2011. Probably one of the biggest years of my life. This was definitely a hard and an amazing year. Basically my whole life changed. I became a college graduate and joined the working world. I moved a state west and went from a Colorado culture to a completely different one here in Utah. I had to start paying my own bills J. I had to learn to be far away from my family and friends. I went from being engaged to married to my very best friend. My grandpa got really sick and almost passed away (Praise God he’s still here!). I visited Jamaica. I got a puppy…and talk about a test of patience there. I switched jobs. We bought a new car. And I’ve been learning how to juggle this all with a relationship with God. I can easily say I’m not the same person I was last year, and I hope to say I will continue to change and grow year after year.
I find it crazy how life never stops, we don’t get any breaks—and I’m pretty sure it just gets busier and busier. I think the biggest struggle I’ve had this year in my walk with God is just keeping my heart engaged in the midst of all the crazy. I was reading my bible, I was going to church…but my mind and heart were so preoccupied and maybe even exhausted that I feel like I really missed out on knowing God’s heart better. Now here we are about to enter 2012, and I get so excited about it, because it restores me and gives me a new mindset that this year is going to be different: that this time I’m not going to let life get in the way. There is something so refreshing about a new year, a new beginning and I really do want this year to be so much better than the last. I’m learning that no matter what life looks like…NONE of it means anything without a meaningful relationship with the One who created it all. I feel comfort in knowing that no matter WHAT happens to me, I know that God has ordained it so.
I’m not usually big on New Year’s Resolutions because I really don’t feel like they work. However, what is the harm in setting spiritual goals? With this new start of a year I want to set new goals. Goals to grow in my knowledge of who God is, how I can constantly trust Him and pray to Him. I want to KNOW GOD more, with my heart—not my mind. I want to LOVE people better. I want to open my home to people who need it, I want to meet new people at church because they may not know anybody at all, I want to have a more tender heart towards the people I’m closest to. I truly want to challenge myself this next year because we are getting older and more set in our ways, and the only way to change anything is to do simply that: CHANGE. I know it’s only by God’s grace that He can make me a woman who represents Him well—but it starts with me and my desire to be that kind of woman. I want 2012 to be a year where I learn to be a better wife, friend, daughter, sister, coworker, neighbor, etc. And I hope you will join me in this challenge, not because we have to be, but because it honors God when we live according to His Word. And most importantly is because He truly wants to know our hearts.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Friday, September 30, 2011
change, change, chaaaange.
It's been forever since I've been in touch. I guess that's proof that life has been crazy for us. Let's see here...well, for starters, WE HAVE A PUPPY! Darla is the newest little member of our family and we couldn't be more happy with her. We adopted her from the Wasatch Rescue Center where she had been turned in from a puppy mill they shut down. She had two little sisters with her, but we chose her because of her playfulness! She was so little, and now she really is growing so fast! :) Darla has a cuuute personality. She is playful, and absolutely crazy when she's playing under our bed. We usually find her running around under the bed, or in the bathtub licking water. She's been so good at sleeping in her kennel and is slowly but surely getting potty trained. We love our Darla! She's supposed to be a full English Bulldog, but at this point we definitely think she's a mix...we just don't know what of? She's definitely got that adorable bottom lip that sticks out which is totally English bull. So, that has definitely been an adjustment for us, but now we're chugging along just fine. :)
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| Oh my Darla! |
What else is new? Oh nothing much except...I got a new job!! I will (in two weeks) officially be on my "career journey" and working as an Admissions Representative at Fortis College. I'm really excited because it's not only more money but also the experience I need to be able to start building my resume and seeing where God allows me to go! It's such a blessing. So that will be an exciting change! I really am grateful for my time here at the Ronald McDonald House and I urge everyone to help out their local charities by donations or volunteer work. My eyes truly were opened to all that it takes to keep it running. I will definitely want to do dinners for the families and keep in touch with RMH.
I planned my first "girls trip" since being married, and I'm extremely excited about that! My (superstar) friend Erin landed the part as Penny in Hairspray in LA! I am so proud of her and know she's gonna make it BIG in no time. :) Well, one of my best friends Maddie and I will be flying out to go see her in November! Maddie works for Disney so we will also get to go to Disney for free which is also a big bonus! I'm excited to see my old High School girlfriends and am thankful how these friendships have stayed in tact even with distance and different stages of life! How lucky I am! :)
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| back in our "gangster" days. |
Zach has been keeping busy with school and work, and I am still so in awe of him. We've been continuing to pay off his school loans as we go so we don't accumulate debt and it's been going okay so far! I'm really grateful how God continues to provide and provide for us. :)
We were supposed to go to my cousins wedding in October in Missouri, but it ended up being too expensive ($1,000 for both of us to fly there! What a JOKE!) so we can't go anymore. I'm really bummed because I miss my family so much and we won't get to go home for the Holidays. Since I knew I'd be sad that weekend everyone was at the wedding, we planned a little excursion with our friends Tyffani and Dylan to go to Wendover, Nevada (a mini Vegas so I hear!) to stay the weekend and have fun. We are having so much fun hanging out with other married couples and learning from them. I'm thankful for all the friends we've made out here and what a difference it has made in making my whole move here better!
And lastly, the running has continued! I've worked my way up to running in ten minute intervals which is insane when I think that just a month and a half ago I was running one and two minute intervals. So I am signing up for a 5K on Thanksgiving and we are gonna make it happen! It'll keep me motivated especially as my schedule changes and I *may* want to get lazy...I want a reason to keep running and this is the perfect chance.
Well, those are all new things going on in our neck of the woods. Until next time... :)
We were supposed to go to my cousins wedding in October in Missouri, but it ended up being too expensive ($1,000 for both of us to fly there! What a JOKE!) so we can't go anymore. I'm really bummed because I miss my family so much and we won't get to go home for the Holidays. Since I knew I'd be sad that weekend everyone was at the wedding, we planned a little excursion with our friends Tyffani and Dylan to go to Wendover, Nevada (a mini Vegas so I hear!) to stay the weekend and have fun. We are having so much fun hanging out with other married couples and learning from them. I'm thankful for all the friends we've made out here and what a difference it has made in making my whole move here better!
And lastly, the running has continued! I've worked my way up to running in ten minute intervals which is insane when I think that just a month and a half ago I was running one and two minute intervals. So I am signing up for a 5K on Thanksgiving and we are gonna make it happen! It'll keep me motivated especially as my schedule changes and I *may* want to get lazy...I want a reason to keep running and this is the perfect chance.
Well, those are all new things going on in our neck of the woods. Until next time... :)
Monday, August 22, 2011
changes
this monday brings change in the soper household! nothing too drastic, but change none the less. today is zach's first day at the university. he's taking three classes this semester on top of his working full-time schedule and i really admire him for it. he already wakes up between 3:30-4am every morning for work and on top of that he'll have a monday/wednesday afternoon class, as well as tuesday and thursday classes from 6-9. i'm praying a lot for this transition as we still love hanging out with each other all the time, and this will definitely change that a bit. i hope school is easy for him and that it really pays off. i'm proud of him for going back to finish and i really hope he loves it. he's going in for finance and he has 2 years left. i hope it goes by fast and he can get into his career shortly after graduating. :) i am incredibly thankful for the job he has now that not only allows the schedule to go to school, but also pays well for us to be paying rent as well as paying off school as we go. both of us hate the thought of debt and are going to extreme measures to avoid it. :) so far, so good!
another change, not as big--but still going to be a challenge of my own is a diet/exercise plan i'm going on for a good month. today is day one. it's basically no carbs or sugars except you can have toast at breakfast and you can eat the sugars in fruit. i am going to be eating a lot of salads with protein as well as fruits and vegetables. i can have any seasonings i want as long as there are no sugars in them. i'm feeling a little nervous about it, but i've had about a week to prepare my mind for this, and have really tried to "motivate" myself to have the discipline to do it. the reason i want to do this is for many reasons. one, the obvious is that my relationship with zach has made me "comfortable" and i have gained a good 10 lbs that i want off. :) second, i do feel like food can be in many ways an idol even if it sounds weird. i will think about cooking, eating, or even watching the food channel which are all fine things, but i want to remember it's not EVERYTHING. and lastly, i have never had the discipline to do it. if i can be disciplined in this area of my life (which i always find a reason to give in...) then i know i can be more disciplined in my spiritual life as well. its something i need to do to prove that i have a handle of this area of my life, because i've never had to worry about it in the past and now the older i get, the slower my metabolism is becoming.
in addition to the diet, i have started an 8 week running plan that is supposed to build my endurance. for those of you who know me well, know i DESPISE running and can never keep it consistent in my life. well, i am proud to say this week i have accomplished week one which may sound easy but it's all about baby steps. week one i had to go out 3 times and walk 6 minutes and run 1 minute, repeated three times. so sherry and i have been going with her cutie dog amos this past week. this week, it's walk 5 minutes and run 2 and repeat it 3 times. :) anyways that is probably boring, but i figure if i say i publicly and announce it here, then i am held accountable to keep up with it. by the end of the eight weeks, i should be running 30 minutes straight. see, that still does NOT sound doable to me at all...we'll see how it goes. i'm just excited to live a healthy lifestyle, and get in the habit of it all. it's important to me.
this weekend was fun! we had dinner with the toppers and then went bowling friday night with some friends after, followed by catch phrase at the toppers again! saturday was running, grocery shopping, getting our bathtub drain fixed, and hanging with zach before church, then after we went to becki's for a bonfire in celebration of cute kristyn's birthday! sunday i went running again, then rushed home to get ready and clean our house because we had friends coming over for the fantasy football draft! after the draft we ran to chipotle with friends, then spent the night in watching none other than football. :) and now the new week begins, changes welcomed! if you have any no carb recipes please send them my way, and if you see zach please encourage him in his schooling journey! we are so thankful for God and all His blessings, and although we don't know what this semester will look like, we are excited for the challenge.
another change, not as big--but still going to be a challenge of my own is a diet/exercise plan i'm going on for a good month. today is day one. it's basically no carbs or sugars except you can have toast at breakfast and you can eat the sugars in fruit. i am going to be eating a lot of salads with protein as well as fruits and vegetables. i can have any seasonings i want as long as there are no sugars in them. i'm feeling a little nervous about it, but i've had about a week to prepare my mind for this, and have really tried to "motivate" myself to have the discipline to do it. the reason i want to do this is for many reasons. one, the obvious is that my relationship with zach has made me "comfortable" and i have gained a good 10 lbs that i want off. :) second, i do feel like food can be in many ways an idol even if it sounds weird. i will think about cooking, eating, or even watching the food channel which are all fine things, but i want to remember it's not EVERYTHING. and lastly, i have never had the discipline to do it. if i can be disciplined in this area of my life (which i always find a reason to give in...) then i know i can be more disciplined in my spiritual life as well. its something i need to do to prove that i have a handle of this area of my life, because i've never had to worry about it in the past and now the older i get, the slower my metabolism is becoming.
in addition to the diet, i have started an 8 week running plan that is supposed to build my endurance. for those of you who know me well, know i DESPISE running and can never keep it consistent in my life. well, i am proud to say this week i have accomplished week one which may sound easy but it's all about baby steps. week one i had to go out 3 times and walk 6 minutes and run 1 minute, repeated three times. so sherry and i have been going with her cutie dog amos this past week. this week, it's walk 5 minutes and run 2 and repeat it 3 times. :) anyways that is probably boring, but i figure if i say i publicly and announce it here, then i am held accountable to keep up with it. by the end of the eight weeks, i should be running 30 minutes straight. see, that still does NOT sound doable to me at all...we'll see how it goes. i'm just excited to live a healthy lifestyle, and get in the habit of it all. it's important to me.
this weekend was fun! we had dinner with the toppers and then went bowling friday night with some friends after, followed by catch phrase at the toppers again! saturday was running, grocery shopping, getting our bathtub drain fixed, and hanging with zach before church, then after we went to becki's for a bonfire in celebration of cute kristyn's birthday! sunday i went running again, then rushed home to get ready and clean our house because we had friends coming over for the fantasy football draft! after the draft we ran to chipotle with friends, then spent the night in watching none other than football. :) and now the new week begins, changes welcomed! if you have any no carb recipes please send them my way, and if you see zach please encourage him in his schooling journey! we are so thankful for God and all His blessings, and although we don't know what this semester will look like, we are excited for the challenge.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Tomorrow is our TWO MONTH anniversary of being married! I can't believe how fast time has flown by. :) Definitely my favorite time of life this far!
Let's see what to share...this weekend was busy, busy, busy! Friday was a birthday party for Heather and Paige and the theme was "southern" which was so much fun. I made a "spoon bread" which I had never heard of until my co-worker told me about it. What a success it was, considering the journey getting there. I looked at the recipe at work and then ran to the store just for cornmeal. I didn't realize that it called for baking powder which is NOT the same as baking soda. So as I'm in the middle of my recipe and had already been to the store once, I realize that I don't have any baking powder and baking soda cannot be used as a substitute, apparently. So I looked online for another recipe that didn't call for baking powder and found it. As I was using this different recipe, it called for salt and we only had sea salt (in the bigger crystals) and so I was very worried about that, but I went for it. As it was finishing cooking I layered some cheese on there and it went alright! People enjoyed it at the party which was a BIG accomplishment for me, because people who know me well know that I am NOT good at baking. I think the curse is slowly ending, as I made nutella cupcakes from scratch a couple months ago as well. Plus, I'm starting to like baking since I get to wear my cute little apron! After the party, Zach and I left for some frozen yogurt and quality time together.
Saturday was busy from the get-go. I slept in a little bit, and then had to get ready for my pedicure appointment with Sierra and Sherry for Sherry's "birthday" pedicure! Man, my feet needed that and it was pretty cheap too so that was fun! Then we headed to the Gateway so they could get their rings cleaned and I could get my Forever 21 fix. Lucky for my wallet, there wasn't anything I really wanted to try on. After pedi's and shopping, Zach and I had a nice lunch at Squatters where we split a burger and fries. Then we ran to Target and I used the rest of our gift card...we bought yahtzee (we're becoming obsessed, thanks tot he Whitney's!) little 3 lb. weights for my Jillian Michael's DVD, some clothes, and little things around the house. That was fun to get my shopping fix on, because I really was craving some shopping...AND we didn't even have to spend money! That was nice. We then headed home, only for a brief little bit before I had to leave again for a wedding coordinating meeting with Amy and her mom. Raychel and I are having fun with this and we have two weddings in October that we're coordinating. Our dream is to find some money (a LOT of money) and some partners to open up a venue with and Raychel and I will run it and all the other vendors will be a part of it. We know some amazing photographers, bakers, caterers, musicians, pastors, florists, and hair stylists! It really could be a one-stop shop to make things easy...and cheap too! :) So we had fun meeting with Amy and her mom and I feel like things are going to run really smooth for that. I headed home, freshened up and it was time to leave for church. We're serving in children's ministry this month, so we make little lesson plans for the kids 8-12 and it's been fun. It is really intimidating since we don't have any kids and really don't know what we're doing with this age group, but it's a good stretch for us and it's good to serve the church. After church we went to a cute little farm/house that Ten is house-sitting for and we sat outside in a very picture-esque table under a tree where we drank some beer and talked. It was a lot of fun but we got onto the subject of spiders which makes my skin crawl...and this is why...
When we got home we were laying in bed talking when all of a sudden Zach stands up and starts touching the ceiling a bunch. "What are you doing?" I ask, and he says there are baby spiders all over the ceiling. I am SOOO freaked out and started pointing out little ones I noticed that I needed him to kill. He evenutally gets all the ones we see, but of course I couldn't sleep well that night! I still look every night when I'm laying in bed to make sure they're gone. Yikes!
Sunday we had a football draft for one of our fantasy football leagues. We're each doing two. I am so excited for them I can't even wait! SOO glad football is here! After the draft I had a relaxing afternoon and night at home, while Zach had his other draft with some church friends. I stayed home, watched the CMA concert and Yes Man, and skyped with my long lost lovely friend Allison. It was so nice to feel reconnected, and I'm thankful for Skype! Well, this entry got very long all of a sudden so I am going to end this now. :)
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
My oh my, we're realizing that married life really isn't slowing us down! We've kept busy with work, friends, and church that's for sure. :) This past week has been pretty crazy. Everything from filling cavities (yuck) to spontaneous date nights to surprise parties to children's church. Yes, last Monday I had to get some cavities filled (don't ask how many) and today I have to finish the other side. Lesson? Don't wait 4 years to get a check up at the dentist. My mistake! On Wednesday, I was planning on cooking dinner but as Zach and I were laying there watching Shark week I just didn't want to cook anymore so we used some gift cards to get dinner and go to a movie which made for a wonderful night. I am so blessed that Zach is up for anything. :) Thursday was our good friend Alex's birthday party so we went to Sugarhouse Park, grilled out, played some volleyball and got to catch up with friends! Friday was another birthday celebration for Kassie, and BOY did we surprise her! We hosted the party at our house and as nervous as I was for all of that, it really turned out well! We started out hanging inside playing our fave game Catch Phrase, and then the party headed outdoor for some more volleyball. I love it! Then we played more catch phrase once it got dark before headed to Willie's bar for Karaoke!! My favorite part had to be watching my husband sing (almost perfectly!) White Wedding by Billy Idol...that's my man.
My cooking adventures have been fun. Not sure if I mentioned this in previous posts but I did cook a rotisserie chicken for my first time. It was so gross cleaning out the, for lack of better words, butt. I was seriously considering becoming a vegetarian as I was doing this, but I made it through and seasoned it and check out the end result! I still have a long way to go with my cooking skills, and I LOVE new recipes so please send them my way. :) Zach pretty much eats anything, but he really appreciates yummy meals. I really love cooking and my schedule at work has been nice because it allows me time to cook not in a rush, and have dinner ready by 5:30 or so. I'm trying to find some ways to cut carbs in dinner because I'm a carboholic and my hips don't love it :) so last night I made black bean soup and that was good! If you have low-carb recipes, please send them my way too. :)
Our budget is going pretty well, and we recently found out that Walmart does price matching (where have I been!?). We work on creating a grocery list once a week and going for all the dinners that one time. I've learned so much from being surrounded by such amazing women and families my whole life, so I've had lots of ideas of what I want to do. :) We started buying our groceries in cash with a 50 dollar limit a week. It's been a blessing so far and we've watched God make it happen even with random household items we need.
It's just funny to see how much of my mother really is in me now that I have my own home. I'm pretty anal about cleanliness, and we follow a chore chart so we don't spend all Saturday deep cleaning like the first couple weeks of marriage. Our house is slowly coming together, and every weekend we get a little bit more done. We're having the most trouble with our desk/office nook and it seems like every weekend we're getting a little organized there. We have a lot of important documents coming together so I want to keep them extremely organized.
Finances have been pretty nice for us! We have a 300 payment left to make on the first two months of Zach's tuition loan. And we have all of August to make that payment, so we are treading along! That is a huge relief and God and Zach are both showing me that we CAN, in fact, do this. We're joining our cell phones on the same plan this weekend, and this week I WILL get my Utah license with my Mrs. Name! :) We've discussed plans for things like saving up for a car, and a house someday and I like to hear what Zach has to say. :) He's so smart and I'm glad he's leading our family. And we're getting pretty hungry for a dog...however, our living situation doesn't allow for a puppy. Maybe Zach can talk our landlord into it.
There are other things in the works for us, but we're kind of waiting on God to make things clear...so stay tuned for that. :) You can always be praying that God's will be done in our marriage and lives together and that He continues to lead us and make his will clear so we never step in the wrong direction. We love you guys, and thanks for reading on our happy, struggling lives as newlyweds. :)
My cooking adventures have been fun. Not sure if I mentioned this in previous posts but I did cook a rotisserie chicken for my first time. It was so gross cleaning out the, for lack of better words, butt. I was seriously considering becoming a vegetarian as I was doing this, but I made it through and seasoned it and check out the end result! I still have a long way to go with my cooking skills, and I LOVE new recipes so please send them my way. :) Zach pretty much eats anything, but he really appreciates yummy meals. I really love cooking and my schedule at work has been nice because it allows me time to cook not in a rush, and have dinner ready by 5:30 or so. I'm trying to find some ways to cut carbs in dinner because I'm a carboholic and my hips don't love it :) so last night I made black bean soup and that was good! If you have low-carb recipes, please send them my way too. :)
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| dinner. |
Our budget is going pretty well, and we recently found out that Walmart does price matching (where have I been!?). We work on creating a grocery list once a week and going for all the dinners that one time. I've learned so much from being surrounded by such amazing women and families my whole life, so I've had lots of ideas of what I want to do. :) We started buying our groceries in cash with a 50 dollar limit a week. It's been a blessing so far and we've watched God make it happen even with random household items we need.
It's just funny to see how much of my mother really is in me now that I have my own home. I'm pretty anal about cleanliness, and we follow a chore chart so we don't spend all Saturday deep cleaning like the first couple weeks of marriage. Our house is slowly coming together, and every weekend we get a little bit more done. We're having the most trouble with our desk/office nook and it seems like every weekend we're getting a little organized there. We have a lot of important documents coming together so I want to keep them extremely organized.
Finances have been pretty nice for us! We have a 300 payment left to make on the first two months of Zach's tuition loan. And we have all of August to make that payment, so we are treading along! That is a huge relief and God and Zach are both showing me that we CAN, in fact, do this. We're joining our cell phones on the same plan this weekend, and this week I WILL get my Utah license with my Mrs. Name! :) We've discussed plans for things like saving up for a car, and a house someday and I like to hear what Zach has to say. :) He's so smart and I'm glad he's leading our family. And we're getting pretty hungry for a dog...however, our living situation doesn't allow for a puppy. Maybe Zach can talk our landlord into it.
There are other things in the works for us, but we're kind of waiting on God to make things clear...so stay tuned for that. :) You can always be praying that God's will be done in our marriage and lives together and that He continues to lead us and make his will clear so we never step in the wrong direction. We love you guys, and thanks for reading on our happy, struggling lives as newlyweds. :)
Friday, July 29, 2011
Psalm 91:2
I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." -Psalm 91:2
fortress: any place of exceptional security; stronghold. (dictionary.com)
refuge:shelter or protection, as from the weather or danger. (dictionary.com)
exceptional security? i'll take it. i'll have to say, despite my almost daily worries and having to literally re-give it to God every morning...God is at work and it shows! if you read our last post, you will know that zach and i are attempting to pay for his school monthly so we don't have a big sum of debt at the end of it (700/month on top of all our other financial responsibilities!). i just want God to get glory in it all and we did experience a few God moments throughout our desperation in praying through all of this.
well, earlier this week zach's boss approached him as he was leaving and asked him to come into his office. zach went in, not sure what to expect. his boss asked him if his bonus seemed small this last paycheck, zach said yes and his boss handed him a check for $500.00. this was good. :) God has our backs.
i went to the dentist last week and found out i had a lot a lot of cavities :) the receptionist told me to estimate paying for the first set of fillings to be around 90.00 as my copay. feeling a little nervous about this, i said okay and she said this was a higher estimate but to expect that and she'll let me know later in the week what the cost will be. she recently just called to remind me of my appointment next week and i found out that it is actually only going to be fifty...God has our backs again. :)
and lastly, zach estimated that each semester of school was going to be 3500, and so that is what we took the loan out for but turns out that his tuition this semester is actually only 2350, so once again that is much more manageable. it's been cool to see the fingerprints of God taking care of us.
although it's still difficult and we're being very frugal, i think we'll be able to get through these next couple years alright. i know God is our fortress and our refuge and He will not let us be put to shame. Jesus is good and He knows what we NEED. i just want God to always get the Glory through this all and i will always open my mouth to tell of His wonderful deeds.
things are going well for us, we're just learning more and more how to be adults and manage a home and get by. :) i wouldn't want to do it with anybody else, and Zach has been such a rock for me through all of this. that's what's going on with the Soper's recently and we'll be updating you all again soon!
fortress: any place of exceptional security; stronghold. (dictionary.com)
refuge:shelter or protection, as from the weather or danger. (dictionary.com)
exceptional security? i'll take it. i'll have to say, despite my almost daily worries and having to literally re-give it to God every morning...God is at work and it shows! if you read our last post, you will know that zach and i are attempting to pay for his school monthly so we don't have a big sum of debt at the end of it (700/month on top of all our other financial responsibilities!). i just want God to get glory in it all and we did experience a few God moments throughout our desperation in praying through all of this.
well, earlier this week zach's boss approached him as he was leaving and asked him to come into his office. zach went in, not sure what to expect. his boss asked him if his bonus seemed small this last paycheck, zach said yes and his boss handed him a check for $500.00. this was good. :) God has our backs.
i went to the dentist last week and found out i had a lot a lot of cavities :) the receptionist told me to estimate paying for the first set of fillings to be around 90.00 as my copay. feeling a little nervous about this, i said okay and she said this was a higher estimate but to expect that and she'll let me know later in the week what the cost will be. she recently just called to remind me of my appointment next week and i found out that it is actually only going to be fifty...God has our backs again. :)
and lastly, zach estimated that each semester of school was going to be 3500, and so that is what we took the loan out for but turns out that his tuition this semester is actually only 2350, so once again that is much more manageable. it's been cool to see the fingerprints of God taking care of us.
although it's still difficult and we're being very frugal, i think we'll be able to get through these next couple years alright. i know God is our fortress and our refuge and He will not let us be put to shame. Jesus is good and He knows what we NEED. i just want God to always get the Glory through this all and i will always open my mouth to tell of His wonderful deeds.
things are going well for us, we're just learning more and more how to be adults and manage a home and get by. :) i wouldn't want to do it with anybody else, and Zach has been such a rock for me through all of this. that's what's going on with the Soper's recently and we'll be updating you all again soon!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Proverbs 16:3
"Commit your actions to the LORD and your plans will succeed."
We have this hanging in our kitchen and boy do I need it today. I think the reality that life never does slow down, and the responsibilities only begin to pile on are really hitting me today. Sometimes, I just long for Heaven and this is one of those times.
For starters, I am extremely dramatic, and I've always been taken care of. Zach has a good head on his shoulders, and really keeps us grounded. :) However, I thought I'd share some things going on in the Soper household.
We began a "payment plan" to pay Zach's schooling while he's still in it, this way we have an interest free loan and we'll be out of debt when he graduates. However, this means we have to pay $700.00 a month for the next ten months, on top of rent and all our other monthly bills. We are going to officially start a cash only budget starting tomorrow when he pulls out the cash. We will be living very frugally, but this verse about gives me peace that our plans will succeed as we commit this all to the LORD. I think He's proud of us for being proactive about it. I pray He blesses us financially, and always allows us to be able to make these payments as Zach and I both HATE debt. I'm glad for Zach to get his education and I am already praying for God to provide a good job for him once he's done. I know that this is life, and it's real and it's hard and it doesn't slow down...but I don't want to waste it worrying. I'm learning to give it all to God and to breathe deep and enjoy what we have, which is so much. I appreciate this time in our lives when we're poor and preparing for our future because it will bless us later when we have kids and what-not. This is such a short period in our lives and I know it'll be over before we know it.
I love being married and there's no place in my life I'd rather be than right here, living a newly wed life with my amazing husband. It's fun to learn, to grow, to be challenged together. Zach is such a hard worker and I know he's determined to prepare for a family someday and I am so grateful for that. Just pray for grace as we are learning all our responsibilities as well as learning more about each other and what's important. God is good and He's with us every step of the way. We feel so fortunate. :)
Hope you all are doing wonderfully!
We have this hanging in our kitchen and boy do I need it today. I think the reality that life never does slow down, and the responsibilities only begin to pile on are really hitting me today. Sometimes, I just long for Heaven and this is one of those times.
For starters, I am extremely dramatic, and I've always been taken care of. Zach has a good head on his shoulders, and really keeps us grounded. :) However, I thought I'd share some things going on in the Soper household.
We began a "payment plan" to pay Zach's schooling while he's still in it, this way we have an interest free loan and we'll be out of debt when he graduates. However, this means we have to pay $700.00 a month for the next ten months, on top of rent and all our other monthly bills. We are going to officially start a cash only budget starting tomorrow when he pulls out the cash. We will be living very frugally, but this verse about gives me peace that our plans will succeed as we commit this all to the LORD. I think He's proud of us for being proactive about it. I pray He blesses us financially, and always allows us to be able to make these payments as Zach and I both HATE debt. I'm glad for Zach to get his education and I am already praying for God to provide a good job for him once he's done. I know that this is life, and it's real and it's hard and it doesn't slow down...but I don't want to waste it worrying. I'm learning to give it all to God and to breathe deep and enjoy what we have, which is so much. I appreciate this time in our lives when we're poor and preparing for our future because it will bless us later when we have kids and what-not. This is such a short period in our lives and I know it'll be over before we know it.
I love being married and there's no place in my life I'd rather be than right here, living a newly wed life with my amazing husband. It's fun to learn, to grow, to be challenged together. Zach is such a hard worker and I know he's determined to prepare for a family someday and I am so grateful for that. Just pray for grace as we are learning all our responsibilities as well as learning more about each other and what's important. God is good and He's with us every step of the way. We feel so fortunate. :)
Hope you all are doing wonderfully!
Friday, July 15, 2011
living the dream.
It's been a while, and boy have we been busy! The one thing we've really noticed since being married is that life is NOT slowing down. We feel kind of behind on things we need to do, but at the same time we're amazed at the progress we've made! Our house is almost all set up, we just want to make it a little more homey by hanging up pictures. I've worked out a weekly chores list which is humorous and helpful both at the same time! I've gotten into the habit of planning meals for a week and grocery shopping all at once! I absolutely LOVE cooking. It's been super fun to take care of Zach in that sense. We've also started collecting and sorting out coupons into different categories whether it be date night, car stuff, fast food, groceries, etc. I hope that will come in handy and we just keep learning and learning!
If you know me well, you know I LOVE a clean house so it's almost like every Saturday is a deep cleaning kind of day. Hopefully our chore chart will keep that from being so much work on Saturdays when we should be out enjoying the beautiful summer weather while it's still here! We do really work well as a team though, and I'm amazed at how willing Zach is to help in that area. What a wonderful hubby I have!
Last weekend was an awful adventure of traveling, and I thought maybe we can humor you with that one! My cousin got married in Missouri last weekend (congrats Tony and Claire!!) and we really wanted to be with the family to celebrate. Our great friend Alex Krelo got us buddy passes and we were gonna fly standby. First problem: there are no direct flights from SLC to St Louis OR Kansas City. Second problem: Even after we reach the airport, our destination is still 2 hours away so we had to rent a car. Okay, so we get to the airport around 3 o'clock Friday to try and catch a 4 o'clock flight which was supposed to be open! We get there and the flight was booked. We wait to see if we make it and at the last minute she calls our names! Two people didn't show up. It seemed perfect. So there we are flying to Chicago, Midway airport and were hoping to catch a 9 o'clock flight to St Louis. We get to the Customer Service desk and ask them to be put on the list only to find out that the flight has been delayed 4 hours! She says we'll definitely get on because people won't be willing to wait. Well, the flight didn't take off until 1am. But we had no choice but to wait! We made some friends at the bar and talked about all kinds of interesting things but once 11:00 hit we were exhausted (but too cold to sleep!). Finally we reach St Louis at 2am, and have to rent our car and still make the 2 hour drive. Poor Zach, I slept a little in the car but then forced myself to stay up when I heard him talking to himself to stay awake! haha. We reached Moberly, Missouri (small small town) at 4:15am. That was the roughest thing ever! We went to sleep and wake up to texts from the family telling us to come join them for breakfast at nine. Well, we came here to be with family so of course we do. :) The wedding was nice, a Catholic ceremony at 1:00, and then the reception at 5:00, with drinks and appetizers in between. We get to bed by midnight on Saturday night only to wake up at 4am to make the 2 hour drive back to the airport. We return our car and are at the airport plenty before the first flight goes out. I will spare you the details but lets just say after the 5th time we didn't get on an airplane I just lost it. Poor Zach had to deal with his crying wife who was running off 4 hours of sleep two nights in a row. I sent out a text to friends asking them to pray for us, and Heather Wright let us know that her parents live super close to the airport if we need somewhere to stay. Well we kept trying to make some flights, got on two but then got pulled from them at the last minute (heartbreaker). Eventually we did give up because every flight going out was booked. At about 5pm we got to Heather's parents house and I showered, got on my pajamas and watched a movie with Zach. We were so tired, sad, and drained from the day that we were sleeping by 8:30. The next morning we were up and ready to go by 5, and praise God we caught BOTH the first flight to Denver, and then the next flight out to Salt Lake like it was nothing. Both flights were overbooked but we still got on somehow! So I did end up working on Monday which I was really nervous about. :) That was our horrible travel story. Don't fly standby when you can't afford to wait around. haha.
Last night was quite the opposite of that story. Zach and I had an amazing date night starting at dinner at Biaggi's (SO GOOD, go there if you haven't and order the bruschetta for an appy...delicious!) and then walked over to Pioneer Park to help pass out flyers for our amazing church. There was a lot of foot traffic there, so the Rock Church is definitely more known because of it. I pray God brings people on Saturday night because of it. Then Zach and I headed home to get our bikes and go for a nice ride at dusk. :) We rode to a park around our house, layed on the grass and talked about our goals and dreams. I love him, and I'm so excited for us to accomplish things for God together. Once it hit about 8:45 we made the ride back home. I've loved riding bikes this summer, and I'm happy it's such beautiful weather!
Well, that's a good glimpse in our lives. Tonight is the Open House which we're excited for! We love being with friends and family, and we also love celebrating marriage, so it's truly a win/win! Hope you all find yourselves well and happy. Until next time... :)
If you know me well, you know I LOVE a clean house so it's almost like every Saturday is a deep cleaning kind of day. Hopefully our chore chart will keep that from being so much work on Saturdays when we should be out enjoying the beautiful summer weather while it's still here! We do really work well as a team though, and I'm amazed at how willing Zach is to help in that area. What a wonderful hubby I have!
Last weekend was an awful adventure of traveling, and I thought maybe we can humor you with that one! My cousin got married in Missouri last weekend (congrats Tony and Claire!!) and we really wanted to be with the family to celebrate. Our great friend Alex Krelo got us buddy passes and we were gonna fly standby. First problem: there are no direct flights from SLC to St Louis OR Kansas City. Second problem: Even after we reach the airport, our destination is still 2 hours away so we had to rent a car. Okay, so we get to the airport around 3 o'clock Friday to try and catch a 4 o'clock flight which was supposed to be open! We get there and the flight was booked. We wait to see if we make it and at the last minute she calls our names! Two people didn't show up. It seemed perfect. So there we are flying to Chicago, Midway airport and were hoping to catch a 9 o'clock flight to St Louis. We get to the Customer Service desk and ask them to be put on the list only to find out that the flight has been delayed 4 hours! She says we'll definitely get on because people won't be willing to wait. Well, the flight didn't take off until 1am. But we had no choice but to wait! We made some friends at the bar and talked about all kinds of interesting things but once 11:00 hit we were exhausted (but too cold to sleep!). Finally we reach St Louis at 2am, and have to rent our car and still make the 2 hour drive. Poor Zach, I slept a little in the car but then forced myself to stay up when I heard him talking to himself to stay awake! haha. We reached Moberly, Missouri (small small town) at 4:15am. That was the roughest thing ever! We went to sleep and wake up to texts from the family telling us to come join them for breakfast at nine. Well, we came here to be with family so of course we do. :) The wedding was nice, a Catholic ceremony at 1:00, and then the reception at 5:00, with drinks and appetizers in between. We get to bed by midnight on Saturday night only to wake up at 4am to make the 2 hour drive back to the airport. We return our car and are at the airport plenty before the first flight goes out. I will spare you the details but lets just say after the 5th time we didn't get on an airplane I just lost it. Poor Zach had to deal with his crying wife who was running off 4 hours of sleep two nights in a row. I sent out a text to friends asking them to pray for us, and Heather Wright let us know that her parents live super close to the airport if we need somewhere to stay. Well we kept trying to make some flights, got on two but then got pulled from them at the last minute (heartbreaker). Eventually we did give up because every flight going out was booked. At about 5pm we got to Heather's parents house and I showered, got on my pajamas and watched a movie with Zach. We were so tired, sad, and drained from the day that we were sleeping by 8:30. The next morning we were up and ready to go by 5, and praise God we caught BOTH the first flight to Denver, and then the next flight out to Salt Lake like it was nothing. Both flights were overbooked but we still got on somehow! So I did end up working on Monday which I was really nervous about. :) That was our horrible travel story. Don't fly standby when you can't afford to wait around. haha.
Last night was quite the opposite of that story. Zach and I had an amazing date night starting at dinner at Biaggi's (SO GOOD, go there if you haven't and order the bruschetta for an appy...delicious!) and then walked over to Pioneer Park to help pass out flyers for our amazing church. There was a lot of foot traffic there, so the Rock Church is definitely more known because of it. I pray God brings people on Saturday night because of it. Then Zach and I headed home to get our bikes and go for a nice ride at dusk. :) We rode to a park around our house, layed on the grass and talked about our goals and dreams. I love him, and I'm so excited for us to accomplish things for God together. Once it hit about 8:45 we made the ride back home. I've loved riding bikes this summer, and I'm happy it's such beautiful weather!
Well, that's a good glimpse in our lives. Tonight is the Open House which we're excited for! We love being with friends and family, and we also love celebrating marriage, so it's truly a win/win! Hope you all find yourselves well and happy. Until next time... :)
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
mr. & mrs.
we finally made it! i'm a SOPER, and i couldn't be happier!!!! we've only been married one 1/2 weeks, and i am so in love with my husband as he continues to amaze me everyday.
the wedding was absolutely perfect. it is a day i will cherish forever, and will hold on to the memories forever. i kept thinking how amazing it was to be surrounded by so many different people that i LOVE who are all from different stages of my life. it reminded me of Heaven, and how i think Heaven will be something close to that feeling, only a LOT LOT LOT LOOOOT more. so, it was perfect. God has been so precious to zach and i, and He's showered His blessings on us. it was raining and grey on and off all day on friday, june 17th and i was feeling so nervous. right when we were about to hold a cocktail hour to see if the rain would let up, we see a patch of blue skies coming our way. well, we decided to go for it and if it was sprinkling on us that'd be fine. turns out, when i was walking down the aisle, God gave me sunshine. it's something that is so amazing and such a testimony of how REAL and KIND He is. june 17th will always be my favorite day, because i made a commitment to the man i love, and we will live as one together, glorifying God through our marriage and (someday) family. :)
the honeymoon was amazing. i will dedicate a blog post to that, with pictures. stay tuned for more on that one!
life at home has been my favorite, though. it's so nice to have a home with zach and to finally get to STAY there at nights. we got our insurance together, and sent in the marriage license. once that comes back, i'll officially change my name, get a new passport, ID, and social security card. things we have been able to do is open our gifts (of course!) and cards, start thank-you cards, continue decorating the house, set up a weekly meal plan and grocery shopped for the week. i successfully attempted my mom's homemade spaghetti sauce and delicious meatballs. so we did enjoy that sunday, as well as meatball subs last night. today i'm hoping my pot roast turns out while i'm at work and doesn't burn down the house. :) zach and i will use this weekend to make returns and use our gift cards, which will be fun for us! i've really LOVED managing a home: doing laundry, cleaning, cooking.
it's nice because zach and i's schedules both allow us the late afternoons off, so we went on a prayer walk yesterday and i can't wait for all of these amazing habits to continue to shape our lives.
let's just say we're really happy. being married has left me feeling so humbled that a man is saying he will love and serve me the rest of my life. i'll say its a lot easier than being engaged so for all you engaged folk--hang in there, it gets SO much better. my heart's desire is to serve my husband through the love of Christ and i'm sure this blog will in the future share of the struggles that come with that, but for now i think we're just living in bliss.
God is good and He deserves every ounce of PRAISE.
the wedding was absolutely perfect. it is a day i will cherish forever, and will hold on to the memories forever. i kept thinking how amazing it was to be surrounded by so many different people that i LOVE who are all from different stages of my life. it reminded me of Heaven, and how i think Heaven will be something close to that feeling, only a LOT LOT LOT LOOOOT more. so, it was perfect. God has been so precious to zach and i, and He's showered His blessings on us. it was raining and grey on and off all day on friday, june 17th and i was feeling so nervous. right when we were about to hold a cocktail hour to see if the rain would let up, we see a patch of blue skies coming our way. well, we decided to go for it and if it was sprinkling on us that'd be fine. turns out, when i was walking down the aisle, God gave me sunshine. it's something that is so amazing and such a testimony of how REAL and KIND He is. june 17th will always be my favorite day, because i made a commitment to the man i love, and we will live as one together, glorifying God through our marriage and (someday) family. :)
the honeymoon was amazing. i will dedicate a blog post to that, with pictures. stay tuned for more on that one!
life at home has been my favorite, though. it's so nice to have a home with zach and to finally get to STAY there at nights. we got our insurance together, and sent in the marriage license. once that comes back, i'll officially change my name, get a new passport, ID, and social security card. things we have been able to do is open our gifts (of course!) and cards, start thank-you cards, continue decorating the house, set up a weekly meal plan and grocery shopped for the week. i successfully attempted my mom's homemade spaghetti sauce and delicious meatballs. so we did enjoy that sunday, as well as meatball subs last night. today i'm hoping my pot roast turns out while i'm at work and doesn't burn down the house. :) zach and i will use this weekend to make returns and use our gift cards, which will be fun for us! i've really LOVED managing a home: doing laundry, cleaning, cooking.
it's nice because zach and i's schedules both allow us the late afternoons off, so we went on a prayer walk yesterday and i can't wait for all of these amazing habits to continue to shape our lives.
let's just say we're really happy. being married has left me feeling so humbled that a man is saying he will love and serve me the rest of my life. i'll say its a lot easier than being engaged so for all you engaged folk--hang in there, it gets SO much better. my heart's desire is to serve my husband through the love of Christ and i'm sure this blog will in the future share of the struggles that come with that, but for now i think we're just living in bliss.
God is good and He deserves every ounce of PRAISE.
Monday, June 6, 2011
11.
11 days. the weirdest thing about that truth is, i don't even realize how SOON that is. i'm leaving for colorado on saturday morning to prepare for the last minute details of this wedding that we had to plan a state away. i have been so wrapped up in decorating a house, and planning a wedding that i still don't know if it has HIT me yet...that i will be married to the love of my life in eleven days. that all of these details of who is going to sit where, and what flowers i will hold in my hand, and how my hair will look, and what song i'll walk down the aisle to...they will be over with. they won't last, but one thing will. our commitment that we will be making to each other in eleven days. the beginning of a family, the beginning of our lives together as one. and my oh my, i sure see a lot of exciting things ahead of us.
one new little (hopeful!) adventure we are asking the Lord for is a trip to Israel in 2012. our church is going there and need to find 30 people to go with. zach and i both have a very strong desire to go, because how AMAZING it would be to walk where Jesus did, and see His land and watch stories of the Bible come to life. it's real and i know that being in the Holy Land will just make it come to life for me. so, we're waiting and asking God if we can even do this, because by August 1st we'll have to put down a thousand dollars that we won't get back if we decide not to go. i have so much peace this morning though, because as i was praying about it i just know that whether God tells us yes or tells us no, that will be the RIGHT answer. God knows if we can afford it or not, take time off of work/school for it or not, and whatever He says goes. i'm excited to see what He does with it, and i really do trust Him. i just want to hear Him answer us.
what else? things have been good. i'm still in shock that this is my last week here before we're married. i had awesome roommates and i will miss living with them lots, and i'm still kind of confused as to how i'm going to get everything out but still pack for honeymoon AND the additional week in colorado. things are pretty chaotic as the big day approaches, but i know it's good. tonight is our last night of premarital counseling. we've learned a lot and it's been fun getting to know michael who will be marrying us soon as well. i am just in shock with how quickly (but oh so slowly!) the engagement process has gone, and i am so excited to be a wife to zach and to learn what that means. i know it's a gift from God and i know that He will use it to grow me. anyways, these are the things on my heart lately and i just can't wait to be able to write all about our married adventures so soon. God is the maker and giver of all things, and i feel so fortunate that He guides my life and that that truth really is my peace. i love the Lord and i know that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. Praise Him!
one new little (hopeful!) adventure we are asking the Lord for is a trip to Israel in 2012. our church is going there and need to find 30 people to go with. zach and i both have a very strong desire to go, because how AMAZING it would be to walk where Jesus did, and see His land and watch stories of the Bible come to life. it's real and i know that being in the Holy Land will just make it come to life for me. so, we're waiting and asking God if we can even do this, because by August 1st we'll have to put down a thousand dollars that we won't get back if we decide not to go. i have so much peace this morning though, because as i was praying about it i just know that whether God tells us yes or tells us no, that will be the RIGHT answer. God knows if we can afford it or not, take time off of work/school for it or not, and whatever He says goes. i'm excited to see what He does with it, and i really do trust Him. i just want to hear Him answer us.
what else? things have been good. i'm still in shock that this is my last week here before we're married. i had awesome roommates and i will miss living with them lots, and i'm still kind of confused as to how i'm going to get everything out but still pack for honeymoon AND the additional week in colorado. things are pretty chaotic as the big day approaches, but i know it's good. tonight is our last night of premarital counseling. we've learned a lot and it's been fun getting to know michael who will be marrying us soon as well. i am just in shock with how quickly (but oh so slowly!) the engagement process has gone, and i am so excited to be a wife to zach and to learn what that means. i know it's a gift from God and i know that He will use it to grow me. anyways, these are the things on my heart lately and i just can't wait to be able to write all about our married adventures so soon. God is the maker and giver of all things, and i feel so fortunate that He guides my life and that that truth really is my peace. i love the Lord and i know that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. Praise Him!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
sixteen days.
oh my! we're reached june! that means i am sixteen days away from becoming mrs. soper. :) i am SO excited! i know i say that a lot, but it's finally becoming more real to me. the idea of family keeps sticking in my head. zach and i are embarking on a lifetime journey, and we're beginning a family. our very own family! so amazing. i feel so fortunate to get zach as a husband, because he's such a kind, gentle, considerate man who has a desire to please me. i've been thinking about what it means to be a good wife, and i really want God to mold me into the perfect wife for zach. i want to be there to build him up and encourage him, to seek God with him, to go on adventures, and to someday grow a family with him. we have so much that we are looking forward to and it all truly starts in sixteen days!
our house is coming along quite nicely. we finally spraypainted that book shelf (candy apple red, so adorable) and now that it's dry i can't wait to bring it into the living room and put books on it. i also am going to wait on doing the wall in our living room because i need to get more picture frames, wall shelves, and a pretty "S" that i still need to purchase from hobby lobby. :) other than that, things are almost all put together. the only room we really haven't touched will be the guest room. i'm moving my furniture into there once i don't need it anymore, and we'll keep zach's bed cause mine is notorious for breaking. :) i even started bringing winter clothes and putting them in the closet in our bedroom! so we have a really good start.
on monday zach and i both had the day off. that was fun! i was really in the mood to bake cupcakes from this cupcake cookbook i got at a bridal shower, so we made chocolate hazelnut cupcakes. with NUTELLA frosting! talk about delicious! oh myyy, that was my first successful baking experience ever. i can't wait to keep trying at it and get better and better. :) and then i made honey chipotle chicken, which wasn't too bad, and twice baked potatoes and grilled asparagus. i was very pleased! i love to cook and i can't wait for my work schedule to change frmo 7-3 (on monday!!!) so i can cook more often. :)
well that is all i have for you today! come again soon :)
our house is coming along quite nicely. we finally spraypainted that book shelf (candy apple red, so adorable) and now that it's dry i can't wait to bring it into the living room and put books on it. i also am going to wait on doing the wall in our living room because i need to get more picture frames, wall shelves, and a pretty "S" that i still need to purchase from hobby lobby. :) other than that, things are almost all put together. the only room we really haven't touched will be the guest room. i'm moving my furniture into there once i don't need it anymore, and we'll keep zach's bed cause mine is notorious for breaking. :) i even started bringing winter clothes and putting them in the closet in our bedroom! so we have a really good start.
on monday zach and i both had the day off. that was fun! i was really in the mood to bake cupcakes from this cupcake cookbook i got at a bridal shower, so we made chocolate hazelnut cupcakes. with NUTELLA frosting! talk about delicious! oh myyy, that was my first successful baking experience ever. i can't wait to keep trying at it and get better and better. :) and then i made honey chipotle chicken, which wasn't too bad, and twice baked potatoes and grilled asparagus. i was very pleased! i love to cook and i can't wait for my work schedule to change frmo 7-3 (on monday!!!) so i can cook more often. :)
well that is all i have for you today! come again soon :)
Monday, May 23, 2011
colorado weekend
oh my! we haven't updated you all in a while about the latest happenings in our lives. i'm sorry to say, but i have no pictures to post in this entry!
what is new though...well, we went to colorado this weekend for our last bridal shower. what an incredible blessing that was! thank you to my aunts sherri, kristy, julie, cathy, carrie, denise and michelle for helping throw this together! it was beautiful and so much fun! we really are blessed at all the wonderful gifts we received! zach and i got home last night and it took us over an hour to get everything out and put it away! it was fun to go through everything we got, and show zach. we also had SUCH a good time hanging out with my family. it's always so wonderful to hang out with them. we went and got drinks at the clubhouse my parents are members of, and then headed to mt fuji for dinner! it was fun to be around them, and laugh with them. i have an amazing family and i miss them all the time, so it's always so good to get out there and spend time with them!
the drive home was a little crazy, though. we saw some friends driving on 1-8- next to us from salt lake city which was pretty ironic. then, a bird nearly hit the side of our car which was a little scare for me, and to finish it off....a semi's tire popped right as we were next to it. it was so loud i thought it was ours! luckily we were safe, and nobody got hurt. :)
it feels good to be back in salt lake, and see our place become a home. on thursday night last week, i helped my friend tyffani decorate a wall at her place, and now we're official decorating buddies, so i'm excited to have her come help me with a wall in our living room! it's so fun getting stuff that we can decorate it with. its so hard to leave that place at night because i want it to be my home so bad! :) but only 2 more weeks here in utah, then i'm in colorado a week before the wedding! so it will fly by, i'm sure of it.
i've decided that it's time for me to work on my tan as much as i can before the big day! where did the time go, and where is the SUN? hopefully it will be more common to see in the next couple weeks, because i could use a little sun before wearing that white dress! we also need to go shopping for jamaica, which is ALWAYS fun. i'm excited to get zach a couple pairs of shorts and shirts, because he never buys anything for himself.
one thing that excites me about being a wife is the cooking i will be experimenting with. i got so many cookbooks from the bridal shower, and i can't wait to test our new recipes! my grandma also wrote down her recipes for me, and i caaaan't wait to go ahead and cook those. she is an AMAZING cook, fyi. so i'm looking for some cooking buddies here in salt lake, so let me know if you wanna have some cooking parties! :)
i'm really realizing that zach and i will be established here for a while. this is where God has us...in salt lake. it's feeling more and more like home, and i'm making more friends which is such a blessing because people really are essential in our lives. :) i always miss my family, of course...but i know that we're just a long drive away from each other (or even better--a short flight!) and i will always have them. so life is good, and i feel blessed to be a part of all God is doing here. i just want Him to be glorified in zach and i's marriage...and i am excited to see where He'll take us! all glory to God.
what is new though...well, we went to colorado this weekend for our last bridal shower. what an incredible blessing that was! thank you to my aunts sherri, kristy, julie, cathy, carrie, denise and michelle for helping throw this together! it was beautiful and so much fun! we really are blessed at all the wonderful gifts we received! zach and i got home last night and it took us over an hour to get everything out and put it away! it was fun to go through everything we got, and show zach. we also had SUCH a good time hanging out with my family. it's always so wonderful to hang out with them. we went and got drinks at the clubhouse my parents are members of, and then headed to mt fuji for dinner! it was fun to be around them, and laugh with them. i have an amazing family and i miss them all the time, so it's always so good to get out there and spend time with them!
the drive home was a little crazy, though. we saw some friends driving on 1-8- next to us from salt lake city which was pretty ironic. then, a bird nearly hit the side of our car which was a little scare for me, and to finish it off....a semi's tire popped right as we were next to it. it was so loud i thought it was ours! luckily we were safe, and nobody got hurt. :)
it feels good to be back in salt lake, and see our place become a home. on thursday night last week, i helped my friend tyffani decorate a wall at her place, and now we're official decorating buddies, so i'm excited to have her come help me with a wall in our living room! it's so fun getting stuff that we can decorate it with. its so hard to leave that place at night because i want it to be my home so bad! :) but only 2 more weeks here in utah, then i'm in colorado a week before the wedding! so it will fly by, i'm sure of it.
i've decided that it's time for me to work on my tan as much as i can before the big day! where did the time go, and where is the SUN? hopefully it will be more common to see in the next couple weeks, because i could use a little sun before wearing that white dress! we also need to go shopping for jamaica, which is ALWAYS fun. i'm excited to get zach a couple pairs of shorts and shirts, because he never buys anything for himself.
one thing that excites me about being a wife is the cooking i will be experimenting with. i got so many cookbooks from the bridal shower, and i can't wait to test our new recipes! my grandma also wrote down her recipes for me, and i caaaan't wait to go ahead and cook those. she is an AMAZING cook, fyi. so i'm looking for some cooking buddies here in salt lake, so let me know if you wanna have some cooking parties! :)
i'm really realizing that zach and i will be established here for a while. this is where God has us...in salt lake. it's feeling more and more like home, and i'm making more friends which is such a blessing because people really are essential in our lives. :) i always miss my family, of course...but i know that we're just a long drive away from each other (or even better--a short flight!) and i will always have them. so life is good, and i feel blessed to be a part of all God is doing here. i just want Him to be glorified in zach and i's marriage...and i am excited to see where He'll take us! all glory to God.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
floods and other frenzy
Well folks, life has gone a bit haywire since I wrote last, but we're still chuggin' along. Let's see, where to even begin? Well I guess I should start with explaining the title, which is actually sort of self explanatory huh?
Okay so, yes...a flood. We did have a little mishap with the washer and dryer installation. :) I guess you live and learn, right? I wasn't present when this catastrophe set in, however I did get a pretty humorous (NOT at the time...) phone call from Zach.
"Hey Babe, sooo....there's a little bit of a mess over here..."
"What kind of mess, Zach?"
"Our washing machine hose got disconnected, so...yeah..."
"Is there a flood?"
"Yep."
Lovely, huh? Anyway, he was good at taking care of all that, he went straight to his Dad's to get a shop vac, and he lifted the carpets and I would be happy to announce that today is probably our last day of blowing a fan on it! :) We are going to Home Depot tonight to get something that removes mildewy smells or something like that. Gross, right? Not to mention, candles have been our friend today.
Speaking of wet things, we got our couches yesterday! My darling mother and aunt drove all the way to Utah JUST to deliver these couches. It's great but rain seeped through the tarp because those Wyoming winds are just so strong, and they got rained on pretty much the whole way here! Good thing they're leather! So we got them in the house and dried them like crazy and it's not so bad!! Our living room finally is starting to look like a living room! We have a cute rug, and these brown leather couches...now we get to add the pretty things like coffee table decor, lamp shades, and pretty drapes to match the rug! EXCITING!
I also am adding a picture of our little fire place mantle decoration which is fun, but we're not done. I will probably change this a million times, so if you have ideas, share them please! I'm excited to see what little things I can put on the mantle to make it look great. The happy sign is perfect though, so thank you Maddie!!!
AND since I've written last, Zach has built us a lovely desk to begin our little "Office" section of the house. We decided last night to buy some shelves to organize things like bills, mail, financial papers, receipts, manuals. Things we need! I'm so excited, I think this managing a home thing is riiiight up my alley.
At this moment, my fiance is making a delicious dinner for us and I am drinking a nice glass of nothing but the best...Franzia wine. :) We are going to shop for bedroom furniture after this, and I think after that there will be a little bit of relaxation! I have a bridal shower in Utah this weekend which I am excited for, and a Bridal shower in Colorado the NEXT weekend. Busy busy, but we sure are blessed! Well, dinner is ready so I better say bye! Thanks for reading. :)
Okay so, yes...a flood. We did have a little mishap with the washer and dryer installation. :) I guess you live and learn, right? I wasn't present when this catastrophe set in, however I did get a pretty humorous (NOT at the time...) phone call from Zach.
"Hey Babe, sooo....there's a little bit of a mess over here..."
"What kind of mess, Zach?"
"Our washing machine hose got disconnected, so...yeah..."
"Is there a flood?"
"Yep."
 |
| the crime scene. |
Speaking of wet things, we got our couches yesterday! My darling mother and aunt drove all the way to Utah JUST to deliver these couches. It's great but rain seeped through the tarp because those Wyoming winds are just so strong, and they got rained on pretty much the whole way here! Good thing they're leather! So we got them in the house and dried them like crazy and it's not so bad!! Our living room finally is starting to look like a living room! We have a cute rug, and these brown leather couches...now we get to add the pretty things like coffee table decor, lamp shades, and pretty drapes to match the rug! EXCITING! |
| the start of our living room! still need lamp shades :) |
I also am adding a picture of our little fire place mantle decoration which is fun, but we're not done. I will probably change this a million times, so if you have ideas, share them please! I'm excited to see what little things I can put on the mantle to make it look great. The happy sign is perfect though, so thank you Maddie!!!
 |
| our desk...with a paint can as our chair. its on our list! |
AND since I've written last, Zach has built us a lovely desk to begin our little "Office" section of the house. We decided last night to buy some shelves to organize things like bills, mail, financial papers, receipts, manuals. Things we need! I'm so excited, I think this managing a home thing is riiiight up my alley.
At this moment, my fiance is making a delicious dinner for us and I am drinking a nice glass of nothing but the best...Franzia wine. :) We are going to shop for bedroom furniture after this, and I think after that there will be a little bit of relaxation! I have a bridal shower in Utah this weekend which I am excited for, and a Bridal shower in Colorado the NEXT weekend. Busy busy, but we sure are blessed! Well, dinner is ready so I better say bye! Thanks for reading. :)
Thursday, May 5, 2011
progress.
well my friends, i'm happy to tell you that we have officially assembled furniture. did it take us two days? yes. did we have to take it apart and restart more than a few times? yes. is there a little mess up on it? yes. but that's just life, and you know what? we like it like that. it was an accomplishment to say the least, and after a good night's sleep after night one...we were ready to conquer that furniture! i'm REALLY excited about it, and attached are the pictures so you can enjoy see our handy work! i wish i had thought to take a picture of all the pieces separately, but of course, i didn't think of that til more than halfway through.
 |
| i'm such a DUDE. |
 |
| hard at work or hardly workin? |
what else is new? we hung up a clock. i can't even TELL you how wall decor makes things so homey! we have a cute little fireplace and so we put the clock right above that. it's pretty much the only thing we can hang, and we're lucky it worked because we found out that underneath that wall is BRICK. so not very much luck putting wall decor up on that wall which is bothersome! i'm excited to decorate the mantle above my fireplace too. i will take pictures as i begin that little journey. maddie got me a cute "HAPPY" sign that is just perfect...so that will definitely be the center.
the most exciting thing about making our house a home is really the simple fact that i get to share it with zach. sometimes i sit and reflect at all God has done for me in bringing zach into my life, and i get overwhelmed. he is the most patient, kind, caring, gentle, fun, humble and perfect man for me. he loves Jesus and he loves me. i am so excited to begin a family with him in our first home, which is why i want to make our home so perfect. i know we are going to love it no matter what! :)
in more news, i have to share with you our newest purchase for the living room. a tv. :) now you know this tv is essential for zach and i's love of football and parenthood and biggest loser! i am mostly excited for fall to come, and to be able to have friends over for BRONCOS games, even though zach will want to see the cowboys games. lame! either way, i am SUPER excited!
my mom is coming on monday to bring our couches! i am so excited to see her, my aunt and grammy because they are coming with. it'll be a special day-late mother's day celebration as well. PLUS, we will officially have furniture in one room! hurray! life is getting so exciting.
this weekend allison is coming to visit! i am SO excited!!! she makes me happy. i also take bridal pictures this weekend, so hopefully i can get everything together by saturday. i am nervous, but excited. the next three weekends are all wedding festivities! i have a feeling things are going to be BUSY from now until the wedding. jamaica will be so nice afterwards! :)
 |
| the finished product! hurray! HAVE A GOOD DAY! |
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
and so it begins :)
ok so here it is. joint bank accounts, and now a joint blog. i know, you might be thinking, but you still have a month and a half to go before you're married...this is true. i want to do this because there is a process in getting married, a lot of stressful and exciting times. this is my outlet, so enjoy the journey.
zach and i are getting married in 45 days. that's not very much at all. :) i want to share with you all in the progress we're making towards the big day and beyond. starting with our home! zach moved into our place last week, and we've been slowly making dents in our to-do list from there. of course the guest room is a mess, as that is where zach lugged all his stuff to. so on saturday we went to walmart and got all the cleaning necessities (except an ironing board. whoops!) we bought a vacuum, a mop, a broom and dust pan, then all the cleaning products to go with...windex, comet, all purpose cleaners, a feather duster and more. it feels so exciting to have all those now! i was excited to officially make a "cleaning closet" where we put all that stuff. i know, it's totally dorky...but this stuff is right up my alley. ;)
sunday, we went to ikea. now this was fun, because i had never been there before and the only WONDERFUL impression i had of it was from my favorite movie, 500 days of summer. so we had fun walking through all the rooms and found a desk for our little hallway, as well as a tv stand which i adore. once we set it all up and put it in the living room, you WILL get pictures. just you wait. we started the process of setting up the entertainment center last night, and were almost finished until we saw that we put half of the shelves on backwards, and it wasn't flying (some are painted black and some are wood backs and we didn't bother seeing that). so we had to start taking things apart which was very hard to do...and we're going to do it more carefully tonight! it really gives us an attachment to our furniture. oh and we assembled our vacuum cleaner last night as well. isn't all of this so exciting?!
another thing we started was premarital counseling which is neat! we are learning a lot about what loving each other really should look like, and what communication looks like, and different ways we want to be loved. it's challenging and good! we have homework and everything. :)
well, i think this is enough information for you all to take in on the process of becoming mr. and mrs. we are so excited to continue in this journey!
zach and i are getting married in 45 days. that's not very much at all. :) i want to share with you all in the progress we're making towards the big day and beyond. starting with our home! zach moved into our place last week, and we've been slowly making dents in our to-do list from there. of course the guest room is a mess, as that is where zach lugged all his stuff to. so on saturday we went to walmart and got all the cleaning necessities (except an ironing board. whoops!) we bought a vacuum, a mop, a broom and dust pan, then all the cleaning products to go with...windex, comet, all purpose cleaners, a feather duster and more. it feels so exciting to have all those now! i was excited to officially make a "cleaning closet" where we put all that stuff. i know, it's totally dorky...but this stuff is right up my alley. ;)
sunday, we went to ikea. now this was fun, because i had never been there before and the only WONDERFUL impression i had of it was from my favorite movie, 500 days of summer. so we had fun walking through all the rooms and found a desk for our little hallway, as well as a tv stand which i adore. once we set it all up and put it in the living room, you WILL get pictures. just you wait. we started the process of setting up the entertainment center last night, and were almost finished until we saw that we put half of the shelves on backwards, and it wasn't flying (some are painted black and some are wood backs and we didn't bother seeing that). so we had to start taking things apart which was very hard to do...and we're going to do it more carefully tonight! it really gives us an attachment to our furniture. oh and we assembled our vacuum cleaner last night as well. isn't all of this so exciting?!
another thing we started was premarital counseling which is neat! we are learning a lot about what loving each other really should look like, and what communication looks like, and different ways we want to be loved. it's challenging and good! we have homework and everything. :)
well, i think this is enough information for you all to take in on the process of becoming mr. and mrs. we are so excited to continue in this journey!
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