So sorry for being absent!

We moved into our new home recently,

and I am currently visiting my family

and friends in Las Vegas!

More updates to come, but in the meantime...

Check out this mural...

Hope you have a wonderful Tuesday :)

Ch-ch-ch-ch-CHANGES!

Hey Buds!

So, we got the house,

and we're moving in!!!

(little by little until this weekend)

In the meantime,

Tanner gave me full range 

to paint/scrape/etc!

So today, I'm painting some swatches 

in the kitchen

to see what lightens up the place.

I bought my samples already...

here's the inspiration:

What I'm going for?

FOR NOW:

- White cabinets

- soft gray or super muted pale teal walls

- Brushed nickel or oil-rubbed bronze pulls

FOR LATER:

- Dark counter tops, probably laminate due to our budget

- Window treatment... still deciding on what to do...

- Light fixtures, maybe something that would work better for task lighting over the sink...

Anywho,

can you tell I'm excited?

Probably too excited.

Well, here goes my first home project!

Oh! And suggestions and advice are encouraged!

I'll be taking pics!

Loco LOCO!

Well friends,

it's a Thursday night.

And not just any Thursday...

but the Thursday my in-laws 

are coming to visit!

And the Thursday before 

we close on our house!

It's loco, I tell you.

Also, I get the chance to visit 

my family and friends

in Las Vegas soon.

I couldn't be more excited.

What I look forward to most,

is laying back 

and witnessing how everything

(and everyone)

has changed.

For once,

I want to just soak it all in.

People watch,

listen,

savor...

:D

Hope you have a great night.

WOOT.

Hello friends!!!

So, I have

some updates:

1. We made another offer on a HOUSE!

It's a cute 3 bed, 2 bath pueblo style home!

2. Our offer was verbally accepted, 

so we're UNDER CONTRACT!!!

(Now we wait for an inspection to take place

as well as complete more paperwork)

3. Tanner & I began a fun workout plan 

to motivate (and reward!) ourselves :D

(Today, I have to ride my bike for about an hour)

4. I finished a home project - finally. 

(Pics will be in my next post!)

And last, but not least...

Source

 I finally beat Tanner in racquetball!!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Score?

21-19.

It was definitely a long-awaited

super intense match of greatness!

(I might have danced a little.)

Yep, I've never beat Tanner at this game...

until now!

I'm feeling pretty good, not going to lie.

Source

So, that's life for now.

I can't wait to show you my first 

completed "home" project!

Also, I plan on showing you my sweet couch.

Let's just say it's from the 1960's

and that's very

VERY

evident.

You are neato.

The end.

House Update!!!

Hi Comrades!

I have news.

We recently made an offer on a house

(A HOUSE!!!!)

and found out today

that we did not get it.

Are we bummed?

Eh... not too much

God's in control

and that's all that matters.

:)

In Short.

Well friends, I think we did it.

Did what, you ask?

I think we found 

our future home.

!!!!!!!

But let me tell you something.

It needs lots 

(AND LOTS AND LOTS!!!!) 

of work.

We're talking Jessie

in overalls 

swinging a mallet around to 

AC/DC 

(or something).

Yep.

 Let's just say 

I will soon be acquainted

(if we get the house)

with drywall,

texturing,

etc.

Pics to come.

P.S. - thanks for all the love 

regarding my shoulder & blacking out-ness...

I'm doing much better and healing up like a champ! :D

Little Steps.

Since Tanner & I moved away

to the far distant land of New Mexico,

I have found solace in several things:

1.  Music

Pandora.com is a beautiful thing, indeed...

Especially when your ears are hanging on the 

smooth delicate notes of Astrud Gilberto.

2. Cooking

My Homemade Sugar Cookies

I love getting creative in the kitchen,

and now that I have the time

it's like this special challenge I get to partake in...

What can I create today?

Or more so... 

what can I consume today...

3. Reading

This book is on my wish list!

 I read in the morning,

in the afternoon 

when the sun warms the carpet,

and in the night 

with Tanner before we sleep.

Current reads:

- The ESV Reformed Study Bible

- Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa

- John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress

4. Christ

We found a church 

almost by accident 

when we were moving in.

"Grace Bible Fellowship"

We saw their sign as we drove by

with the words

"Sola Scriptura"

underneath.

Once we started attending,

it was like we had found the jackpot:

a community of people 

who immediately had something

in common with us.

In fact, the most important thing

in common with us.

Their life's foundation.

In this church, I found an artist.

"Victoria Chick"

She's incredibly gifted.

And...

she's going to show me around.

Neato, my friends.

And we're OFF!

Hello from Silver City, New Mexico!!!!!!!

Here are some updates:

The wedding was incredible.

Sooooo worth the wait

and the work

and the trials.

I cannot explain the joy I have,

spending every day with Tanner 

after being apart for so long;

3.5 years of distance is exhausting, 

and now we can rest :)

As soon as I have our fancy photos, I shall share!

The honeymoon in Corvallis, Montana was relaxing...

and very much needed.

We played boardgames, watched movies,

and went thrifting together.

Plus, I ate my weight in pasta.

Good times.

Immediately after our Montana adventure,

we drove from Las Vegas to Tuscon

and then Tuscon to Silver City.

(Tanner rear-ended me 20 minutes into our drive... 

great start to our marriage! hehe)

First impression when driving into Silver City:

Uhhhhhh....

hmmmm....

Okay, God. 

Your will be done!

(And then some relief when I saw the historic downtown, 

colorful art galleries, trees, trees, trees! etc.)

So now, we're here!

Renting a house, finally unpacked,

figuring it all out...

I need to put up some pictures of the place, 

and tell you about a few more of our adventures...

But alas, it's a tad late for my schedule... 

Goodbye for now, beautiful people!

Feeling Silly

I've always had a hard time crying.

For some reason, I think,

deep down inside my brain -

or maybe my stomach -

I've always hated it.

Crying makes me feel weak,

vulnerable,

stupid...

I get so embarrassed when I usually cry

because I've been bottling myself up for so long,

and then I have this weird explosion of self 

all over people in public

and it's just plain awkward and humiliating.

But, I've realized some things.

God gave us emotions.

They don't just pop up to help us mate or something.

We're supposed to feel and reflect and explode a little sometimes.

Perhaps God makes me cry to remind me that it's okay to feel,

and that there's nothing wrong with crumbling  a little here and there, 

for the sake of letting Him in.

I'm allowed to cry.

There, I said it.

And this whole moving and getting married and leaving my loved ones and

change change change

is stressful.

It makes me sad to say goodbye to my parents 

and brother

and my friends

and my dog, 

yes, even my dog.

It's true, I'm getting married.

And it's true, I am blessed and excited 

to finally live with the man I've waited over 5 years to be with (!!!) -

but I believe it's okay for me to grieve leaving as well.

It's weird.

I feel like a tangled mess of syrup and spaghetti

which separately are pretty cool and alright to deal with,

but together,

well, you just don't know what to do with it.

Unless you're Buddy the Elf.

Then you savor it for all it's worth.

Hmmm...

Good thinking, Buddy...

Now, back to packing :)

This is how I draw in the morning.

Brow-Pack-Bump!!!

Hidey Ho!

Today, I had my eyebrows professionally waxed 

for the FIRST TIME!!!

I felt so so so girly.

Honestly, it was a great experience.

I went to a Benefit Brow Bar

where they focus on a classic brow line.

They're legit, my friends.

It was only 20 buckaroos plus a tip,

and I would totally do it again.

For you gals in Vegas, 

I went to their ULTA Salon location 

off of Stephanie and Sunset.

I highly recommend the gal there (her name's Alissa, I think?)

In other news....

I'm getting married in 1 week and 4 days.

WHAT?!?!

So crazy.

 Almost poop your pants crazy.

I'm in the process of packing my room,

finishing my final wedding crafts,

and wrapping up business here in Vegas.

My favorite part of all this is the in-between, actually...

The time I get to spend playing boardgames with family,

having random talks with my mom on the stairs while I box up dishes,

the glorious coffee excursions with my amazing friends...

It's a strange process, leaving.

One more thing.

So many beautiful women I know are expecting...

Alissa, Chelsea, Whitney -

Congrats to all of you!!!!

And I know this sounds weird,

but I have the urge to rub a baby bump!

(Alissa! That means you!!!!)

I feel like a freak, 

but some weird switch has gone off inside me

and all I want to do is get all giddy 

and pat a pregger belly!!!

Alright, that's all for now

:)

Making Sense

Hello all

It's been a bit, but with good reason - 

life has been picking up the pace, my friends!!!

UPDATES!

Christmas went well, 

but my mom was in the hospital for a bacterial infection 

and I woke up with some gnarly hives for the first time in my life!

(She's home now and doing much better, by the way!!!)

My arms, 

knees 

and random places all over 

were red and 

SUPER swollen,

super itchy,

and SUPER achy.

It was strange to say the least.

And it lasted 2 days!

So yeah, weird.

Now, my skin is crazy sensitive.

I can't even put a shirt on with busting out with redness and itchy little welts.

Taking off band-aids make my skin look like I got burned by a curling iron 

and punched several times...

I don't get it.

Any thoughts?

The dermatologist told me to take an OTC 

antihistamine through the wedding,

and that stress might be a huge factor for the hives.

But that's all they could offer up.

Also, I got a biopsy for the first time -

just a pesky mole on my shoulder...

but, I discovered I might have an irrational fear of needles...

I had some serious anxiety for the numbing shot

and sort of cried a little.

 Just a little,

but definitely embarrassing.

And finally, I had my last day at work.

It felt weird to end my job.

I enjoyed the time I spent there, which is nice to say.

Now, I have a week to pack my room,

get a marriage license 

and wrap up everything for the wedding!

I'm anxious for it in a good way, 

but a little overwhelmed with moving to another state 

Yeah, 
all of it 
at the same time 
is a tad overwhelming.

But it's all goooooood.

Oh! One more thing:

We found a place to live in Silver City, New Mexico!

We're renting a 3 bedroom/2 bath house!!!!  

I honestly thought we'd be in a one room apartment or a trailer.

But yeah, this is where I'll be living in less than a month!

our future place!

La Futura

Silver City New Mexico

We have finally figured out where Tanner and I will begin our life together: a quaint creative town of 10,000 people - Silver City, New Mexico.  I can't believe it's settled.

Somehow, knowing the city of our future residence makes marriage so much more tangible. 

And the more research I do on the place, the more I fall in love with it.  There's so much to do, so much to see there and be a part of - I'm sure we'll feel at home.  Despite the fact that we'll be so far from family and friends, I truly believe we'll meet some incredible people.  And honestly, I can't wait.

I'm feeling pretty restless here in Vegas.  So many parts of my life have come to an end; it only feels natural to move on, to move forward.  So let the countdown begin... 5 months until we're heading to New Mexico.