12/5/09
Happy Christmas!
I'm coming back....I promise! There is a very important picture that I need before I can blog again....coming soon.
9/29/09
My New Fave!
As you might know by now, Daniel and I are officially Weight Watchers. This Thursday marks one week down and our first weigh in! After working so hard to fit into my teeny tiny wedding dress, I let loose. Hello, fast food! It became so easy to pick something up after a long day of school, work, and many church activities. Life is so busy! Who has time to cook, clean, and do homework in the short hours of the evening? And with that mindset I packed on the pounds. It's back to making healthier choices and eating smarter. Today I discovered MorningStar Meal Starters Recipe Crumbles. It is a soy meat substitute and it saves a lot of time and calories! Try some in your next enchiladas, chili, or spaghetti sauce.
9/21/09
WELCOME TO MY WORLD!
It's currently 12:14 a.m. and I'm working on a critical review of an article for my advanced seminar in amplification technology class. My presentation is in the morning and I am seriously having some major brain blockage here. Here is a view of all of the fun that I am currently having....
So, what makes studying/critical reviewing WAY more exciting that it really is??? Home Alone and Hot Chocolate. MMhmMM....Daniel whipped up some yummy Nestle Hot Chocolate for me and I now have Home Alone in the background. I'm pretty much guessing that the movie will play at least 3 more times before I have mastered this beast of an article. With that being said...I need more hot chocolate....
What do/did you do while procrastinating or studying in college? Usually when studying my house becomes completely spotless, at least 10 new crafts are made, the dishes get organized, the laundry gets done and is folded meticulously, and my Home Alone video is dead by the end of the night. If Kevin McCallister was studying I think this is what he would say he did while procrastinating: "I took a shower washing every body part with actual soap; including all my major crevices; including in between my toes and in my belly button which I never did before but sort of enjoyed. I washed my hair with adult formula shampoo and used cream rinse for that just-washed shine." Ok it's back to work. Sigh.
8/27/09
Blue Crush
I am crushing hard on this new fabric I found at Wal-mart! These pictures will not do the color justice, but it is just the perfect hue of blue. I can't seem to stop using it! I think I will dream of blue tonight...
A flirty pin:
A party headband:
Also, I have completely found my new favorite thing...Embroidery! I started this tonight and especially love the little bird on his perch. I will be sure and post the finished product.
A flirty pin:
A party headband:
Also, I have completely found my new favorite thing...Embroidery! I started this tonight and especially love the little bird on his perch. I will be sure and post the finished product.
8/26/09
8/21/09
Prototype
I love crafting. I mean really, sometimes I think I have a crafting problem. There are times when hours pass by and all I have thought about is what ideas I can come up with next to make. I haven't posted much on this blog about my crafts but I seriously could craft and design all day if I had the time. I am carefully considering the thought of opening up an etsy shop online. Last night I spent some time crafting up this flower headband and I think it turned out rather nice. I wore it to work today and one lady told me that it was "very sex and the city." I'm not sure that was the look that I was going for, but I'll take it...I think that is a good thing...right? Anyways, I thought I would post some of the pictures here for what it turned out like. My camera isn't the best at capturing the true portrayal and I am by no means a model, but this is what you get...what do you think:
Perfect or not, it's pretty fun to wear. I also made these cute onesies and shirts for my nephew and niece a while back. I am thinking of making more with different designs. I just love these and they are super fun to make:
Perfect or not, it's pretty fun to wear. I also made these cute onesies and shirts for my nephew and niece a while back. I am thinking of making more with different designs. I just love these and they are super fun to make:
8 months!
Daniel and I have been married for 8 wonderful months! I came home from work the other day and found these beautiful flowers and a sweet note on our kitchen counter...my husband makes my heart flutter.
8/1/09
Fulfilling A Purpose
I've experienced countless burdens throughout this life, just as I'm sure you have. I've felt the sting of pain from losing loved ones, battled disease firsthand, struggled with situations that seemed impossible to conquer.....there are numerous others. But I have never dealt with my present burden before.
Daniel has been an Intern at Morgan Keegan Financial Firm for the past two years. When Daniel graduated from UT this past December, they agreed to keep him on staff until he found a permanent job. For 8 months now, Daniel has diligently been searching for a job. Hundreds of resumes have left our hands, a plethora of contacts have been made, and no job listing has been left unread. Email after email that we have received have all resounded the same..."Position Has Been Filled."
Around 3 months ago we had an amazing opportunity for a teller position at Regions bank. Daniel made it all the way to a 3rd Interview! We were so hopeful. We felt self-assured that this was going to be where the Lord would place him. We were encouraged with every piece of information we received. Things were moving in a wonderful direction and relief started to settle in to our home. We could feel burdens lifting from our heavy hearts with each passing day.
After a few stagnant days with no phone calls, emails or correspondence, our excitement settled to a lull. What happened? Everything was moving so wonderfully. Daniel was never called to schedule a time for his 3rd Interview that he was assured he had. Upon calling the HR department, Daniel learned that the position had been filled by a last minute interviewee who was already a teller and needed to transfer to the Knoxville area. Seeing as how Daniel would require training, the eager transfer was hired immediately. POSITION HAS BEEN FILLED! We were devastated, but held our ground. We held close to the promise that the Lord would provide and take care of us.
Months have passed now and we have felt trapped. We have not received any job leads or contacts. There has not been any positive movement. In the back of our minds we keep telling ourselves, "Thankfully we still have the Internship that can provide some financial help." However, three weeks ago we were informed that Daniel and the rest of the Interns were being put on furlough. Two weeks ago Friday marked Daniel's last day at Morgan Keegan.
Daniel and I are facing the reality of life's hardships early on. At times it seems unfathomable to me that a man with a college degree in Finance and Business Administration cannot find a job. Do these people not know what a wonderful asset to their company that my husband would be!?!? Sometimes I just want to scream at the top of my lungs, "Please just give him a chance!"
In all of our trials and troubles, one thing remains constant...The Lord Is Faithful. The other day at work I was feeling so discouraged and I completely cried out, "Lord, please give me a verse that I can cling to during this time!" The burdens have been building up and the sadness from all of the rejections will overtake my being at times. At that moment I looked over to a message board that I have in my office. Buried under the post-its and pin ups I saw my handwriting peering through. I brushed aside the reminders of the business of life and saw a verse I had written on my board around 2 years ago. "The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, oh Lord, endures forever-do not abandon the works of your hands." Psalm 138:8 Oh, yes! How could I forget? I had memorized this verse 2 years ago when I was desperately trying to get into Grad School. ALL odds were against me. There was no way that I would make it in the program. However, against missing the application deadline, not making the score on the GRE after my first 3 attempts, not having had the classes I needed for qualification, and many other things, the Lord orchestrated everything together for me to get in. Not only to get in, but to start that current semester! The Lord has always worked for my good and continues to! He works with our benefit in mind. The Lord IS fulfilling his purpose for me. And whether that purpose is for Daniel to get a job soon, or for us to end up with $0 in the bank account so it draws us closer to God, his purpose WILL be fulfilled for us. Our creator can do anything he wills and promises his best for us.
A new peace is turning up for us. We know now more than ever that the Lord is orchestrating something wonderful for us. All of these "rejections" have clearly been closed doors for us and the Lord is going to place Daniel where he desires for him to be. Who am I to worry about such things when I know that the Lord will work for our good? It's so unreal how quick I am to forget some of God's promises to us. Especially when I've seen him prove himself numerous times in my life. I can't wait for the day when I will write on our blog about where Daniel received a job-and I know that day is coming. Until then, I will keep reminding myself... rest easy, beloved, the Lord will not abandon the works of his hands.
Daniel has been an Intern at Morgan Keegan Financial Firm for the past two years. When Daniel graduated from UT this past December, they agreed to keep him on staff until he found a permanent job. For 8 months now, Daniel has diligently been searching for a job. Hundreds of resumes have left our hands, a plethora of contacts have been made, and no job listing has been left unread. Email after email that we have received have all resounded the same..."Position Has Been Filled."
Around 3 months ago we had an amazing opportunity for a teller position at Regions bank. Daniel made it all the way to a 3rd Interview! We were so hopeful. We felt self-assured that this was going to be where the Lord would place him. We were encouraged with every piece of information we received. Things were moving in a wonderful direction and relief started to settle in to our home. We could feel burdens lifting from our heavy hearts with each passing day.
After a few stagnant days with no phone calls, emails or correspondence, our excitement settled to a lull. What happened? Everything was moving so wonderfully. Daniel was never called to schedule a time for his 3rd Interview that he was assured he had. Upon calling the HR department, Daniel learned that the position had been filled by a last minute interviewee who was already a teller and needed to transfer to the Knoxville area. Seeing as how Daniel would require training, the eager transfer was hired immediately. POSITION HAS BEEN FILLED! We were devastated, but held our ground. We held close to the promise that the Lord would provide and take care of us.
Months have passed now and we have felt trapped. We have not received any job leads or contacts. There has not been any positive movement. In the back of our minds we keep telling ourselves, "Thankfully we still have the Internship that can provide some financial help." However, three weeks ago we were informed that Daniel and the rest of the Interns were being put on furlough. Two weeks ago Friday marked Daniel's last day at Morgan Keegan.
Daniel and I are facing the reality of life's hardships early on. At times it seems unfathomable to me that a man with a college degree in Finance and Business Administration cannot find a job. Do these people not know what a wonderful asset to their company that my husband would be!?!? Sometimes I just want to scream at the top of my lungs, "Please just give him a chance!"
In all of our trials and troubles, one thing remains constant...The Lord Is Faithful. The other day at work I was feeling so discouraged and I completely cried out, "Lord, please give me a verse that I can cling to during this time!" The burdens have been building up and the sadness from all of the rejections will overtake my being at times. At that moment I looked over to a message board that I have in my office. Buried under the post-its and pin ups I saw my handwriting peering through. I brushed aside the reminders of the business of life and saw a verse I had written on my board around 2 years ago. "The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, oh Lord, endures forever-do not abandon the works of your hands." Psalm 138:8 Oh, yes! How could I forget? I had memorized this verse 2 years ago when I was desperately trying to get into Grad School. ALL odds were against me. There was no way that I would make it in the program. However, against missing the application deadline, not making the score on the GRE after my first 3 attempts, not having had the classes I needed for qualification, and many other things, the Lord orchestrated everything together for me to get in. Not only to get in, but to start that current semester! The Lord has always worked for my good and continues to! He works with our benefit in mind. The Lord IS fulfilling his purpose for me. And whether that purpose is for Daniel to get a job soon, or for us to end up with $0 in the bank account so it draws us closer to God, his purpose WILL be fulfilled for us. Our creator can do anything he wills and promises his best for us.
A new peace is turning up for us. We know now more than ever that the Lord is orchestrating something wonderful for us. All of these "rejections" have clearly been closed doors for us and the Lord is going to place Daniel where he desires for him to be. Who am I to worry about such things when I know that the Lord will work for our good? It's so unreal how quick I am to forget some of God's promises to us. Especially when I've seen him prove himself numerous times in my life. I can't wait for the day when I will write on our blog about where Daniel received a job-and I know that day is coming. Until then, I will keep reminding myself... rest easy, beloved, the Lord will not abandon the works of his hands.
7/12/09
Your Hair Must Be Made Of Fireworks 'Cause It's Comin' Out In BANGS! (A quote from Uncle Charlie Goodgame when I was 8 years old)
Alright, it's time to do some catching up. Happy Fourth of July! On the morning of the 4th we went to the Farragut parade with Daniel's family. This has become a tradition that we have grown very fond of. You see everything from donkeys, little dogs dressed up as Uncle Sam, unicycles, little old men that just want to walk on the street so they join the parade and you have no idea why they are there, and tractors. Yes, it is a very interesting parade. My favorite attraction every year is a little old time organ that has "little toot" spray painted on the side. This little old man plays it every year on the back of a trailer. Much to my chagrin, he was not there this year! I was highly disappointed. The picture above is of my fourth of July shoes. There is obviously only one day a year that these shoes work so naturally I decided that no matter how much they hurt my feet I was going to wear them ALL day long! They came off of my feet at 1pm. I tried. They went back into their little box until next year's day of independence.
Let's take a step back now. On the eve of the 4th, Daniel and I ran a 5k with his sister, Kristen. The Pilot Fireball Classic on Neyland Drive. It's a kickoff to the fourth. There was a lot of intensity there and some very serious runners. You would have thought we were running a marathon or something. Almost 1000 runners participated. We came in at 3rd, 4th, and 5th place. I'm totally kidding! If you really want the stats you can go here. Don't get too excited...at least we completed it.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Something new: I have never seen these time cards before. You put them on your shoe and when you cross the finish line a computer picks up your time from these time chips on your shoe! How clever! Needless to say, I made sure this foot crossed the finish line first! Can you guess whose foot is whose?
Daniel and I wrapped up the 4th in Athens. My entire family was in but I forgot to take my camera. It was a great way to end the day. Holly and Crockett are the cutest little things alive and it was wonderful to be with everyone. We ended the day with some fireworks and sparklers and it made for a great 4th!
7/10/09
Pamper Yourself
Today I experienced true relaxation. I visited our local Aveda Spa and received two hours of pure pampering. The first treatment was a Chakra Balancing Massage. Basically, it's a complete "out of body" massage experience for a complete fantastically wonderful sixty minutes. At the beginning of the treatment you get a foot bath exfoliating massage in piping hot oil infused water. Oh my, I feel like I'm walking on little fluffy down pillows. After this, you pick out your own yummy scent of massage oil. You can choose from citrus, fruity, mint, or woodsy. I chose the woodsy smell and it was wonderful. After this first hour I then received a Botanical Skin Resurfacing Treatment. This is the equivalent to microdermabrasion. In all seriousness, my face has never felt more wonderful. Everyone should experience this at least once in their lifetime. If you have never had one, go here. You won't regret this, I promise. Now that I have had a day of pure bliss and my externship is over, it's back to work at Massey Electric on Monday.
6/25/09
There is no need to point out the fact that I have been on a blogging hiatus over the past month. I am finishing up my externship at UT Medical Center for the summer. I have been there for the past five weeks and I'm completely exhausted! The early morning chime of the alarm at 5:30 am coupled with high stress throughout the day has brought my blogging life to a lull. By the time I get home I'm ready to hit the sack. I've definitely experienced/learned a lot of interesting things at the hospital and I'm thankful for the experience. However, I'm ready to get back into my normal routine. I have a lot of things to share with you and seeing as how I only have 2 more days left at the hospital, I'm hoping to get these blogs to you soon. For those of you who don't know, I am currently working on my Au.D. (Doctor of Audiology) degree at UTK. I am in my 3rd year of graduate school and I couldn't be more ready to be finished! I've been in college now for 7 years and by the time I'm completely finished it will be a grand total of 9 years! Many times I feel as if I'm not moving anywhere and that I will be in school forever, but just the other day I reminded myself that I only have one more year of school left and one year of my 4th year fellowship and then I'm done! DONE FOREVER! No more papers to write at the last minute well into the early morning hours, no exams to cram for, no labs to finish, no more school payments, no long classes, no more clinic, and no more UTK patient reports to type! Time truly is flying whether I believe that to feel true or not. I'm trying to take in every learning experience that I can. All of this to say....I'm back and I am bringing some blog posts your way ASAP. Well, after I go to the Spa to celebrate on Friday!
5/10/09
A Very Big Weekend Indeed!
This past weekend, Daniel and I had a huge list of celebrations to attend. We knew that we were going to be exhausted come Monday morning, but we also knew that it would be well worth it.
The first part of our monumental weekend began Thursday night with Kristen's graduation (Daniel's sister). She received her M.S. from UT in Education. We are very excited for her and it was an honor to experience this day with her and the family.
The entire Galloway clan showed up for the Commencement. Daniel's Mom and I are absolutely cracking up in this picture. I told her to try and re-create an "Olan Mills" photographic moment by placing her hand on my elbow, and as you can see, we are looking quite sophisticated in this picture.
Congratulations Kristen! You did it!
Party Number Two:
My boss had his yearly Jimmy Buffett themed birthday party outside Friday night. If you live anywhere near East Tennessee you know that Friday presented itself with TERRIBLE storms all day long. The party became an absolute MUD HOLE, but by the time of the party, it had dried up for the most part. The party was catered by The Shrimp Dock and it was oh so yummy! Shrimp Po-Boys, Clams, Hush Puppies, Cole Slaw, and even scary looking crawfish! I didn't even try to attempt eating one. Daniel said you have to suck out the meat and that just didn't sound appealing to me at all. The food was great and the company was delightful, but at eight o' clock we had to go and buy Mother's day gifts. We didn't get home that night until around ten. We were already feeling the exhaustion of the weekend.
After we arrived home I had to finish ALL of our thank you notes. Stamp prices were to go up by 2 cents on Monday and I had already purchased all of the stamps. Daniel and I dove into a thank you note writing frenzy at ten o' clock Friday night and by the time we had written 50 notes, we were ready to call it a night. Afterall, tomorrow dawned a new day of partying.
Here is the finished stack:
I'm still not finished. There are only 40 left. Pretty good, right?
Party Number Three:
Saturday morning Daniel and I woke up around 7 a.m. and got ready to head to Murfreesboro for a graduation Commencement from MTSU. It was for Daniel's best friend, Paul, and my best friend, Cassie. There are a few things to note about this graduation. When Paul was getting ready to walk across the stage I was getting pretty nervous about screaming for him. I am not a cheerleader and whenver I have to yell for someone I get nervous that I will mess it up or that my voice will crack or something. So, they announced his name..."Paul Carlson"...and I yell.... "GO CARL!" What? I completely messed up his name and I think everyone thought I was a crazy lady. Another item of note: A girl walked across the stage with her pet dog. No, it wasn't a blind seeing eye dog, it was her pet. I think she must have snuck him in under her robe. Congrats Paul and Cassie! We are so proud of you!
After Graduation we headed back to Knoxville and ate with Paul's family and the boy's other best friend, Chase, at Lakeside Tavern. We ate outside on the Veranda and there was a beautiful sunset. After the sunset...rain! A few of us got wet, but we ended up scooting the table underneath the awning. After the meal, we went back to Paul's house for cake and ice cream. We had a wonderful time celebrating and arrived back at home ready for bed around eleven.
Party Number Four:
Mother's Day was Baby Dedication day at Lynne and James' church in Alabama. So at 4am Daniel and I woke up and got ready. At 6am we were at Joellen's house ready to road trip down to good ol' Killen, Alabama. After a long five hours we arrived just in time for church. Holly Brooks looked extremely cute in her dedication outfit and Crockett was ultra stylish in his new white Sunday Shoes.
Crockett took up the offering:
Holly was so sweet during her dedication. She is just precious.
A Huge Milestone:
On the trip, my car was fixing to hit the 100,000 mile mark.
It was a very good weekend indeed. But after some quality time with Mom and the rest of the family, we loaded up the 100,000 miles of the Stratus and headed back to Tennessee. Daniel and I didn't get to bed until 1am Sunday night. All I have to say is, we are very tired and can't wait to catch up on some much needed sleep. However, we wouldn't have missed any of this for the world.
The first part of our monumental weekend began Thursday night with Kristen's graduation (Daniel's sister). She received her M.S. from UT in Education. We are very excited for her and it was an honor to experience this day with her and the family.
The entire Galloway clan showed up for the Commencement. Daniel's Mom and I are absolutely cracking up in this picture. I told her to try and re-create an "Olan Mills" photographic moment by placing her hand on my elbow, and as you can see, we are looking quite sophisticated in this picture.
Congratulations Kristen! You did it!
Party Number Two:
My boss had his yearly Jimmy Buffett themed birthday party outside Friday night. If you live anywhere near East Tennessee you know that Friday presented itself with TERRIBLE storms all day long. The party became an absolute MUD HOLE, but by the time of the party, it had dried up for the most part. The party was catered by The Shrimp Dock and it was oh so yummy! Shrimp Po-Boys, Clams, Hush Puppies, Cole Slaw, and even scary looking crawfish! I didn't even try to attempt eating one. Daniel said you have to suck out the meat and that just didn't sound appealing to me at all. The food was great and the company was delightful, but at eight o' clock we had to go and buy Mother's day gifts. We didn't get home that night until around ten. We were already feeling the exhaustion of the weekend.
After we arrived home I had to finish ALL of our thank you notes. Stamp prices were to go up by 2 cents on Monday and I had already purchased all of the stamps. Daniel and I dove into a thank you note writing frenzy at ten o' clock Friday night and by the time we had written 50 notes, we were ready to call it a night. Afterall, tomorrow dawned a new day of partying.
Here is the finished stack:
I'm still not finished. There are only 40 left. Pretty good, right?
Party Number Three:
Saturday morning Daniel and I woke up around 7 a.m. and got ready to head to Murfreesboro for a graduation Commencement from MTSU. It was for Daniel's best friend, Paul, and my best friend, Cassie. There are a few things to note about this graduation. When Paul was getting ready to walk across the stage I was getting pretty nervous about screaming for him. I am not a cheerleader and whenver I have to yell for someone I get nervous that I will mess it up or that my voice will crack or something. So, they announced his name..."Paul Carlson"...and I yell.... "GO CARL!" What? I completely messed up his name and I think everyone thought I was a crazy lady. Another item of note: A girl walked across the stage with her pet dog. No, it wasn't a blind seeing eye dog, it was her pet. I think she must have snuck him in under her robe. Congrats Paul and Cassie! We are so proud of you!
After Graduation we headed back to Knoxville and ate with Paul's family and the boy's other best friend, Chase, at Lakeside Tavern. We ate outside on the Veranda and there was a beautiful sunset. After the sunset...rain! A few of us got wet, but we ended up scooting the table underneath the awning. After the meal, we went back to Paul's house for cake and ice cream. We had a wonderful time celebrating and arrived back at home ready for bed around eleven.
Party Number Four:
Mother's Day was Baby Dedication day at Lynne and James' church in Alabama. So at 4am Daniel and I woke up and got ready. At 6am we were at Joellen's house ready to road trip down to good ol' Killen, Alabama. After a long five hours we arrived just in time for church. Holly Brooks looked extremely cute in her dedication outfit and Crockett was ultra stylish in his new white Sunday Shoes.
Crockett took up the offering:
Holly was so sweet during her dedication. She is just precious.
A Huge Milestone:
On the trip, my car was fixing to hit the 100,000 mile mark.
Have you seen the Toyota commercial where the driver hits 200,000 miles and they all get out and do a jump? Well, when we hit 100,000 miles we were determined to get out and do "the jump". Too bad it was in the church parking lot. I'm sure Lynne and James' church friends think we are out of our minds. It was a big moment for me and the ol' Dodge Stratus!
For the record: Joellen is a very cute jumper. I, on the other hand, look like the Hunchback of Notre Dame when I jump. Daniel really dislikes this picture of himself too. He really wanted to redo the photo, but I said....."You have to live in the moment, Daniel. Live in the moment."
It was a very good weekend indeed. But after some quality time with Mom and the rest of the family, we loaded up the 100,000 miles of the Stratus and headed back to Tennessee. Daniel and I didn't get to bed until 1am Sunday night. All I have to say is, we are very tired and can't wait to catch up on some much needed sleep. However, we wouldn't have missed any of this for the world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)