End of the Year Wrap Up #1

I realize that I failed to cover a large part of the end of this past year. As third year Au.D. students you come to quickly realize that Comprehensive Exams are right around the corner. This past semester was a pure killer for me. However, I just PASSED all of my exams and am well on my way to more free time! With that being said, I have a lot of catching up to do! Over the next few days/weeks I am going to be giving you some of the highlights that I missed giving you starting with last summer. So, grab a warm cup of cocoa and settle in-there are A LOT of pictures to show and sweet stories to tell. Wrap Up #1 is from this past summer's Florida vacation:

On August the 8th my family and Daniel and I set out for Fort Walton Beach. If you know anything about my family you know that we left for the beach at 3 a.m. Yes, that's right, 3 a.m. Joellen and Matt were not able to go with us because they were on a mission trip outside of the country. We missed them terribly, but we are so glad that they had a great time! About halfway through the trip down we met up with Lynne and James and the kids.
This is one of the places that we stopped to eat at on the way down.........I AM TOTALLY KIDDING! I just thought the name was funny so I made mom and Daniel strike for a pose. Chitlins and a long car ride don't seem to mix for some reason.

We finally made it to our rental house and Crockett and Holly immediately wanted to swim in the pool. I could seriously eat these little kiddos up. They are just too cute.

Holly had her first experience on the beach:

And her first Chicken Bone:


Daniel and I had never been on a double date with Lynne and James, so one night the four of us went to a restaurant called The Fisherman's Wharf to have dinner. Mom, Dad, and Mimi stayed at home with the kids so we could have a date night together. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Dad bought us all tickets onto the fishing pier for several different days. We all had high hopes of catching "the big one" but it just wasn't meant to be. A couple of years ago Dad took Daniel and I fishing off of this same pier and it was like nature's bounty of fish. We caught the most amazing fish with beautiful colors-and a lot of teeth! Dad tried to get a hook out of one's mouth and it turned out that the fish had 5 different rows of teeth! I caught a huge pompano that year, and as soon as I caught it a little Korean lady came and asked me for it. She chucked the poor fish into a cooler and strolled it away. It actually made me really sad because I realized that she was going to eat him. Poor little guy. Sometimes I have a bit of a naive spirit. Anyways, this year did not produce such a harvest of fish. I couldn't wait to see what we were going to catch this year! After many bait fish, James caught our only fish over the size of 5". Can you guess what it was?!?



A Catfish...... Out of all of the amazing fish to catch in the ocean, we caught.... a catfish.
Oh well, we had a great time anyways:





It was really H.O.T. HOT, can you tell???

We had some wonderful meals at the beach. One night I made enchiladas...one of Daniel's favorites:
Happy Husband:
For our last night at the beach Mom and Dad treated us all to one of our favorite restaurants in Destin called The Lighthouse. My family has eaten at this restaurant for years. The kiddos were not in the best mood during our dinner so the pictures didn't turn out as we had wished:

(Don't be fooled...Mom WAS at the restaurant with us, she is just somewhere behind Dad and James in the picture-again, not the best time for pictures)


After our dinner we decided to go to Henderson Beach State Park in Destin. You have to pay when entering the State Park. For this reason the beachfront is practically empty! Lynne and James wanted to get some nice pictures of the kids in their little white frocks on the beach. Here are some of Holly:


And here is what we got when we added Mr. Crockett into the equation:




Priceless.

It truly was a beautiful part of the beach. I felt as if I was on a private beach just for our family because no one else was there.







After we left the beach, Mimi treated us all to ice cream at Bruster's to wrap up our last night in Florida:
It truly was a great trip! I hadn't been on a week long vacation in such a long time and it was so great to get some much needed R&R and family time. Have a great day everyone! Are you excited for Wrap Up #2?

I Found This in My Files...It Made Me Laugh

Walking In A Winter Wonderland.....Literally

I'm disappointed that I am blogging before I have the picture that I've been waiting to post since October, but I can't go without writing about our adventure tonight. We've had some wonderful things happen in our little family of 2, and I can't wait to tell you about them. I'm planning on doing an "End of the Year Wrap Up" but you will have to wait a few more days for that. Back to our adventure....

Since the beginning of the week, the weathermen have been calling for "a light accumulation" of snow for Thursday here in Knoxville. I even recall WBIR's Mike Witcher saying, "it should just be a light dusting." The snow started today in knoxville around 1:00. It really was just little flakes of snow. Nothing to be worried about. Daniel and I both had to work today. I was working in Alcoa and Daniel was in Straw Plains. We ended up leaving each of our workplaces around 4 p.m. (It usually takes me around 20 minutes to get home from work). To make a very long story short, we didn't arrive at our house until 7:45!

The interstate was fine. However, the back roads of Knoxville were pure ice. Daniel ended up being about a 1/2 mile in front of me on our way home. This was seriously the Lord taking care of us...you will find out why. I received a call from Daniel telling me that "Robinson" (The road we live about 2 miles off of) was completely ice. No cars were moving. He even saw one man completely abandon his car, with briefcase in tow, and start walking to his home. It seemed quite disturbing at the time, and a little humorous that he was just leaving everything and walking home. Little did I know that I would soon be following suit. About 45 minutes later I received another call from Daniel. "I am completely out of gas, I have to park and walk." I couldn't believe it, but agreed it was all he could do. As I finally made it onto Robinson I soon realized just how icy it truly was. I slid my car into the first neighborhood and parked. Daniel turned around from his long trek and came to meet me. I am so thankful that the Lord placed us near one another on the way home. I would have been terrified to walk by myself in the dark. Once Daniel met me, I grabbed 2 fleece coats from my car and we began the 2 mile hike in the snow....

This picture was taken at the beginning of our walk. It isn't great because I didn't realize that I had my camera with me and had to settle for my cell phone. You can see the line of cars just at a stand still. People literally left their cars parked in the middle of the road and just started walking.


Poor Daniel was in a windbreaker and his business suit. As I was walking, I was thinking that it was a bad day to choose to wear ballerina flats with naked feet....

We are about an hour into our hike now and we're both still feeling pretty good. It's getting colder, but we are still hanging in there. Everything was slowing down because the cars became stranded and no one could drive any farther. A look back in the opposite direction shows how we were walking into "no man's land."




Still feeling pretty good....






Ok. It's been an hour and a half now and the wind is really starting to pick up. The snow is falling faster. Not doing so great now...

REALLY NOT DOING SO GOOD NOW (I can't believe I'm posting this picture)...



Let's take a moment to recognize how many steps I (5'4") have to take to keep up with my 6'4" handsome husbandOh, to have a long stride.
At this point I decided to start a conversation to keep our minds off of the terribly cold wind and the numbness that was settling in.

Beth: So, what life lessons have we learned from this little adventure?
Daniel: Leave work early if you need to.
Beth: Fill your car up with gas at the first sign of snow.
Daniel: Be willing to walk a little.
Beth: Don't wear ballerina flats in cold weather. My mother is seriously going to kill me when she finds out I'm not wearing winter shoes.
Daniel: Always keep a Gatorade bottle in your car.
Beth: Wait... What?
Daniel: I had to go to the bathroom really really bad!
Beth: HA HA HA!

At this point I heard a noise....SHHHH, SHHHHH, SHHHHH, SHHHHHH. What is that? I turned around and saw a little man in his business suit and dress shoes literally "shoe" ice skating around us. I tried not to laugh out loud. Next thing I know Daniel is trying it too. While trying to keep up with Daniel's ice skating I saw the best thing my little snowflake covered lashes had seen all evening....our subdivision sign! We made it home after walking an hour and forty five minutes in the snow. We survived a once in a lifetime adventure with plenty of life lessons learned. Who needs Mt. Everest? We conquered Robinson!

Happy Christmas!

I'm coming back....I promise! There is a very important picture that I need before I can blog again....coming soon.

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.

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.

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.

Color

I'm ready for Autumn....can you tell?

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:

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.

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.

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!

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.