...the desires of my heart.....

Psalm 37:4

"Delight thyself also in the Lord, and he will give thee the desires of thine heart."

I remember reading this verse as a teenager and it always made me think of my wedding day and the person I would marry. Probably because as every other normal teenage girl, I dreamed of who and when I would marry. Not only did this verse give me hope but it also tended to scare me a little. What if I didn't "delight in the Lord?" Would I miss out on the husband and life that God wanted for me? I'm so thankful that although I am not perfect and there were times I could have made a wrong turn, God was gracious enough to give me the desire of my heart when He sent Julian into my life! He had been leading us together and it all happened in His perfect time. Julian grew up in a home and church 2000 miles away from me but God put us together in the same small college in Indiana! After 3 1/2 years of dating, God gave me the desire of my heart.... and wonderful life partner and as a bonus, a PERFECT wedding day!!!

July 2, 2010

We have so many wonderful memories from our wedding day! It was so perfect! That is the best word I can come up with to describe it!

Not to say that some things didn't go as planned. For example, the Tuesday of the wedding week, my Grandma from South Carolina was admitted to the hospital with a blood clot in her leg and her lung. This was very devastating to me. We are extremely close to our Grandparents (on both sides) but especially these. They have been a huge part of our life. She was told that she had to stay in the hospital for the entire week. It absolutely broke my heart when I found out they would not be there on my wedding day, but God knew what He was doing. Blood clots are very dangerous, especially when they start moving. If her symptoms would have started only a few hours later they would have been on the road, traveling to Indiana for the wedding. The situation could have been much more serious and complicated. Although it still makes me sad when I think about how they were not there, God is in control. She is home from the hospital and is doing much better!

Another twist in the "wedding week" was that we said goodbye to our sweet Golden Retriever, Dakota Brady. He became very sick the week before and was getting worse and worse as the days went by. A half hour before our rehearsal dinner we took one last family photo with him and then took him to the vet. They put him down the next morning, the wedding day. He really was such a good dog! We have so many good memories with him!

There was so much work put into our wedding, by so many different people. I was so spoiled! First of all, by my parents, they worked so hard on every aspect of planning so that it would be a great day! I cannot thank them enough! Everything turned out so beautiful and I will never forget it! The entire day was perfect.

My bridesmaids and I had such a fabulous day together! It was a stress-free day that was full of laughs and so many memories!! They were all so BEAUTIFUL! Just look at them!

My flower girl, Nicole, was absolutely ADORABLE. She was so sweet and so excited to be a part of our day! She is going to be a beautiful lady some day (just like her Mom)! :)

My handsome brothers!

I'm such a lucky girl to have such a great family!

I have the most beautiful Mom in the world!

My sweet, sweet Dad.

My flowers were more beautiful than I ever imagined!

One last touch up before going down the aisle!

The reception was absolutely gorgeous! These were the center pieces. They turned out perfect!

The main cake table.

The cake lady did an wonderful job on the cake, it looked GREAT and most importantly, tasted AMAZING!

The kids cake table!

Cutting the cake

:)

aww..

All of us

The auditorium was gorgeous.

Making great memories!

In front of the limo before saying goodbye

Off we go

Saying goodbye to my first love!

All of these photos were snapshot taken by Nicole, one of my bridesmaids. I only get prints of the professional shots but I love these just as much as the real shots! She did a fabulous job and she was in the wedding!!!! Thanks girl, you caught some moments that I never want to forget!!!

It's all over....

It's official, I am married!! The wedding, honeymoon and move to California are all over. I promise, as soon as my life settles down and we get all moved in I will be posting away! :) I can't wait to do my post about the wedding and honeymoon!!! You WILL be hearing from me soon!!!

Happy Birthday to my King!!

There is this quote that I have always liked that says, "Someday my prince will come, but my Dad will always be my King." I know it's a little corny but it always makes me smile because of how true it is! He has always been my number one man. He has always been on the top! God gave me the best Father in the world. I love him so much. I know that I could not put into words all that my Dad means to me. I'm so lucky! He has taught me so much in the 22 years I have lived in his house. He has shown me how to be a REAL friend (even when it is taken for granted), how to love, even when love is not returned. He has a love for God and a burden for souls that is incredible. He gives his whole heart to the church and the ministries he is involved in. He knows how to laugh at himself. He has real joy and shows it all the time! But he is also very serious and dedicated when he needs to be. He is faithful and consistent in every aspect of life. I love that I can talk to him about anything. He is my Father but he is also one of my closest friends. I respect him more than any man in the world. He has proven himself over and over. He has always been there whether it was just to talk, or get on me about something, or give me a hug after a long day, or tease me about my 'moments', laugh with, walk with, pray with, or even to just give a good back rub. :) So, even though I have found my prince I can honestly say that my Dad truly.....in all areas of life...at least in my eyes.....is my KING!

Happy 51st Birthday Daddy!!

I love you!!

When it's all worth it...

This is Maxine...I was able to catch this adorable moment with her one day in the Infant room at the daycare where I work. This video makes me laugh so hard. Moments like this make the hundreds of stinky diapers, the dried spit up on your outfit at the end of the day, the drool, the biting, screaming, pinching etc... all worth it. I love my job!! I'm going to miss these kids so much! And isn't she just so CUTE..her crazy hair and all :) By the way, you might wonder what she is laughing at... all I was doing was bouncing a ball off the wall..haha..it really made her day though!

Hello Blog World!!! Once again I have neglected you. Most of you that read my blog know me in real life so you know that I do have GREAT excuses for not posting for the last two months! :) Those of you that only read my blog, have probably lost faith in my blogging abilities but I hope to win that back over time! :) A lot has been going on in my little world!

Here are some pictures of things that have kept me occupied!

These are the sixth graders that I had the pleasure of student teaching from January to May. I absolutely loved them to pieces! I think I learned as much from them as they learned from me! :) I also taught a 9th and 10th Geography class, which was a very challenging experience for me but I can say that I am glad I went through it!

Being crazy!

After the long but great semester I finally graduated!!! Along with the most handsome man in the world! It was so great to be able to share that special day!!

My parents, little brother and I

Just me

My future in-laws got to come for it!! The day before was Julian's little sister's 16th birthday so we had fun celebrating that together!!

HANDSOME!!!

Nicole, Tab and I!!

On top of all that, I have been slowly but surely crossing off many things on my wedding to-do list! It has been a little stressful at some points but we are getting close to the finish line!!

Invitations! My hand still hurts just thinking about those...wow...

Ring shopping! These are my rings together...this was before they took the ridges off the edge of the band so that it matches my engagement ring.

Cake tasting! YUM!!

These along with dresses, shoes, silk flowers, real flowers, tux's, ties, ribbon, jewelry and the list goes on and on! I have had so much fun with all the planning but I am very ready for the big day!! I DO plan on keeping up with this blog on a much more regular basis from now on!!

2,133

2,133

This is the number of miles that I will be moving in just three and a half months! Recently, I have been having these homesick moments. Do you know what I mean? I used to have these moments when I was a little girl. I would be at school and I distinctly remember all of the sudden being homesick. I would get this weird feeling in the pit of my stomach and I remember the only thing I could think about was that I wanted to go home, I wanted to be with my parents. Maybe some of you think I'm weird but recently I have been having these moments when I think about moving allll the way to California.

You see, I have lived in the same exact house, on the same exact street, in the same exact town for my entire life! I never went away to college, I went to college in my hometown. Now in just three and half months I am not just moving out of my parents home but also moving 2,133 miles away!! That's crazy!

The other day I was just driving through my hometown and it just hit me... I'm leaving this....sooo much is going to change! I started to cry. Ever since then, as I drive I look around at everything... almost trying to soak it all up... knowing that my time here is almost up. Now, it's not just the town itself that I will miss. Most of all, I get sick to my stomach when I think about that day when I say goodbye to my Dad and Mom. Even while I am typing this I get that feeling. My parents are amazing and I am going to miss them soo much. Then there are my friends...and church...and coworkers...and families from work...all the people and things that are my world.

I'm sure some of you are thinking..."Wow, she doesn't want to move!" :) No, thats not it. I AM so excited about getting married and starting my family and life but it scares me! I know..it's part of life and it's part of "growing up" some would say, but for me it's going to be so much more than that. I'm going to miss everyone and everything that I have known for the past 22 years so much! I have had a WONDERFUL life so far and I have soo many people that I love that have become a part of it. I am so thankful for everything that God has given me! It's definitely going to be a HARD goodbye!

I forgot to mention.....

4 MONTHS from today is our Wedding Day!!!!!!!!!!!!