Habits/2011 Resolution

So my wonderful friend, Stephanie, posted a FB status today that I found to be very encouraging. It was her proposed New Year's Resolution for 2011. Basically, she pointed out that it takes 21 days to establish a new habit. Her thought was to pick 1-2 habits a month, and devote that month to establishing that one habit. I think this sounds like a great idea and have decided to blog my desired habits:

1. LAUNDRY (Steph, you mentioned this one, and I need help with it!) Do a load of laundry a day, or do laundry as soon as it needs to be done instead of waiting until I "feel like it".

2. Gym/working out- Work out every other day, even if it means staying in doing a Jillian Michael's DVD, or going to the gym. At least 30 minutes every other day.

3. Planning dinners - just need to think of a better, more organized way to do this

4. Find more things to do in SA- some fun outing at least once a month with my babe?

5. Spend less time online (is this a habit?? maybe this is more the breaking of a bad habit)

6. Read more books for FUN (stop making excuses like "too much to do")

7. Pamper myself every now and then - pedicure, manicure, etc. Once a month? Maybe that's excessive.

This is all I can really think of for right now. I know there will be more once I get through these.

Two pugs, lazy day

Today we have done.... well, nothing! Ok, I take that back. I did get back into my gym routine and went to the gym this morning, shortly after being woken up by our fire alarm. Yep, our fire alarm went off this morning because Russell accidentally left the tea kettle on to boil water for coffee. He blames this on me, accusing me of being too cute to not come back to bed and snuggle with. I'll take that :-)

Now I am on the couch with my two pugs. This vacation has taught me that the pugs do nothing but sleep. All. day. They are ridiculous. It's really hard not to just chillax when you have two pugs encouraging it all day! Needless to say, I have a lot of laundry to do.

Not much else going on. I started reading A Voice in the Wind, by Francine Rivers. It is really good so far. Francine has a great way of bringing some very overlooked biblical stories to life for me. If you are itching to read some good fiction, there's one for you!!

I think we are about to make fondue. That word is so funny to me. Fonduuuuuuuuuue!

Christmas 2010

Today has been a wonderful day of cooking and spending time with my wonderful husband! We are preparing dinner for my parents to come over this evening for Christmas Eve. So exciting! I can't beleive it is already our first Christmas together as husband and wife. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas!

p.s. Happy Birthday, Lauren!

Anticipation for what's next...

So these past 7 months or so, I've been studying my little heart out because I'm hoping to get in a graduate program for Speech Pathology. This past Fall semester, I took 9 hours while teaching full-time. Surprisingly, I made it through!! I made 2 A's and a B. I needed a B to move on to next semester, and thought I definitely had a C.

Without rambling too much, I'm moving on and I may very well be a speech assistant next May!!!

Dotsons = Doolittles

So lately we have felt like the Doolittle family. Actually, it's just been a weird week of animals. We've been visted almost every night be two adorable kittens, and even let them in one night. I quickly learned that I am not one for having cats indoors, because of the shelf climbing and rug scratching behavior they seem to have, but I do know I like watching and petting them outside.

My fish, Stella, recently disappeared. We are almost 100% sure she was eaten by a lizard. Long story. We went to buy another fish that very night.

Today, a parakeet was hanging out on our back porch. Because of the cold.... (or our very soft hearts) we got some birdseed and a bird cage just in case it wants to crawl in tonight.

Crazy, right?? Don't forget our two crazy pugs. They are currently snuggling in their bed. My goodness :-)

Honeymoon

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A Season of Revelations

I'm sitting in mine and Russell's office and we are both writing. Such English majors, right?? :-) The only difference is, my husband is working on his novel, while I work on the blog. We're both cool in our own way ;-) I've got him listening to Imogen Heap and Regina Spektor, which makes for a lovely night. Oh, and two pugs are currently lying down on my back.

Since my last post, things have calmed down a little bit. I finally tackled the big pile of laundry/constant growing garden in our laundry room. Our closet looks more like a place to get clothes than to leave them. It's nice. I'm working on this whole wife thing :-)

I know that if I post what I want to say it will seem like I'm going through a roller coaster of emotions right now. Maybe I am. Since writing everything out in my last post, I've stepped back and realized just how good I have it. Russell and I have discussed that we are pretty lucky to be where we are, and I don't want to ever sound like I'm not thankful for our life. I'm VERY thankful and blessed that God has brought us where we are. We live in our dream house. Not because it's the BEST house ever (it still needs a lot of work), but because it's our house and we are making such happy memories.

I am thankful :-)

In a rut...

Is it possible to distance yourself from your own true feelings?? I have somewhat "trained" myself to be less stressed out and have made it a natural response for myself to be as laid back as possible when I would normally be..... stressing. I don't want to say that I always do that, but I usually do. I think it has become more of a defense mechanism than anything else because I may not want to "deal" with the many things that are thrown my way.

Lately I have been avoiding how overwhelmed I feel with all of the things I am doing. I am: taking 9 hours of graduate prerequisite courses, working full-time as a teacher for three different English classes, trying to maintain an orderly house (this week I have failed), and trying really hard to do all of the things I have committed to. We did not make it to church this past week because I have been so. tired. I am drained. Exhausted. I get mad at myself for not having the time to go running and I feel like everyday I gain another pound. My mind feels like it is going 100 mph because if I'm not worrying about school, I'm worrying about work, or the laundry that needs to be done, or the bills I need to pay. I'm not even sure if I will get into the graduate program and am struggling with one of my classes.

I don't know what I'm going to do next. I feel somewhat trapped by all of these obligations and desperately want a break.

I need God's rejuvenation. I need His hand to hold me and His words of comfort to say it will be alright. Please pray for me. I need rest, comfort, and some down time.

Blessings in many forms

I went on a "home visit" yesterday to see one of my best students and her grandmother. One of the favorite things about my school is we get to build community by talking and getting to know the family of our students. I also love getting to see what my students see everyday. We had a great time and I am truly blessed that God has placed such wonderful people in my life. However, when I was preparing my things this morning in my classroom, this student came in and handed me an envelope from her grandmother. A gift for the classroom: books from our school book fair. Something I have been trying really hard to do this year is gather more books and my students have made this goal so much easier to accomplish. I have about 40 more books in our collection this year. I love generosity. It's even greater to see it go to such a good cause- my students are reading!! I truly believe that my students are becoming lifelong readers, and I love that!!!

Tonight I am washing dishes, studying, making quiche, looking at unfolded laundry, feeling some pain in my legs (just tired), and enjoying the company of my husband and pugs. I look around and feel God's blessings. I am grateful.

Nostalgia

Tonight I looked through my college photos on facebook and began thinking back to the lifestyle and friendships that I had at that time. This is in no way to sound like a depressing post, but I thought I would share. I absolutely love my life with Russell and we are so blessed with everything God has given us. I'm thinking about Beall hall, and living with some of the most amazing girls I know. We were all still so young and driven by what we did not know- our studies, what our jobs would be, who we would marry. I look back and smile. I think of the church family that I had at Canyon Creek. My adopted family, Shanon and Jason, for investing so much in me throughout my college years. The opportunity to be a children's intern one summer. I think of my roommate Lauren, and living in the little white house on the corner with all of its animal sounds, unfinished wood floors, and beautiful sage paint on the walls. We had so much fun living there! I think of the random runs I'd take in the mornings before class. Why do I feel so much older now?? It's only been 2 years. I feel like my energy is gone, and I want it back!

I think what has sparked my nostalgia is the fact that Russell and I are settling into a new church that we both feel God is calling us to. It is about 30 minutes from our house, and we currently meet in an elementary school. This church is very similar to the one Russell and I began going to when we started dating. It's called North Rock. We began attending North Rock right after we got married (about 2 weeks afterwards) for about a month, and then left for a month. After feeling God consistently drawing us back to North Rock, we decided to keep going back. So we've begun getting involved, and this week is the beginning of our first "journey group," which is basically a small group that meets every week. I'm REALLY excited about going and getting to know other people our age that we can become real friends with. One thing Russell and I feel like we've never had is another couple we could relate to, be true friends with, go out to dinner with, pray with, etc. I desperately want that. I want someone we can turn to to discuss our lives, our interests, jokes, God, school, work, etc. (not in that order). I think when I look back at UMHB, I feel like there's so much to live up to! I don't mean to put it in those terms, but I had some pretty amazing friends there. I think right now, I miss them all so much, that I'm scared we'll never have friends like that. I know this is silly, and I'm probably being emotional, but the biggest thing I don't want is superficial relationships with the people we meet; I don't want mere acquaintances. I want us to get to know people, about their lives, what they're going through, someone I can call and pray for.

I know this is not a typical post of mine and I'm usually never this candid.Please pray for us as we attend this Journey Group and get to know more people. We really want to make some friends. :-) Please pray for us as we continue to draw nearer to God. I want to experience Him in a really big way!!!

Two Teachers!

Wow, it has been a really long time since my last post! Time for an update :-)

The school year has finally started and we are already entering our 5th week this week. 31 more to go!! ;) I'm loving that I get to come home and share with Russell all of our "teacher stories". The funny things kids say make for some great dinner conversations. I even overheard one of my kids say, "I HATE that she's Mrs. Dotson now! Ugh," because he didn't want me to get married. So funny.

Trying to balance both teaching and being a student has been hard. I'm taking 9 hours while working and needless to say, I am tired. I know it's all for the best and all I can do is hope that I get into the grad program and give it my all. I know that either way it works out, God has a plan for my life and will lead us where He wants us.

Russell is taking a Sunday nap with the pugs, and I think I may join them. Lesson plans can wait. Naps are very dear to my heart!! :)

This week has been long. I never thought I could be as tired as I am, but with 26 students, it's easy to get exhausted by 4 o'clock. Even though it has been draining, this week has been really good. My kids are so enthusiastic about my class, something I love seeing. It is so refreshing to see their zest for life. I have also already been blessed by their generous hearts. I have a "Book Wish List" on the class website, and one of my students had her grandma order 3 of the best books on the list. How awesome is this?! I've never felt so adored before, and I've only known this sweet girl for 3 days.

Russell starts teaching this upcoming Tuesday, and I am so excited for him. He is nervous, but I know he will do a great job and that the boys will especially look up to him as a role-model. He has a whole lot to offer!

Not much else is going on. I'm beginning my second semester of speech pathology classes on Monday, so please keep us in your prayers as we go through a lot of changes next week. I'm excited about the classes, but a little concerned about all that is on my plate right now. Right now I'm struggling to stay awake. Until next time...

Teaching supplies!

Okay, so I just posted an ad on craigslist requesting donations/budget-friendly items for mine and Russell's classroom. We will both be teaching English this year, and for some reason (maybe the summer vacation) we have not been thinking about supplies! We've requested posters, paper, crayons, etc. to help decorate both of our classrooms. I have a few items from last year, but now we need double the items since we are both teaching. I think next week I will be doing a lot of arts-and-craft style posters if we don't get any responses. Maybe one of my few readers will have something in the back of their closets/attics/garage that would be useful for a classroom? *wink, wink* I'll have to post if any fellow San Antonian Craigslist users offer their donations.

Cleaning woes

So my husband is currently sleeping. He caved and the pugs are now in my spot in the bed. Good grief, they are spoiled! :-)

Today I was thinking about my 2 final exams, how much I have to do, the fact that school begins very soon, and how I feel behind! I feel behind mainly in the fact that I want my house to be a little more organized. This probably sounds like something ridiculous to blog about, and mom, if you're reading this, I am merely confessing this to gain some form of help ;-)

I need a system! I tried setting up a "daily chore" list to keep the house consistently clean, but that didn't work. It still seemed like the bulk of my free time went to cleaning. I want to be able to do minor cleaning gradually to keep a consistently clean home. Now, I know, am I in my own world? :-) I understand that this is perfect world I am picturing, but any tips from my dear blogging friends would be of great benefit. Now, I don't live in mess, but I would like to develop a schedule that I can balance with being a grad student and a teacher. Any suggestions? What type of system do you use in your home? :-)

It's almost time!!

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings." - Lewis Carroll, The Walrus and the Carpenter

I wish it were time to talk of those things! But, alas, it is time (almost) for school to start again! Today is August 1st. The Back to School month. Part of me cringes at this, while another part of me gets excited about decorating my classroom, planning lessons, and allowing my students to feel like family. Oh, and being called Mrs. Dot :) I have this weird thing about wanting the kids to call me Mrs. Dot, but I think DotSON is easy enough to not have to shorten it. So, in honor of this soon-to-be crazy month, I am writing out a list of things I am thankful for from this amazing summer, and things I have to do really soon!

Things I am Thankful For:

• Of course this is #1 on my list- GETTING MARRIED! I got to marry my favorite person in the world and get to spend the rest of my life with him. Our wedding was perfect and beautiful and I couldn't have asked for a better day. I love Russell :)
• Spending precious time with my husband. We are very lucky in that we didn't have jobs to rush back to after our honeymoon, and instead got a 2 1/2 month honeymoon. I've loved getting to know him better and enjoying everyday with him.
• Our home. We have done so much to our home it's incredible. I'm excited to be making it ours and adding special touches to it. I know it'll be really nice coming home to it everyday after work!
• Our family. Our family has been so supportive of us this summer as we have gone through the process of getting more on our feet as a couple. Plus, they are just all around cool people. Thank you!
• Friends :-) I have a lot of friends that don't live near SA, but it has been fun to keep in touch with them and have dinner with the friends we have here.

Things I Need to Do....

• Finish final exams for Audiology and A&P by the 10th
• Get supplies neat and orderly for school (I kind of "dumped" hem in the garage on the last day of school since it was, well, 2 days before the wedding.
• Buy some cute outfits for teaching and finding Russell some dress pants and shirts for school... we're working on a budget, so this will be a task.
• Keep a food & exercise diary starting tomorrow... I've committed to a race in October and need to get my rear in gear! I've started eating Greek yogurt for breakfast and need to work on making lunch and dinner healthy, yet tolerable, meals. I also need to make use of my gym membership... starting tomorrow morning!
• Organize various areas of the house... not.as.fun.
• Revamp my school website to fit the 2010-2011 school year: livelaughlearn dot us
• Buy textbooks for next semester

This is a lot to do! But not overwhelming. Maybe just whelming. ;-) If you've read this far, thank you! If not, I understand :-) Here's to the new month!!

Fun Wall Art

So I love home decor websites, but one thing I love MORE than those are home decor sites that emphasize being thrifty and saving some money! So of course I enjoy Thrifty Decor Chick. Something I read about and have been wanting to do for a LONG time was the wall art project she did with a sheet of MDF and some scrapbook paper. You can find tutorials on her blog post.

Russell's office was looking kind of plain, so this is what we did together today:

I LOVE it! I absolutely love it. Total cost of this art: $18!!!

We were going to buy MDF, but a sheet of MDF at our Lowe's is $30! So we decided to browse through the aisles and found 4 ft. sheets of particle board for about $2 each, so we bought 3. $6 for the "wood"!! So happy about that. I spent quite a long time at Hobby Lobby picking the exact sheets of scrapbook paper that I wanted, but it was worth it.

I think I may just be becoming a tad bit addicted to fun art projects like this! Be prepared to see more :-)

Something profound

So I usually always come to my blog with the desire of writing something profound, and when I get here, I always tell myself that it shouldn't have to be thought of, but should just come naturally. So here I am, not knowing if what I'm going to type will be profound at all.

Summer vacation is almost over; God has granted us many blessings and I am most definitely thankful. Russell got a teaching job with a sister school to mine, so we will have the exact same schedule all year long. How cool is that? I have been making A's in my first two speech pathology classes. We have loved this whole married life thing- it really is nice to be with the person you love everyday. Our house is coming along quite nicely, even though there is usually something being remodeled, it looks 1oo times better than when I first bought it. I really have no complaints. Sometimes I almost dig for something to complain about, because I think that's part of being human. But I am truly thankful and can't believe where God has brought me sometimes. Another huge blessing is that we have a plan for our finances. We started reading Dave Ramsey's "Total Money Makeover" and feel like because we have a plan now, it is possible to get completely out of debt. I'm excited about that!

School starts for us on August 11th (orientation) and I am excited about the new year. I think it will be a great one! I think the best way to get used to a new last name is to teach right afterwards. That should be fun! :-)

Updated Mantle

So, my mantle was bugging me because it was cluttered with picture frames (some didn't have pictures in them!) and random knick-knacks. So, my project was to get some budget friendly items to give it a more contemporary feel. This is the result:

Most of the items came from Ross. I've always enjoyed rummaging through the home decor aisles and finding treasures. We have a rug on our floor that is a mixture of cool blues, lime green, and brown. So I got the blue vase and green candle holder from Ross. I also got the mirror for $20 (a steal, I know!!) at Ross. Love that store. I had everything else already: the Bonsai tree is from our honeymoon and we got the middle vases from our registry. I'm really happy with the look!!

Good times

So we've been married a little over a month now and I'm loving it. I still can't believe how quickly everything went and how it has ALREADY been a month, but life is good!! I am knee-deep in summer classes and Russell is busy working on the house and prepping for his first year of teaching. Oh, did I forget to mention that? ;) Russell got hired to be a teacher!! I'm so excited for him. It will be fun to share stories about our teaching days and enjoy every vacation day together!! I am pumped.

Countertops, kitchen sink....

Kitchen Remodel... almost done!

So when we first bought our house, the kitchen was definitely the worst room of them all. I'm talking 70's style vinyl on the wall, ugly stick-on tile, cabinets that didn't close all the way, laminate counter tops, and a sliding door that will randomly not open when it's told. We recently decided it needed a makeover! Not to mention it's a galley style kitchen, which can be a blessing and a curse. So we thought of what would be the most budget-friendly, design-friendly materials. We chose to buy granite tile. Everyone loves granite, right?! Well, duh. But not for $49.99 a square foot! If you ever want to redo your kitchen, I say look in the tile section! You get a very similar look for less than half the cost. All of the granite tile we looked at ranged from $3.00 a square foot to $10.00 a square foot. MUCH better. Plus, you can more than likely cut it yourself to fit your counter tops and not spend anything on installation if you have the right tools.

I don't want to post any pictures yet because we are soooo close to being done, but it looks amazing! In addition to the granite, we also bought a cast-iron sink and added a bar. Russell and his dad custom built our cabinet doors to reface the cabinets and stained them all a new, modern espresso brown color. LOVE. IT. So, just imagine it now. I think tomorrow will bring us a more finished product that I'm willing to take a picture of. Right now we are waiting for the tile to dry overnight so we can place the 75 pound sink in its hole, buy a faucet, trim out the countertops, and put our bead-board backsplash on. *Whew* Okay, so maybe we have another week until we're done. But my goodness I am excited!

Ode to Married Days

So, we've been married for 17 days. I must say, that sounds like a long time! I know it's just over two weeks, but I'm amazed! It feels like our wedding was just yesterday :)

Right now, my love is sitting next to me reading War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Something I will always love about Russell is his passion for reading, and life in general. I thought I liked to read, but my babe LOVES to read. It's just so much more peaceful than video games, television, etc. and he's growing his mind. The pugs are asleep at our feet, and I (of course) am blogging.

I started classes last week for Speech Language Pathology. I only missed one question on my first A&P test, and have been [trying] to study a lot. It's hard when there's so much more to do! But, I will remain diligent, because the taste of an A+ is just too good.

Russell and his dad have been working on our kitchen. We are re-staining the cabinets an espresso brown color, adding granite counter tops, and adding a bar! There's been a lot of progress so far and I'm excited about it all. I will have to post pics as the end result gets nearer.

We are still trying to find a church in SA. Please be in prayer for us with that because it's becoming a lot harder than we thought it would be.

Tomorrow my SISTER is coming to visit us! I love that I have a sister now. My beautiful niece and nephew are coming too. I think we will have lunch at a Greek restaurant and just enjoy each other! I'm excited :)

HoneymoOoOoOoOn Part Tres

So a few things on our honeymoon didn't go expected. We wanted to visit a winery, go horseback riding, and go on a canopy tour. We didn't do any of those things. Every place we called said they were either "temporarily closed" or "not in for the day," and on the day of our scheduled canopy tour, it stormed. BUT, we still had an amazing time.

On the night of the storm, we (well.. Russell) grilled hot dogs.

We enjoyed a lot of time in the awesome private pool we had.

We got "Bones," our Bonsai Tree after visiting an awesome Bonsai Exhibit.

We went hiking!

And just had an all-around good time.

We were sad to leave our amazing cottage, but we had a great time and I will cherish the memories! We plan on going back to our cottage getaway soon. It was such a nice place and we are so happy to have found a nice hill-country gem.

HoneymoOoOoOoOn Part Dos

After our stay at Alexandra's House, we ventured on to Wimberley! Needless to say, we had a blast.

Russell and the rusted gun that was on the mantle. We were having fun!

We are at a nice restarant called Brewster's. Yum!

The inside of our awesome cottage at Canyon Sunrise. This is Sundance.

Eating tortilla soup at Wimberley Cafe. SO GOOD!

We went and walked the square and had a little too much fun outside the little shops.

To be continued....

HoneymoOoOoOoOn Part Uno

After our wedding, I had a surprise for Russell. For the first night of our honeymoon, I took him to Alexandra's Bed and Breakfast in San Marcos, TX. This place was a gem and we wish we could have stayed there longer. Here's a picture of it from the outside:

Isn't it beautiful?! We got the nicest room in the house- the Diana Suite.

This house has so much charm and was the perfect place for us to relax and unwind after a long wedding day. Our favorite part was the next morning when we had the delicious breakfast that Rosemary made for us. If I could describe it in one word, I would choose divine.

This is where was sat. Rosemary made us a special breakfast: Broiled Orange with Lavender, Dried Strawberry Scones, Eggs Benedict, and a scrumptious waffle with sour cream and berries. Delicious!!!

Unfortunately, we did have to leave. Here is our farewell picture with Rosemary and her husband, Reed:

To be continued.....

We're married!!!

So, the day FINALLY came and we are married! I have to say that I loved everything about my wedding day and God really blessed us with great friends, a good time, and of course- holy matrimony!

Here are a few pictures I have that friends and family posted on Facebook:

My dad walking me down the aisle to Russell

Russell and I exchanging rings and saying our vows

Celebrating being husband and wife!!

I couldn't have asked for a better ceremony. Every piece of it was so special to me. Our close family and friends were there, two of my 8th (now 9th) grade girls played music beautifully, my youth minister, Garfield, officiated, and I married the man I love. Seriously, who could ask for more? Not to mention... Chapel Dulcinea is beautiful and emphasizes God's beautiful creation. I love it!

10 Days

10 days until I marry my best friend, my love, my man. We have done a lot of wedding related stuff lately and it has made us both so much more anxious for the day to be here. I know it will be here before we know it and we will want the day to last as long as possible, and that it will fly by, but then we have our whole lives to spend together in love and making our life one that constantly seeking and glorifying the Lord.

Last week we met up with our officiator (my youth minister, Garfield!) and yesterday my two 8th grade girls came to play the ceremony music for Russell. Thinking of the two of those things makes me realize that our ceremony is going to be so meaningful. Instead of doing unity sand or a unity candle, we decided to take communion together as a symbol of the Lord leading us and being the foundation of our marriage. I'm excited for that moment and taking part in that with Russell.

I sometimes still feel like our wedding is forever away because we have been engaged for over a year, and it is hard to believe that it is 10 days away. I really can't believe it!

25 days until I'm Mrs. Dotson!!

I've been all giddy lately because the big day is so close... So many fun things are happening the month. Russell is graduating on Saturday and I am SO proud of him and all of his hard work. He is seriously the most hard working student I have ever known and I know he will greatly benefit from that. I'm not being biased, because it is so true! He loves what he studies and does really well at it.

I am doing a bunch of last minute things right now, like linen rentals, music, and favors. Those are all a pretty big deal, but I'm not too nervous about it. I know it will all work out in the end!! I'm just so excited to be married to my best friend and in the country on our honeymoon in our private pool and hot tub. Seriously.

Anyways.. I will stop now. I'm just excited!!

Mi casa!!

So, I need your help!! I bought a house last year, and now, Russell and I are trying to get it to be more "us" for when we get married. We plan to stay here quite a while (as long as we can) and think that we could definitely make it ours with a few changes. So far, we've added laminate wood flooring, ceramic tile, and new landscaping for our front yard. This summer, Russell plans to paint the outside of our house so we can really change the look and raise the curb appeal a little. Right now, our house has a dark feeling to it because of an icky brown color. Here is a pic of the house on closing day:

It doesn't look bad, but it definitely doesn't fit with my vision for it. After doing some tweaking to the picture on the Sherwin Williams website, this is what we both agree on for exterior paint:

I know the image is a little off with the paint lines, but this gives you an idea. My question is.... what do you think? I've always wanted a red door and I'm scared that it might be too much. So please let me know your opinion!!! :) Thanks friends.

Lovely Sunday

Today was a great day. Even though I had to start my day off with a few hours of work at the nursery, I got to come home and see Russell, go on a picnic, take care of my new landscaping, and have dinner with my family. I would describe it all to you in great detail, but I will leave you with one simple word: blissful.

Lovin' life

So I have been all about cleaning and getting my house into order lately!! Tonight I went out to eat with my parents, came home and vacuumed, mopped, and am now watching the Spurs win the playoffs! I never get too into basketball until the very end when everyone is talking about it... But it's still fun!

Anyways, that was quite the tangent. Sorry. Back to the casa. I have been all about keeping it clean and making it nice, especially since Russell and I are getting married in 31 days! I guess you can say I'm getting my wifely duties on. I only have one thing against this whole "keeping the house looking great" thing... Seymour and Franny, the pugs, are not happy with me. They have been staring at me from the backyard screen door with those big eyes, asking "Mommy, why can't I be in there with you?" It really breaks my heart. I love them, so I think one of my big plans for this summer is to get a gazebo and nicer landscaping in the back for them. They have plenty of shade now, but I still hate letting them out into a barely grassy backyard. So I'm excited to get that project started.

Now my house smells like lavender pine sol, my couches are free of any pet hair, and my floors are sooo clean! I'm a happy girl.

Bridal Shower!

So I had a crazy wedding-packed weekend filled with a bridal shower and bridal portraits. I had so much fun! My sweet sister-to-be, Mimi, hosted an amazing bridal shower for me on Saturday, and it was wonderful. I have so many gifts that I have no idea what to do with.

Most of my gifts consist of really nice glassware such as crystal, wine glasses, and martini glasses. So, because I think these things are so pretty and valuable, I decided that I need a china cabinet. There is a perfect corner in my dining room for one and I have been hunting craigslist for the deals. I found some great ones, but think I will hold off until after the wedding to purchase anything.

Here's an idea of what I want:



and



Aren't they great? I'm dreaming right now... but seriously, how awesome would it be to display your nice dishes in a fancy cabinet? Love it.

Ramblings

In 30 minutes there will be 45 days until the wedding. 45 days!!!

Life has been interesting lately. Russell is in his last 2 weeks of school at UMHB, I'm in my last 6 weeks of my first year of teaching, and or wedding is just around the corner. We have been very busy with different things around the house, getting it looking like more of a modern home than a 70s home. We updated all of our flooring and Russell recently trashed his icky couch in exchange for a nice, mock-leather, folding couch. I love it!

Our pugs are like children. Every night they sleep in bed with me. They are spoiled!! Franny has really made Seymour happy, and vice versa. They sleep on each other, chase each other around the house, and play "pug-o-war" together. I pretty much love watching the two of them.

I'm rambling because it's my bed time. Sheesh.

Crunch time!!

So I am soooo excited because the wedding is in 52 days!!!! I really can't believe it. Can you? Here are a few things I still need to do:

1. Mail off invitations (waiting for my envelopes to arrive... they should be here tomorrow!!)

2. Book linen rentals... this is tough because there are so many places out there and I still don't know the measurements of the tables. Ugh!

3. Buy some sort of wedding favors. This is tough too... there is just too much out there!

That is all I can think of right now.... which is amazing. At first I had a TON to do... and now I don't have that much. Woo-hoo!!

If you want to learn more about the wedding, go to www.russellandkrista.com :-)

Wedding centerpieces!

My lovely mom worked so hard on these for me as a surpise... I love them!!





So cute! And they match my colors perfectly. I really can't wait... 107 days!!!

Diet Days…. :-/

SO… I got my wedding dress!!!! If you know my dress horror story, you know that I am very happy about finally having this. My mom and I went shopping on Saturday and we found the perfect dress! So relieved.

In the midst of trying on dresses, and finding the dress, I decided I’m going to be really serious about eating healthy and exercising until the wedding.

So here is my plan:

I found a diet that is one of those low/no carb diets and decided it was a go for me. I bought the food tonight to go with it. The plan is to choose one from each of these 3 categories and then that is your meal:

Proteins:
Egg whites with one whole egg for flavor
Chicken breast or thigh
Grass-fed organic beef
Pork

Legumes:
Lentils
Black beans
Pinto beans

Vegetables:
Spinach
Asparagus
Peas
Mixed vegetables

Tonight I had my first meal from this diet:

 

It was really yummy! And I have lunch for tomorrow. Not a bad idea!

I plan on incorporating some running back into my daily routine. I’m SURE that if I stick with this, I can lose 5 or 10 pounds, which is all I want to lose.

Salud!

Engagement Photos!

So I’m really excited because today I got a sneak peek of our engagement photos!! I absolutely love Nicole’s work, and can’t wait to see the rest when they come in the mail. Here’s the eye candy…. :-)

Lots of complaining

This has not been my best week. I went to the doctor this morning after 4 long days of rollercoaster sickness- fevers, headaches, sore throat, sneezing, achy body. I thought I had the flu at first, and while I am thankful I do not, I’m beginning to wonder when this thing will go away.

 

I don’t have cable so I don’t have anything to watch. I just picked up “Anna Karenina” this week right before I got sick, and now I can’t read it because of the pounding in my head. So what have I been doing? Sleeping. Shouldn’t I be better? :( I had to take off of work on Wednesday and again today.

If you can, please say a prayer for me! My head feels like it will explode and my throat feels like it’s on fire. Laryngitis is icky.

Happy New YEAR!

So, what better way to start off the new year than with a brand new laptop? After a long night of multiple computer deaths in late 2009, I decided to start 2010 off with a bang by getting a new computer :-) I love it!

It is my dream to have a Mac (one day… one day!), but now I may not have to; I got a Dell with Windows 7 on it, and it is so similar to a Mac that I am quite content. Thank you Bill Gates for emulating perfection ;)

Will post more later!