got it home and hung it up immediately!

Today we went to Church and did a couple of things around the house. The weekly back yard clean up from Lucifer and putting new lights on the porch. We made a list for groceries and decided to attack it together. We were making the transition from groceries to the other side of Walmart where I spotted the clearance rack. For $13.00 I got these....I'm a huge ran of things on sale and that LOOK much more expensive than they really are. I'm not exactly sure of where they will go....but I couldn't pass them up.

Sorry these pictures don't give you the best detail, but at least you hve the main idea. I really just wanted to share my excitment about the nice things I got for nearly nothing. :)

*S*N*O*W*D*A*Y*

Last night the weather man was predicting SNOW in our area. They said 2-6 inches depending on your area. We had six inches when we went out this morning and the snow hasn't let up. It is beautiful! Campbell called off classes, so Justin didn't have to go in. I had to take a day off, but it is totally worth it. I have a long drive and it is just dangerous. Not because I don't trust myself driving in snow. But I don't trust everyone else driving in snow. I figured my chances of dying dramatically increased today on the interstates in North Carolina. We went out to play with Lucy this morning and took a few pictures. Lucy LOVES the snow. She was out ALL morning. We are enjoying the beautiful scenery and our day at home.

A view of our house from the street....LOTS of snow :)

A view of our back yard from the deck....

This is our first snow day together and in North Carolina. He wasn't happy about being outside, but he did it for me. Something about growing up in Ohio makes you less excited about snow. :)Family Picture.

Luc trying to get that snow off her nose. :)

Something I would Recomend...

Justin and I got into a Life Group at our church back in November. We happen to get into a group with all married couples. They were about to start a Bible study called Fireproof your Marriage. Because we got to know the couples we didn’t want to leave the group just because they were doing a marriage study. They assured us we would benefit from it being in a serious relationship looking at marriage. (From what I hear you can never be too prepared).

We are now three weeks into the study and our church hosted a “date night” where they showed the movie Fireproof. Because we were in the middle of the study we thought actually seeing the movie would benefit us.

Let me just tell you the study and the movie are something to look into. The movie is released January 27 and the Bible Study is already out there. There is also a book called Love Dare that is featured in the movie that would be a FANTASTIC valentines day present. We love the study and have learned so much from it. I HAD to share it with you!

My best friends WEDDING!

2009 will be another year full of weddings. I will have the opportunity to be in two of my best friends weddings. Thank goodness for weddings...it is a good excuse to come home for a few days and see family and friends!!!

Christmas Eve I got numerous phone calls and text messages from friends and family. Knowing the combination of people I knew something was up. I was missing something big. My life long friend Allison got Engaged. I haven't ever missed a Christmas in Benton and the one year I'm gone....she gets engaged. Although I was sad I missed it, I was thrilled for her and Baxter.

Allison and Baxter right after they got engaged...
I got home from work late last night because I had an event. When I got home Justin handed me a red and green card and said, "Must be a late Christmas card."

This is green...(this picture isn't all that great)I was all confused about who would be sending me a late Christmas card. I opened it up and realized it was from Al!!

Here are a few more pictures of what I found inside.

I was super excited and lets just say "emotionally moved". I am very excited for them and can't wait to be apart of their special day.

12.19.09

The Key to Success

I know this might come as a shock to most of you, but from time to time I can be a tad opinionated. Oooops? What I'm going to say today isn't an opinion. It may sounds like it but really it is a fact. It is the key to success.

As you know I graduated with a double major in communications. I spent a lot of time digging in to what communication is and the different ways we use it, but more often than not how we neglect to use it. I'm not tooting my own horn saying that I know everything about communication. But while in my undergraduate classes I began to realize that my major talked about real life stuff. Every major should have to go through a series of speech communication classes. If you have a business degree but you can't communicate effectively what good are you in the business world? If you are in a relationship and can't figure out how to work your way through an argument...where does that lead you. Again I'm not claiming I learned mounds in these classes, I often didn't attend...but what I'm saying is communication is apart of our everyday life and more times than not it is missing in our most valuable relationships.

I grew up in a family that just lived. We didn't talk about what happened. If there was an "issue"....it somehow just got resolved or it was the elephant in the room....it was never resolved but we never talked about it. That helped shape me in to the person I am. I carry that into my own relationships with Justin, family, friends, and even my job.

Just take a second to make a top 15 list of your most valued relationships. Think about how well you communicate with each person. I do not care how young or old those people are. EVERYONE communicates, just in different way. I challenge you to think about how YOU communicate. Are you a person that bottles it all up in side and explode later? Figure it out. Then figure out how the people closest to you communicate. Instead of assuming they won't understand....push the limits, go out on a limb, and make them talk to you.

That is my challenge to you. This is an everyday challenge for me in my relationship, if Justin didn't MAKE me talk to him sometimes I will just hold it in until it things are way bigger than they should be. Be that person to someone else. I promise they will appreciate you for it and your relationship will be even better!

Home Sweet Home

I promised pictures of the house in a previous post, so here ya go!

Isn't it cute? I love it!

We did some yard work in the back yard today because Lucifer is a digger. I have a few pictures of her most recent dig. I actually got in the hole so you could get an idea of just how deep this hole was. She apparently was after something.

This picture really doesn't do it justice.

This one give you a better idea of just how deep it is. I think Luc thought she was going to be in trouble. :(

Lucy A.K.A Lucifer

My friend and big sis Julee gave me another idea for a blog...MY DOG! I'll give you a little background on Lucy and where we are now.

March 2008 my Father found a stray pup during the tornadoes in Saline County. For days he let her sleep in his shop but didn't have the heart to take her to the pound. I being his daughter..CLEARLY a sucker....took her in. She has been with me every step of the way...even made the move to NC. At first being in college having a needy pup was a challenge, but now I cannot imaging my life without her.

Lucy is a mixed breed, that is about 10 months old and full of energy. Being a stray out on the street she provided many obstacles. You would think potty training, but nope. She is a pro...I tell everyone she can hold it for days. Unless she is sick....and that is a completely different story. HA

She was a tad skittish and has a few social issues. I think she was just so unsure of herself...and boy has she gotten passed that!

My #1 priority in finding a place to live was a fence for Luc, she LOVES being outside. There have been times when I had to actually pick her up and carry her in. I think she would live outside if we would let her. But she has an over protective mother and I just can't bare it!

This is part of Luc's yard. We live in the country so she has plenty of room.

Justin and I just went on a Christmas vacation to AR and OH and we could not take Lucy. Although we could have bought a ticket for what we left her in the Kennel for, but it was best for her to stay here! I left her at a place called Green Level Kennels here in Apex, NC. She got 4 half hour play dates a day. She could have all her own toys, food, bed, medicine if needed...also extra "cuddle time". The day I dropped her off I felt so ridiculous...I CRIED!!!! I called every other day while I was gone to check in on her. She did rather well, she played well with other dogs....so she got to stay with the group and avoided solitary confinement. I felt like such a proud mother. :)

Before picking Lucy up 13 days later Justin and I saw Marley and Me. We totally recommend it but take your tissue. It made me want to get her back and love on her! So as soon as we landed we went and fetched her! I was like a small child about to get a puppy. I could NOT wait to see her! That dog walked out like she didn't even know us. (I'll start calling her Lucifer at this point...it's another name we like to call her...it's all in love) Zero excitement, zero emotion, no jumping...which is strange. We were heartbroken. So what do loving parents do? We head to Petsmart. HAHAHAH We bought a new bed, feeding bowls, and Justin picked her out an enormous bone. Still nothing from Luc. She just looked out the window the entire way home. We even stopped by Arby's for curly fries..which are her favorite! NOTHING!

We got home and she fell asleep in the corner. Then turned in for the night. I was like OMG my dog hates me. But NO she was just exhausted. The next day she was back to her old self and we were so excited.

There is nothing like having a dog in your life. It sounds so lame, but it is so true! I had an afternoon off the other day and so Luc and I had a little play date with the frisbee in the back yard. I took a few pics of her. I hope you enjoy!!

Now that you know Lucy I'll keep you updated on all the good and funny things she does and also all the bad things Lucifer does. :)