Y3W | A New Direction

I haven't updated this bloggy in quite some time. Truth is, I just haven't been inspired to write. And then it hit me tonight, as I was drafting a note on facebook about my spiritual journey, a thought struck - 'Post it on your blog too!' To me, that was a pretty clear instruction from the Lord, so I thought it best to obey. So here it is, in its entirety:

To my facebook family:

I am so thankful for this medium called the internet, which keeps us all connected, though distance and time may separate us. As I've moved away from home and had to learn new places and meet new friends, I've come to realize several things. And I just have to share with you...

You are all in my life for a reason, season or a lifetime. I'm not sure now what the outcome will be, but I will say that I am blessed to know you and you have all impacted my life in some way. Which is why I'm sharing my journey with you, I hope you'll read it through.

I was immensely blessed to grow up in a Christian home and was taught biblical principles at an early age. For all these years I've known how to 'play the part'. But now I'm truly learning what it takes to be a true follower of Christ. So I'm asking a favor of you.

If you believe you are going to Heaven, ask yourself why you believe this. And then, check out what the Bible has to say about it. See Matthew 7:13-14, Luke 13:22-30

 If you call yourself a Christian, how are you serving God-does it align with the Bible? See Luke 9:23-26

I do not pretend to be a biblical scholar or minister. I am still learning, and He's still working on me. I'm sharing with you verses that I have studied recently that are helping me grow spiritually and deepen my relationship with the Lord. And I'm learning that a major area I have been lacking in is speaking boldly about the awesome God I serve. Christians are called to share the great news about Jesus with EVERYONE, so why wouldn't I at the very least talk to my friends and family about God? 

I hope that as I continue my Christian journey you'll allow me to share what I've been learning in my personal Bible study and I'd love it if you shared your journey with me as well. 

And I have one last favor to ask. Lastly, I'm asking for you to hold me accountable. The Bible says 'all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God' Romans 3:23 As members of God's family we are to hold each other accountable, which sometimes requires that we correct our brothers and sisters, in love. If we humble ourselves and open up to other believers what we're struggling with, it will only help us grow closer to each other as well as the Lord.

So I ask-will you join me?

Please pray for me, and I will continue to do the same for you!

Y3W | I'm sorry bloggy

I'm so sorry my dear blog. You have been severely neglected. I've been so focused on my new baby that you have been put on the backburner. And then, my father in law came to visit, so even my business felt a little neglected.

But guess what, bloggy? I am helping a friend put together a Yo Gabba Gabba party for her (almost) one-year old. And you know what that means, bloggy? 

Crafting. Which means pictures of said crafts. And maybe I'll toss in tutorials? We shall see.

I must leave you for now, dear bloggy, but rest assured I will be back soon.

:)

Y3W | My new baby!

The past week I've spent countless hours on my computer. Because this is what I've been working on:

My new event-planning business! I'm so excited about it! Even though I have two business degrees, there's still a lot for me to learn 'on-the-job'. So I'm asking my followers (even those of you who anonymously follow!) please check out the website and follow 5-9 Events on facebook.

Much prayer and good vibes requested on this new endeavor!!!

P.S. I have to say thank you to my graphic designer, Desi Design, for my great new logo. Check out her great work here!

Y3W | Dream Big Dreams

My high school was a near-dynasty when it came to two sports: softball and wrestling. In the eighties and early nineties our softball team won several state titles. While I was a student, we usually sent 2-4 guys to compete for state titles in wrestling each year.

Every fall, winter and spring, the athletic teams sold school-spirit apparel to raise money for their respective sport. On e particular year the wrestling team sold shirts with the letters DBD on the front. On the back it read 'Dream Big Dreams' (actually the front said DBD squared and the back read 'Dream Big Dreams, Don't Back Down' - but you get the point)

This post is all about my 'big dreams'. Now these are different than my life goals, which can be found here. I'm talking about things you occasionally fantasize about, but don't give real thought into. If they happen-great! If not, no big deal.

• Go to school to become a pastry chef. I LOVE baking. And I enjoy taking the extra steps to make my baked goods look good as well. Sometimes I fancy what it would be like to attend Le Cordon Bleu or some other froo-froo school. This may still be a second career option...someday.
• Become a certified personal trainer. I like taking group exercise classes. And I like to think I'm pretty good at speaking in public. If I became a personal trainer, I'd HAVE to go the gym and my days of making excuses would be over.
• Travel throughout the Mediterranean. And I don't just mean the tourist destinations. Like, I would love to also see the countryside in Spain, Greece, Turkey and Italy. This is a big dream because of 1. cost and 2. I don't know who would come with me. My husband likes traveling, but only where 'people speak English' and I don't know who else would be willing to be adventurous with me in this venture. Either way, I definitely want to visit that area of the world, even if it means I only hit the tourist stops...

That's it for now. I may add on to this post as more random big dreams come to me ;)

Y3W

Home SWEET Home

This Y3W has a double meaning for me. First of all, my mom, Eva and I travelled over the highways to Virginia on Tuesday. I would love to say we were there for pleasure, but this trip was all business! We went there to search for a new place for our family to live once we PCS (for non-military people, that means Permanent Change of Station) this summer.

I was dreading this trip. Normally I am a 'rider' on long drives. Both my husband and dad like driving on long treks. Unfortunately, neither of them was with us, which meant my mom and I would be doing the driving. And to top it off, the weather was predicted to be rainy and gloomy for most of the trip.

When we got there, we quickly changed and got out and about looking at places. And we saw a lot in the 1.5 days we were there. In case you weren't aware, the housing market in Virginia is a little on the expensive side. (especially compared to our current home-state of Texas which is on the cheap side of the spectrum!) And since I'm not working, we have to budget our expenses off the small housing allowance we get from the Air Force.

So the apartments/houses that were in our price range were depressing me. They would be cute, but tiny and lacking storage. Or I'd have to sacrifice a bedroom and/or bathroom. Or they would be in a not-so-desirable part of town. So after 1.5 days of this, I decided to just make a spreadsheet of everything I saw, so my husband and I could look at everything and just pick the best available option. I was discouraged to say the least.

I had a couple more apartments left on my list, that I had ruled out because they were a little far from the base (or so I thought at the time). Yesterday morning, before we left, I decided to stop by these apartments on the way home. I mean, what could it hurt, right? Well, we only ended up looking at one.

Because it is THE one!

It is a 3 bed, 2.5 bath townhome, with washer/dryer connections, a nice sized patio, wood-burning fireplace and updated kitchen and bathrooms. The property manager was genuinely a sweet lady, and the apartments were well maintained, inside and out. originally I thought it was too far from the base, but it turns out, that it will only be a 15-20 minute drive, at most.

So I left Virginia in a great mood. And I returned to Ohio in an even-better mood. We were blessed with beautiful weather on the trip there AND back, and only experienced a couple light showers during our stay. The driving went much better than expected.

And NOW, I can finally focus on Eva's party, which is NEXT SATURDAY --- EEK!

Have a good weekend!

Y3W | Long blogging break

I'm soooooooooooooo sorry for the long hiatus. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm currently in Ohio. Why, you may be asking???

Next week my mom and I are trekking to Virginia so I can house-hunt. Then the week after that, we're having Eva's birthday party! So this 3-week trip to Ohio had a two-fold purpose.

Since I've only allotted myself 2 days to house-hunt in VA, I have been consumed with looking up homes and apartments online for the past few days. I want to fit in as many places as possible, and organizing it all is such a daunting task.

So that's why I've been away. I have some fun posts planned, and hopefully I'll be back into full blogging swing by this time next week!

Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy your Easter ~ remember that Jesus is the reason for the season ;)

Y3W | The Frugal Life

My mom raised me to spend less than I earn, to never pay full-price for ANYTHING, and to save up for a rainy day. And now that our family relies on one-income, those lessons are more important than ever.

Anyone that has children will tell you that one of the most annoying/expensive aspects of child-rearing is the constant need to rotate their clothes as they outgrow them and/or the seasons change. Last year, Eva went from newborn-6 month clothing in the span of 3 months. That was fun! <----insert large dose of sarcasm.

So to save money on clothes I shop at consignment stores and sales. This month I took some of Eva's old baby equipment to the local kids' consignment shop. I got store credit and used it towards some clothes and toys for the little one:


In this photo are Eva's new toys. Her clothes were actually FREE through our local SAMS (Soldiers, Airmen, Marines, Sailors) place. They take donations and enlisted military (below a certain rank) and their families can get up to 30 free items a month. We are very fortunate to be able to take advantage of a great program like this.

And I'm so proud to share the following with you. There's a national consignment sale company called Just Between Friends. (check out their website to see if there's a sale in your area) We didn't have any in Ohio - when I was there I shopped at The Big Red Wagon sales. But when we moved to Texas, I was so excited to see that there was a JBF here. (There's a TON in Texas - this state is huge!)

So this week I ventured out to the sale and here's what I came back with:


You're wondering what all is pictured? That's 6 pajamas, 10 shorts, 2 capris, 2 pants, 1 dress, 2 shirts, 3 matching outfits and a package of swim diapers. And how much did I spend????

$52.50

Go ahead, rub your eyes and re-read that amount. $52.50 for a boatload of stuff. I was almost giddy this morning while taking the tags off in preparation to wash everything. Trust me, I could have done MUCH more damage as there was a ton of clothes there in her size. (and also toys, baby equipment and even furniture!) But I walked in with a pre-set budget of $50, so I'm glad I only went over by $2.50.

Oh, and did you notice the little girl in the corner playing with the hangers? Once she saw I was taking pictures, my little ham produced her award-winning smile:


Oh, ok Eva, if you insist, Mommy will take a picture of you:



Don't mind her crazy-hair. She always pulls on it in her sleep. ;)

How do you try to save money in this time of recession?

Y3W | Who is this...

little girl?


And what did she do with my baby?!?!?!?

Y3W | Dreamers Into Doers

So I stumbled on this website today. Wow. I've been missing out, I see. I've been busy working on my business plan, creating a pricing strategy, scoping out the competition, etc. And all along there's a website that serves as a forum for women like me - those striking out with their own business. I think this will be a great avenue for me to network with others in my industry, as well as learn some tips on how to be a better businesswoman.

Sign me up ;)

Your Three Words

picture credit

Eva is now a bonafide meat-eater. I gave her some of my meatloaf last week and she was grunting for more. The other day after she ate a jar of peas, I gave her some small pieces of my baked chicken. Homegirl was all over it:


What mom? I'm eating!



So much chicken, so little time!



She is well on her way to eating more and more table foods by age one!

Your Three Words

Picture credit

Well folks, we're down here in Te-jas! It was seventy degrees when we got here, and then that nasty storm ran through here on Tuesday - since then it's been around 20 degrees every day. I thought I left winter behind in Ohio!

The move is, well, not completely over. We've still got lots of unopened boxes in the apartment. For the most part the kitchen, bathroom and E's room are together. But our living room and master bedroom look like hazardous zones. There's only so much I can do during the day with the little one around. And when hubby gets home, he eats, plays with her for a little bit and goes to bed. I can't blame him, because he is on base for long hours. So hopefully, this weekend we can wrap up the majority of unpacking and start arranging this place to look like a home! I'm praying that pesky Super Bowl doesn't derail our progress...

Your Three Words

In 7 days I'll be preparing for a 3-flight journey with my 8 month old baby. (trying not to hyperventilate thinking about it...) At the end of our trek, we'll be reunited with my husband, finally. While I'm excited to leave the frigid cold and to be with the Mr. I have to admit I'm sad to leave. I lived my entire life, with the exception of one year in grad school, in northern Ohio. My family's here, most of my friends are here, and it's just home. I so look forward to the adventure of moving away, while we're young and before E is in school. But I'm soliciting your prayers and well-wishes because I know it will be a HUGE transition.

For now I've been focused on spending time with my peeps and getting any last-minute moving errands completed. But I know when I actually get to the airport, it will hit me. After next week, Ohio will probably never be my home again.

Your Three Words

I've been following Jenni from the Blog for a while and she participates in this blogging challenge. Basically, once a week you describe something going on in your life - in three words. I thought I'd start joining in! So here's my first 'Your Three Words' post:


I've hinted previously about a pending move. My daughter and I will be trekking cross-country to join my husband. So I've got to pack up the remainder of our things that are not in storage because the movers are coming next week. Because it could take 10-14 days for our things to arrive at our new place there's a 2 week gap between the day the movers come and she and I get on a plane. So I have to pack up her highchair, pack n play, changing table, etc. But we're not leaving for another 2 weeks, so I have to leave enough clothes and diapers, and the like. This should be fun...