3D

I have been wanting to see a 3D movie for a while now, but combine the fact that Justin usually isn’t into seeing movies with the fact we will only see G or PG movies, and that really limits my movie-going.

Christmas night Justin and I got together with Dustin and Jenna and watched “Gulliver’s Travels” in 3D at the theater in our hometown.  I have to say I wasn’t terribly impressed with the movie, but I really enjoyed the previews!  haha!

I had such a good time being with some of my favorite people and laughing at how goofy we looked with our glasses on!

I definitely want to start watching all animated movies in 3D if it’s available.  The effect didn’t seem as noticeable on the movie we saw.  Either way, I can’t wait to go back!!!  :) 

puppy love (+ a kitty)

I haven’t been able to get much practice in with my new camera because I don’t have any willing participants at my house!

Well, Bobo got a haircut right after Christmas, so I decided he needed to pose for a picture. 

Here is my shaggy boy before his appointment.  Justin had actually started calling him “big nasty”. 

He looked so fresh and much younger when we got him back!

And just because I can’t leave my kitty out…

is it too late for Christmas?!

Yes, it’s now January.  A whole new year.  I’m just now blogging about Christmas.  This really doesn’t surprise me at the rate I’ve been going.  Seems like for some reason I find the motivation to blog at the beginning of the month, and then forget about it until a new month rolls around.

Anyway..

Christmas 2010:

 

We traveled to West Monroe so that we could spend Christmas with family again.  We stayed (as usual) with Justin’s parents.  On Christmas Eve we met up with some of my daddy’s side of the family.  We ate gumbo (super yum!) and talked about old times and shared funny stories.  It was fun, but I wish the entire family could have been there.  After that, we went to Justin’s mom’s side of the family.  We actually showed up late, but just in time to play the Dirty Santa game.  Justin and I ended up “winning” gift cards to Copeland's!  Woohoo!  We ended the night opening gifts with Justin’s parents and sister.  We were more than blessed.  I was actually shocked at all the gifts!

I gave Justin a wish list way back before Christmas, but really had no idea what he would get me.  I was very pleasantly surprised when I tore away wrapping paper and saw this…

He knew how much I needed a camera bag and how much I loved the Kelly Moore Bags.  I was and still am thrilled with it!

Just for memories sake, this is how I was carrying my camera around before in order to keep it protected:

and after:

muchhhhhhh better :)

I gave Justin several books that he asked for and an armband to hold his iphone while working out.  He was very happy with everything, even the stuff that I surprised him with!  And that’s saying something, because he is hard to buy for!!!

Christmas morning we slept in a little and then headed over to Justin’s dad’s side.  We had tons of yummy food there and just enjoyed each other’s company.

Next we headed to visit my mom and some other family on her side.  It was fun being there to watch two of my cousin’s girls open some presents.  Being around children during the holidays just makes it more fun to me!

After 5 different houses, lots of good food, plenty of gifts, and tons of laughs, we finished with our Christmas celebrations. 

With the busyness of the season, I have to remind myself that although I enjoy all of these things, I really need to put more focus on my Savior willingly coming to earth as a tiny baby so that he could live a sinless life and die a sinner’s death so that we can all have eternal life with Him.

glasses

Sometime Saturday night I lost my glasses.  I’ve had glasses since I was about 16 for reading.  I ended up making an appointment Monday for an eye exam and to get new glasses.

Well, turns out my eyes have gotten much worse than last time I had an exam.  I have to start wearing glasses all of the time, not just for reading!  I also found out that I have astigmatism in both eyes.

Anyway, my glasses came in today.  Wearing them all day is going to take some getting used to!

the past week

It’s been an eventful week.  I guess December is always busy, though, so it shouldn’t be a surprise.

Last Wednesday our friends, Dustin and Jenna, hosted a little Christmas dinner party.  We had super yummy lasagna, green bean casserole, and pecan pie for dessert.  Then we watched Elf… it’s the best!

On Thursday, the same friends, Dustin and Jenna, found out that their baby is a GIRL!!!  We are all so excited!  She is due in May, and her name is Kindle Elizabeth.  So sweet!  So of course I had to pick her up a little girly outfit :)

The rest of the weekend was pretty laid back, but then Monday night Justin and I met my sister, Dom, and Ava for dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. 

We won’t see them for Christmas, so we went ahead and gave Ava her Christmas gifts.  We gave her coloring books, crayons, stickers, and clothes.  Her very favorite thing was the Dora stickers.  By the time we left the place, she had stickers all the way up her arms.  haha!

Now we are getting ready to head to LA for Christmas with the rest of the family!  Can’t wait!!!!

baby update

I haven’t been posting anything about the “baby”, cause there hasn’t been anything to post.  But after talking with a friend last night, I’m thinking it might be a good idea to write some of this stuff down.  I know I won’t remember it all, but might want to one day.

I want to start off with a few words I’ve gotten from God in the past…

-God is going to put you in dark places where you must depend on Him.  He will teach you to trust His voice and not your eyes. (4.11.06)

-God has not forgotten about you.  He hasn’t forgotten the promises He’s made you.  Keep your faith in Him.  Don’t lose trust, don’t lose faith.  He will come through.  (10.25.06)

-… He’s getting ready to teach you a lesson.  He’s going to teach you to live this life of faith… (5.30.09)

-Your family, that baby you have been wanting, it’s coming sooner than you think. (spring/summer 2010)

-Don’t give up hope just yet!  My promises are not empty to you!  I am the God of faithfulness and I will prove my word to you.  I will not let you down!  I have a plan!  My plan for you has a purpose and that purpose lies in the waiting…. Just hold on a little longer and you will see that you will have not waited in vain.  (10.18.10)

 

Since probably about fall of 2005, all of my dreams have been focused on having a family.  I have wanted to become a mother so badly.  I finally found my wonderful husband and got married in 2008.  Well, he wasn’t ready to start a family just yet.  I didn’t understand then, but I do now.  We have needed this time together without children.  We have both changed so much as individuals and as a couple.  We needed time to get to know each other and learn how to be married.  Anyway, since fall 2008, it’s been a waiting game.  I was just waiting on Justin to be “ready”.  Well during the summer of this year, that time finally came!  We were very excited, but wanted to make sure we did things in God’s timing.  We prayed about it and thought about it, and finally decided to start trying to start a family on a certain day in September. 

I must pause here to say that in the two years that I waited on Justin to get ready, countless (probably around 30-40) girls I knew had babies or were pregnant.  Many of these pregnancies were not expected.  The girls weren’t even trying to have a baby.  This somehow made me think that it would be easy for us as well.  (I did have a few fears about infertility because my mother dealt with it, but those fears were dealt with over a period of a few months before we began trying.  God showed me time after time that I wouldn’t need to worry about infertility.  Thank you, Jesus!)

So, September comes and goes.. then October… then November…

Another handful or two of girls I know were announcing pregnancies throughout this time.  Some of them their second child.. one even her fourth! 

I really didn’t expect a positive test in September.  It was our first month, so that negative was easy(er) to deal with.  October… that’s a different ballgame.  I really FELT pregnant.  I just knew I would see two pink lines.  But nope.  Big fat negative.  After that cycle, I got really down.  I was so sad.  I felt like it was so unfair that everyone around me was being blessed with babies… even when they weren’t desperate for them.  Here I was crying out to God for my little one, and all I got was a negative test.  We kept trying, but I honestly just started getting bitter.  When I would hear yet another announcement, I would get super emotional.  It was like I was just being tortured.  I wanted to be happy for them, and I was… but at the same time I was so ripped apart inside.  It’s been SO HARD.  I never would have imagined that so much pain and emotions and grief and stress could come from this. 

I can’t wrap my head around what I need to be doing.  I sometimes feel like I need to keep praying for our baby to come.  That if I’m persistent enough, God will answer me.  But sometimes I feel like I don’t need to ask even one more time.  He knows my heart’s desires.  He’s heard my prayers and promised to answer them.  So should I be done with praying and asking?  I don’t know.

I have really had to lean hard on God’s promises to me.

I have had to lean hard on my husband.  He has had to hold me at the dinner table while I sobbed and big tears dropped onto my plate.  He has had to listen to me time after time after time as I try to sort through the feelings and thoughts that go along with all of this.

I have had to lean on two of my best friends.  They have been there for me through it all.

Here we sit halfway through December, and I’ve yet to see my positive test.  I’m super disappointed.  But I’m trying to remember that it’s all for a reason.  God is using this time to strengthen my faith in Him.  He is using this hard time to strengthen my marriage. 

God is going to use my story as a testimony.  He is going to use our baby in a mighty way.  I just know it!

Sometimes I just want to be selfish.  I want to say forget the testimony.  Forget that I might be able to help someone else walk through this one day.  I just want my baby!  But I know that isn’t the right attitude.  I have to take control of my feelings and give them back to the Lord.  His thoughts and ways are higher than mine.

I cannot wait until the day comes when I get to make an “I’m Pregnant!” post.  What a glorious day that will be!!!  I pray that it is soon.

 

**Psalm 27:14 Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.

** Matthew 11:6 Blessed are those who don’t doubt Me.

a few of my favorite things.

It’s almost halfway through the last month of 2010.  I figured this would be as good a time as any to blog again.  I don’t know what it’s going to take for me to be consistent with this thing again….

A few of my favorite things.  In a list.  In no particular order.

1.) the holiday season. As much as I dislike the freezing cold temps, I love the holidays.  I love that I get to see all my family and at least a few good friends twice in two months.  Going home rocks!  Therefore the holidays rock.  I was pretty much camera-ed out this Thanksgiving and didn’t get many pictures.  Gotta do better at Christmas!  But I love this one of me and my daddy.. I don’t have many pictures with him, so I cherish this one..

2.) my Ava princess.  Ava is and always will be one of my very favorite people.  She is a living doll.  I bought her a princess crown and gave it to her on Thanksgiving day.  I told her she was a princess.  Her response??  “no, I’m a QUEEN!!”.  So there we have it… she is Queen Ava from now on!  haha!

3.) my Hubby.  He has been my rock here lately.  I’m so grateful for him.  He makes me laugh when I don’t feel like laughing.  He is changing before my eyes.. and the changes are good ones.  I feel so blessed! 

4.) my job.  Although little man has been fussy lately, (He’s been cutting two teeth and dealing with a cold) I couldn’t ask for a better job.  Just look at that face…

5.) my furry babies.  On cold nights before Justin gets home from work, I love cuddling with my puppy and my kitty.  They keep me good company.

6.) caramel brulee fraps.  Starbucks knew what they were doing with this one.  No words.

7.) my Christmas tree.  It is small.  But it, along with the stockings hanging from the mantle, does it’s job.  It brings me Christmas cheer!  I love having the lights on all the time.  Christmas is the best!

8.) monster cookies.  These things  probably deserve their own post… but oh well!  A friend, also named Melissa, posted about making these on her blog.  I was intrigued!  All things good that can go into a cookie are combined together into one cookie!!!!  I made half a batch and it was plenty.  You must try them….

9.)  MY NEW CAMERA AND NEW LENS!!!  I almost can’t believe it.  I have been wanting to upgrade for a while.  I was pushing my xsi to it’s limits at just about every shoot I’ve had here lately.  I needed something better.  But thought surely it wasn’t possible.  With the money from my old gear, my hubby, my wonderful in-laws, some money I’ve had saved, and a photog friend needing to upgrade also…. I’m now the proud owner of a Canon 5d and a 50mm 1.4 lens!  No pictures yet, but I had to list it, cause it’s definitely one of my favorite things right now.

10.) The Chronicles of Narnia movies.  Justin and I had seen the first two movies before, but when we found out the third was coming out this weekend we decided to have a little marathon.  We watched the first one last sunday, the second on wednesday, and went to the new one today!  They are all great, but I really enjoyed the newest one.  We went with some of our besties, Dustin and Jenna.  It was a good time.