Become Beautiful

Six months, literally, have past by without me so much as checking my blog. A lot has happened in those six months - for example, a promotion, the beginning of house hunting, and oh yes, a new year has made its way into our life. We have grown in our marriage and are looking forward to celebrating our second anniversary in just 6 short months. Just a little side note - I cannot believe it has almost been two years already!

So usually, I attempt the whole New Year's resolution thing. I believe the longest it ever lasted was about a month. Considering that these resolutions are supposed to be things that become a constant part of making your life better, I don't necessarily consider that a success. This year, I've decided to have a running theme, if you will, for the year. Something to focus on and really strides toward other than a list of things I constantly feel like I have to check off the list. I ran across this verse a few weeks ago, and it just stuck with me. 

1 Peter 3:4 – Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading

beauty of a gentle & quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.

I've decided to make my theme "Become Beautiful" based on this verse. I have a handful of things that I'm focusing on that will lead me in that direction. I'm not sure if I going to share them or not or even if I'll add to the list as the year goes on. I just really hope and pray to make this my focus for the year so by the end of 2012, I can see some real, definitive changes in who I am. Far to often, I focus on perfecting the outside while I have so much work to do on the inside. Feel free to make it part of your year as well. Whether you do or not, say a prayer for me because I'm sure it won't be an easy task. When is change ever that? ;)  What do you need to do to become beautiful in 2012? 

Become Beautiful 

Celebration in Austin : )

It has been TOO long since I have blogged, and, to be honest, I was missing it! We just hit an amazing milestone...our one year anniversary! So to celebrate, we headed west to the weird city of Austin. We had a blast and did so much in a short 3 days! So I wanted to hit a few hilites so you guys felt like you were there too :)

First of all, the restaurants were incredible! Our first hit was Piranha Killer Sushi. If you are in Austin, GO HERE! Seriously, some of the best sushi I have ever had! The next go-to restaurant in Austin is Hopdoddy's. Gourmet burgers, freshly cut french fries, and homemade ice cream - who can beat that?And finally - speaking of ice cream - Amy's Ice Cream. Oh. my. goodness. I want to thank our new friends, the wonderful Nunnerys, for introducing us and meeting up with us for a bit to catch up! Here's some food eye candy for your viewing pleasure.

We also hit SoCo for some shopping, saw the famous Mexican bats that fly to Austin every year, did some kayaking, and hit a comedy club. Loved SoCo - full of little eclectic shops like Unusual Objects. This store had anything you could think of-WWII helmets, Old Hollywood memorabilia, as well as a bunch of old typewriters, and the list goes on and on. I almost had a slight heart attack when I saw this store. And yes, for those of you who are wondering, Shane was more than happy to join me ; ) 

Austin was incredible, and we had a great time! Such a good time in fact, that we wouldn't mind living there someday.  It was an amazing first year full of learning and lots of love. We can't wait for the next 60 or so : ) 

                                                  

Making Our Mark

      We just got back from Spring Break XI and let me tell you - it was much needed. I decided to head back to Baylor to visit some of my best girlfriends and see campus again. It was so much fun and a total girls weekend - again, much needed. : ) Throughout the weekend, we were catching up on what everyone has been up to/doing, and two things occurred to me.
1) We are freaking juniors in college. It literally feels like we started our freshmen year six months ago, and most of us or graduating in May or December 2012. This simple fact = pure insanity. It's also kinda scary because then we have to begin our existence in the real world now. But that thought led me to occurrence numero dos.
2) We have already begun to make our mark in the real world. We have all worked so hard in our college years, have questioned if what we're majoring in is what we really want to do with only 2-3 full semesters left, and have already started to build our post-college lives. I was amazed at what some of my friends are doing now, knowing we were clueless freshmen not too long ago & having no idea where we would end up.
     One of my friends is a exercise science major. Not only is she in some kick-butt classes (haha that pun was seriously not intended), but she's now leading a yoga class by herself. And just a side note - she will be my trainer once she graduates and moves to Louisiana. : )
    Another one of my brave friends is preparing to take the LSAT, which to me is huge. It takes serious dedication - I'm talking 4 hour night classes twice a week - and I am so proud of her for going for it.  I can totally see her defending the helpless, and this is just a tiny step towards that.
    Most of my nursing major friends are finding their niche specialties. My best friend from high school was born to be a mom - through and through. So when she got to assist OB/GYNs this semester, I could pretty much tell she found her calling simply by her excited tweets.
    I have friends starting businesses, getting married (and I mean legit I-want-to-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-with you marriages), and following these new found passions. I never thought in a million years that I would be training to run/manage an event and all the workings and numbers that go into that. I also never thought I would randomly learn how a development company runs on a daily basis, but that's all part of it. We're being molded into actual adults (in some ways :), and it is so cool to see that we are already beginning to make our mark.

Disclaimer: I SO wish I could have included every single one of my friends, but I thought if it was too long, some might not read, and I can't have that. : )  So please know, you are all loved and I am amazed by each of you!

Happenings & Some More of the Design Bug

Well it has been a BUSY few weeks, but things have been going very well. School is wrapping up for the semester- I only have 3 weeks of class left and cannot say how excited I am for a break!  I am learning so much with my new job and am loving every minute of it. I only have two more things to do finish decorating my office, then pics will be up (for the few that want to see lol).  There is so much to learn in the wedding/management world. It is completely different to see it in action than learn theories in class, but it's all good because I'm loving it even more in action! We shall see where it leads. :)

Since my crazy test schedule is wrapping up, I've decided to tackle spring cleaning this year AND finish all the decor I want to do. Thanks to Real Simple's new issue and their many spring cleaning shortcuts, it doesn't seem NEARLY as daunting a task as it normally does. Check it out here. Hopefully you'll be as inspired as I was. This is one of my fave magazines with amazing decor inspiration and great tips for keeping it up! AND their covers are always eye-catching. I mean who could resist a cute little chick on a stack of spring colored towels?

I have already found what I think will be the next piece for our bedroom and I am so excited about it - I just hope the color works as well as it looks like it will from the website. Don't you hate it when you think it will and it doesn't? I've always wanted a little reading/getting ready nook in my bedroom. I already have the great shelf, just the need the right chair to complete it. The biggest issue is size, but I think this chair passes that test. I do need to make sure the pattern of the chair won't fight the semi-geometric pattern of our bedding but I have high hopes.

So I'm still going for that modern romantic look, and I'm thinking this will go brilliantly. I'm having a lot of fun seeing this vision come together, and I cannot wait till this is done. I think I'm going to make decor/design a new hobby of mine - especially since we may be buying a house within the next year or so. Then the REAL fun will start ; ) Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Busy Bees & the Design Bug

     So I just noticed that's it been quite a while since my last blog post, and that could and would definitely be due to the crazy fast pace our life has been going lately! BUT it's been great as well, leaving us a lot of things to be grateful for! Both of our jobs are going well, and school is going along just fine for me. We've been enjoying the company of great friends, old and new, a lot recently which has been a great blessing.
    We've also been putting in a lot of effort to get our apartment completed - as far as decoration goes that is. It is an apartment and is a temporary situation; we're just not sure how temporary as of now. ;) But I have to say the more I add to it, the more I love it - it just feels like home. I've also discovered a love for making a place a home. I've been bitten by the interior design bug - to the point where I got excited that a design blog I follow now has our shower curtain in their guest bathroom. A little pathetic I know :) So for my next big project, we will be making our own upholstered headboard. I'm really excited about it and think I've narrowed down the fabric I need as well as the shape I want to do. Here's a few of the ideas I have floating around in my head...

     So I've pretty much decided on the square shape and I'll be going with a lighter neutral fabric to match our new bedding from West Elm which I'm SUPER excited about. I'm going for a modern romantic look and really hope to pull it off. Pics will be coming soon, as well as pics of my office which is slowly becoming more decorated and is so cute! Stay tuned :)

The Little Things about Marriage

So, exciting news...Shane & I are about to make the 8 month mark in our very new marriage! While we have settled into our everyday routine quite comfortably, there are still those times that sneak up that just make my day and make our marriage feel like it's still 1 day old. I know I know, it's only been 8 months, and I'm by no means saying it's already boring. ;) But I'm learning that it's those little things in a relationship that you see every so often that make it so unbelievably new & amazing. I've noticed a couple of those things lately, so I thought I'd share.

1. Finding out little details about your significant other from a time before you were together - when you thought you already knew everything there was to know.
This one was especially funny to me. Shane and I were sitting on the couch talking one night, and I all of sudden noticed something on his ears. Two tiny little marks - ones that I had never noticed before. As I looked closer, I realized that my rather clean cut husband had  had both ears pierced at one time! I couldn't believe it! It was so funny to think about it, and kinda cool at the same time because I realized there were still little things we didn't know about each other. I don't try to figure them out because it was so neat to stumble upon it and realize that we still have so much to learn about each other.

2. Figuring out that things really do get sweeter with time.
I sometimes feel the pressure as a newlywed to have this amazing, adventurous marriage that never has any kinks because you are just that - a newlywed. But I'm figuring out that the old saying is really true. There are things that may take a little while to get used to, and time definitely does make them better. A few examples:

Sharing a bed- I had a huge bed all to myself for the longest time, and while I love to cuddle, it was so hard for me to get used to having someone right by me for the whole night. I was seriously sleepless and a tad claustrophobic. But 8 months later and with an upgraded bed size, it's something I look forward to.

Communication skills- oh my. I quickly learned that just because you think something, it doesn't mean he does. Just because I think that the shower curtain should always be closed doesn't mean he does. Just because I have an opinion about a situation doesn't mean we'll always share the same view. And that's ok. It is a daily reminder of how differently we think and communicate and how important it is for us to actually say things. It's going to take time to learn these special communication skills, but it's all part of the adventure.

3. Learning that it's ok that I'm not June Cleaver.
I love a constantly spotless, gorgeous house, as well as a homemade meal that may or may not include 3 courses, but let's face it - it's not the 50's (although I sometimes wish it were). And I have definitely felt the pressure to be June Cleaver at times. But I'm a full time student with a job and an internship, so needless to say, sometimes other things take priority over vacuuming and cooking. Because of that, I am so thankful that I have a husband that understands that I'm not always going to be the domestic goddess I aspire to be. ;) He's so great about helping out when I'm stressed that it helps me not to place too-high-of high expectations on myself. All that matters is that I keep everything balanced- focusing on God first, my marriage & family, friends, school/work, and then the housework ;)

Our first 8 months have been amazing, and it's so neat to see how much we're already learning about each other. Can't wait to see what the next 8 months and more bring :)

My Big Girl Job :)

So today began the first day of my big girl job - interning for the private events director of City Club- and I was SO excited. And let me tell you - it was full force for the first day. Before I knew it, it was well past noon. I found out last week that it was approved & whatnot and seized the opportunity. It's going to be a busy semester with that, my job at River Ranch Development, and a full semester, but I'm ready for it! I'll basically be helping with and learning how a well-sized venue that covers a variety of different events is run, from the event and business side. I now have my own office which is super cute and tucked away in a corner of City Club..I already love it! I really see this job not only as an answer to prayer, but also as a provision from God. I found out that it was being considered for approval right about the time I was starting to see that the Ft. Worth Move wouldn't be happening. Although I still I wanted so badly to just pack up and go anyway, I knew God wanted us here. Not two-three weeks after we made the definite decision to stay here, I found out I got it! It's going to make for a great resume filler, awesome experience, and I know it has to do with some part of the plan God has for my life!


The ONLY downside that I know I'll get over(eventually): Classes start tomorrow and although I'm excited, I have all 8 o'clocks. We'll have to see how well I hold up to early mornings and full days when I'm use to waking up at 8. I know, I know - sickening isn't it? ;)