Description

life in the basement has come and gone. we loved living underground, but are excited to practice maintaining a home. join me as i journal chapter two of our life, as we save up, look forward, and plan for a home in the city. as we seek after our great God to glorify Him daily, join in as we figure out what it means to radically pursue Him in "everyday life"

29 December 2011

my new years resolutions

alright so i'm typically not a new years resolutions person- i'm constantly setting goals for myself and don't think that it necessarily takes a new year to do that, but 2012 is going to be a big year i feel like. so, i want to go public with my resolutions, and ask for your encouragement and kick in the pants when i need it. i've spent some time thinking through these, and while these aren't all that i hope to accomplish in 2012, its definitely some major themes. i've broken them up into categories:

spiritual

  1. i want to get much more consistent in my quiet times. sometimes, i'm really good about them. and then i'm not. i crave to know the lord more, and with all of the big decisions coming up in the next year, i need to be walking super close to my savior. this will require sacrifice, discipline, and dedication, but i know it will be the best thing i could do next year.
  2. i want to memorize a sizable amount of scripture. i have found when i am memorizing scripture, my mind is most easily focused on Christ.

educational

  1. i want to read 12 books, including Atlas Shrugged

physical

  1. i want to train seriously for at least one more (maybe more) half marathon. i want to finish in 1:57.
  2. i want to maintain a strong and healthy body, including a healthy diet and regular exercise.

financial

  1. nathan and i are intensely saving up for a house- which we hope to purchase in 2012. this will mean sticking to our budget and doing some major saving!

blog-al (??)

  1. i want to post at least 4 times every week.
  2. i want to visit 10 new cupcakeries (at least!)
  3. i want to introduce two new features, and maintain the unreached tuesdays one.

professional

  1. i want to prepare and take the Salesforce Certified Consulting Exam.
  2. i want to take the Salesforce DEV 451 course.

relational

  1. i want to intentionally look for ways to strengthen mine and nathan's relationship, including weekly date nights (which we have been pretty good about).

other/misc.

  1. i want to learn how to make at least 3 really good greek dishes. like homemade.
  2. i want to cut down on my caffeine intake even more- getting it down to 1-2 cups of coffee/a day.
seems like a lot when i type it all out, but i am excited for this next year. what are your resolutions?


28 December 2011

i'm baaaaaack!

whew! what else can be said about the last two months? fun, full, fantastic, fast - just all around great. since i've last posted (way back in november, yikes!), we've moved, i've made four homemade quilts, cooked quite a bit, we celebrated thanksgiving and christmas, and are eagerly awaiting little rhett's arrival (ashley and charlie's baby boy). i've run a half marathon, we mailed out christmas cards, hosted a christmas party, spent lots of time with both families, and i made some incredible chocolate peppermint cupcakes with white chocolate peppermint buttercream.

now you might notice that i slid in there that we have moved, and as you take a quick look at the blog, even the URL, you'll notice some things have changed. my sudden dip into silence on here was more of a byproduct of the busyness of life, but after moving and all, i wanted to wait til i had time to really dig into all that is going on, and i wanted to clarify my vision for this blog as we enter 2012.

in november, we were presented with an incredible opportunity to move into a home for much cheaper rent. we LOVED our days in the basement. our landlords were incredible, the space was so homey and perfect, the location was fun and exciting, and we celebrated so many sweet memories there. but this opportunity was just too good to pass up. so we packed up everything we owned in our little edge (it took a few trips) and moved to the southside of the city. not only was the rent incredible, but this move put us closer to our friends and church and family. sounds good, huh? also, it is allowing us to weigh out all the pros & cons of living either in the city or in 'burbs. we'll let you know how that goes.

so here we are. in a house. saving up. making things homemade. falling more in love. spending lots of time with friends and family. and ready for 2012.

to catch up and prepare for 2012, look forward to these (and more!) blog posts:

  • ashley's baby shower and surprise baby quilts
  • my 3rd half marathon with my uncle and cousin
  • the moving process
  • our christmas party with friends (including 3 yummy homemade cupcake recipes)
  • our christmas cards (designed by MOI)
  • christmas with our families
  • quilts for our moms
  • new years resolutions for 2012 (both for myself, and the blog)
  • and hopefully real soon, a feature on my new friend rhett (if he would just hurry up and get here!)
want to hear about anything else? leave a message and i'll happily reply and post about your topic ideas!!
also, be looking for updates/continuations of:
  • the cupcake crawl
  • unreached tuesdays
and a new feature on my training for my next half marathon with two sweet friends.

enjoy! it's so good to be back :)
and hey, let me know your thoughts on the redesign!