Thanksgiving. This time of year never fails to make people think about what they have to be thankful for ( I mean, it says THANKS in the word for goodness sake). Thanksgiving was a little different for us than it has been in past years--it was our first one ever away from home. That being said, it was also one of the most wonderful and memorable Thanksgiving holidays I have ever experienced. Starting the Monday before (the 21st I think) we had family up here to visit us for a whole week! Such a blessing! Daniel's parents came up Monday and stayed until Wednesday morning. Then my family came up Wednesday afternoon and stayed until Sunday morning. It was a really special time! This was Daniel's parents first trip up to Louisville, so that was exciting (not to mention we had not seen them since the day we moved here in July). It was wonderful--I had to work quite a bit, but Daniel got to spend some good quality time with them, showing them around our city and taking them to see me at the Apple Store. :) His dad even brought an indoor fryer so we wouldn't have to miss having a deep-fried turkey for a Thanksgiving meal! (YUM-O let me tell you). The morning they left, we went to breakfast at Lynn's Paradise Cafe--this is a MUST if you ever come up to visit. It's a little pricey, but has fantastic food and a fun, eclectic atmosphere. In fact, the food is so good, Lynn has been on Food Network's Show "Throwdown with Bobby Flay" AND "Man vs. Food" has been there as well! How cool is that? Afterwards, Daniel's parents headed down to Birmingham, Alabama to visit Ben, Rebekah, and the kiddos.
My family arrived later that afternoon. We immediately went to Kroger (which our Kroger is awesome) to get last minute ingredients for the Thanksgiving feast. Once we got back, we headed to Macaroni Grill to eat dinner. It was so fun to introduce my family to the wonderful people I work with! We woke up bright and early Thanksgiving morning and had breakfast at IHOP before getting started with preparations for the meal. Let me tell you, I am so proud of us ladies being able to cook all the food necessary in my tiny little kitchen. (trust me, ask anyone and they will tell you how tiny it is). We had a fantastic Thanksgiving meal, catching up and napping and watching football. Then, Black Friday gets here. First of all, let me say I have never, nor ever had the desire, to step foot in any store or mall on Black Friday. EVER. And this year, I got to work it at Apple. Quite the experience, I assure you. Thankfully, I got scheduled the early shift (5:30 AM-2:30 PM) so I was able to get home and watch the LSU/ARK football game--which depressingly ended bad for us. Saturday comes and we all load up to go back to the mall for some fun shopping (it was so great to have some girl time). Sadly, they had to leave Sunday morning, and our week of family came to a close. BUT we get to go back home for Christmas in about 3 weeks!
Friday, December 2, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
Tutoring
Daniel got a new job! He is going to be tutoring middle school and high school students in reading and math through an organization called A-Plus Tutoring. Such a HUGE blessing for a few reasons: One, it is only going to require the same amount of time he is currently working at the dry cleaners. Two, he will be getting paid double what he makes now. Three, he is so passionate about teaching and I think this will be a great niche for him--not to mention what a great ministry opportunity to be around those kids and their families! Needless to say, we are uber excited about this! It is going to be a bit of a transition since he is trying to juggle this new job as well as finish up his job at the cleaners....not to mention his last couple of weeks in school for the semester. So if you could just be in prayer for him--that he doesn't get too overwhelmed and that God would just multiply his time so he would be able to get everything done. So that is what's new with my hubby! As far as I go, I'm just working mostly--still trying to find a full-time job in my field. Recently, I was looking into a pharmaceutical sales rep position with a company here in Louisville. Unfortunately, they had already filled it by the time I got all my stuff in, but the manager told me that he would keep my resume on file for when another position opened. Still just praying for God to lead me in the right direction, but thankful for the jobs i DO have--i get this feeling that they are teaching me things and preparing me for what's ahead. Another new thing is we have talked to the pastor at Kenwood about joining and they are going to set up a time for us to be interviewed here in the next couple of weeks. I am really looking forward to becoming a member of this church. We have been visiting for about 6 or 7 weeks now and just continue to love it more each week--the teaching is solid, the fellowship is wonderful, and we get lunch every Sunday (who doesn't love that?).
On a lighter note, we get to see family in ONE WEEK!! Daniel's parents are coming in next Monday and are staying until Wednesday morning (we have not seen them since the day we moved up here) and then my family is coming up Wednesday afternoon/evening and staying until Sunday morning. To say we are excited is an understatement! CANNOT WAIT.
Well, that is all for now. Allow me to leave you with this:
"Let us hold tightly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful."--Hebrews 10:23
On a lighter note, we get to see family in ONE WEEK!! Daniel's parents are coming in next Monday and are staying until Wednesday morning (we have not seen them since the day we moved up here) and then my family is coming up Wednesday afternoon/evening and staying until Sunday morning. To say we are excited is an understatement! CANNOT WAIT.
Well, that is all for now. Allow me to leave you with this:
"Let us hold tightly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful."--Hebrews 10:23
Monday, October 31, 2011
Promises
Yet again, it has taken me over a MONTH to blog. *sigh* Where in the world does the time go? To start with, let's catch up to all the happenings of the past month.
1) God blessed me with not one, but TWO part time jobs (Hallelujah!). So, I am now a hostess at Romano's Macaroni Grill and a Specialist at the Apple Retail Store in the mall down the street from our house. Yes, I am enjoying both jobs, especially the people I work with, but it has definitely been an adjustment! There are days where I don't think I can do anymore (especially Fridays and Saturdays), but somehow the grace of God gets me through. Not to mention, Daniel has been so supportive and helpful!
2) Speaking of...this has been the craziest month at school for him. He has had countless hours reading, a 3-hour mid.term, and 3 (yes THREE) different 10-page papers due! He is such a rockstar! I am so extremely proud of how well Daniel has adjusted to working part time and keeping up with his school work. Taking 12 hours in master's courses is about the equivalent to 18 or more hours in undergrad courses. So stinkin' proud of that boy.
3) We have officially been "Louisville-ians" for 3 months now (as of October 21st)...CRAZY i know!
So, those are the major events that have been happening-- which also, coincidentally, they happen to take up the majority of our time. Now, don't get me wrong. The absolute LAST thing I want to do is sound ungrateful or lazy or not happy. But let's face it, when life throws curve balls at you (fast), it is hard not to be overwhelmed or overly-emotional. Saturday was definitely like that for me. I felt completely overwhelmed, exhausted, and just did not have a good attitude. I was crying and praying "angry prayers" saying things like, "God, thank you for blessing me with two jobs, but it is so not fair! How come I don't have a normal 8-5 job, with my weekends and nights free...not to mention a little more income? I feel like I am busting my butt working to help support my family and I'm not getting much in return." Ever had one of those? Yes, I think we all have at one time or another.
But then I got to church Sunday, and it was like God just halted time to grab my attention and said "I have you exactly where I want you. I will never leave you or forsake you, and when it gets too hard, lean on me and I will carry you through it." In Sunday School we are going through Hebrews, and this week we were in Chapter 6...talking about God's promises. HOW ENCOURAGING. I loved every minute of it and just felt like a burden had lifted off my shoulders. God never promised life would be easy, but He did promise to never leave us or forsake us. Let me tell you, Daniel and I have both learned some lessons since we have been here about relying on God. Things have not gone as we expected....you know, find a great apartment and then the perfect job and life will be just peachy. Wrong! BUT even though it's been one of the most difficult things I have ever gone through, it has also been one of the most rewarding times in my life thus far. I have grown so much in my relationship with God and my husband--double blessing!
1) God blessed me with not one, but TWO part time jobs (Hallelujah!). So, I am now a hostess at Romano's Macaroni Grill and a Specialist at the Apple Retail Store in the mall down the street from our house. Yes, I am enjoying both jobs, especially the people I work with, but it has definitely been an adjustment! There are days where I don't think I can do anymore (especially Fridays and Saturdays), but somehow the grace of God gets me through. Not to mention, Daniel has been so supportive and helpful!
2) Speaking of...this has been the craziest month at school for him. He has had countless hours reading, a 3-hour mid.term, and 3 (yes THREE) different 10-page papers due! He is such a rockstar! I am so extremely proud of how well Daniel has adjusted to working part time and keeping up with his school work. Taking 12 hours in master's courses is about the equivalent to 18 or more hours in undergrad courses. So stinkin' proud of that boy.
3) We have officially been "Louisville-ians" for 3 months now (as of October 21st)...CRAZY i know!
So, those are the major events that have been happening-- which also, coincidentally, they happen to take up the majority of our time. Now, don't get me wrong. The absolute LAST thing I want to do is sound ungrateful or lazy or not happy. But let's face it, when life throws curve balls at you (fast), it is hard not to be overwhelmed or overly-emotional. Saturday was definitely like that for me. I felt completely overwhelmed, exhausted, and just did not have a good attitude. I was crying and praying "angry prayers" saying things like, "God, thank you for blessing me with two jobs, but it is so not fair! How come I don't have a normal 8-5 job, with my weekends and nights free...not to mention a little more income? I feel like I am busting my butt working to help support my family and I'm not getting much in return." Ever had one of those? Yes, I think we all have at one time or another.
But then I got to church Sunday, and it was like God just halted time to grab my attention and said "I have you exactly where I want you. I will never leave you or forsake you, and when it gets too hard, lean on me and I will carry you through it." In Sunday School we are going through Hebrews, and this week we were in Chapter 6...talking about God's promises. HOW ENCOURAGING. I loved every minute of it and just felt like a burden had lifted off my shoulders. God never promised life would be easy, but He did promise to never leave us or forsake us. Let me tell you, Daniel and I have both learned some lessons since we have been here about relying on God. Things have not gone as we expected....you know, find a great apartment and then the perfect job and life will be just peachy. Wrong! BUT even though it's been one of the most difficult things I have ever gone through, it has also been one of the most rewarding times in my life thus far. I have grown so much in my relationship with God and my husband--double blessing!
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