Digital Books

VS

Something has really been bothering me for a while now and I just have to vent to someone so I am taking it to my blog!!! I can't exactly remember when I first saw an eReader but I was so shocked by it that I remember thinking..."Don't tell me that books are going digital too..NOOOO!!" Almost EVERYTHING is digital now, but I guess I was so naive that I really never thought that books would be.

I don't know why this bothers me so much but I guess it is because I LOVE, I mean LOVE to read! I love going to the bookstore and picking out a new book to read....the smell of the pages, the front cover, holding a book in my hands as I read, looking at all my books on my bookshelf, basically everything about books I love!

I guess what bothers me is that in my head I see a day coming where all books will be only in digital form and that makes me so sad. I picture myself telling my kids one day about how books use to come printed on paper and bound together while they stare at me in amazement. I don't know if I could ever get use to reading a book on a screen. I hope there are more people like me in the world and that books will continue to be printed. It reminds me of the newspaper and how so many people don't buy the paper anymore because you can get the news online. I pray that never happens to books...it really makes me want to start a "Stop the eReaders" campaign or something!

I know I can't be alone on this one. Do you have an eReader or do you prefer books? I am sure the eReader is great, but I am just not ready to give up books and probably never will be. I know I am old fashioned but some things are better left alone!

Closet Makeover

If you know me at all you know how much I love to organize things. Well, one thing that has been on my to-do list has been my closet. I finally made time to do it and the first thing I did was order huggable hangers from The Container Store. They were not cheap, but I have been wanting some for a long time and I look at it as an investment since I will have them forever. The next thing I bought was some cute storage boxes from Wal-Mart to put at the top of my closet. I seriously needed these because as you will see I definitely don't have a walk-in closet and there is not much storage at all. I wish I had taken before pictures because then you would really see the difference but I forgot...trust me it was pretty messy!

As you can see, I still need a better solution for my shoes..they are everywhere and I even have more in shoe boxes in the chest. A girl can never have too many shoes right :) I had an extra storage box so I put it on the floor and put all my gloves and scarves in it.

The Huggable Hangers come in many fun colors, but I decided to go with a neutral color (Ivory) so I wouldn't get tired of it. I LOVE the Huggable Hangers because they keep my clothes from getting those annoying bumps at the shoulders and they are so slim that my closet space really did almost triple. If you remember I did a post a while back on "As Seen on T.V." items I had purchased and I gave a review of them. Well, these hangers get a thumbs up many times over. They keep my clothes from falling off the hangers and are strong enough to hold my heaviest jackets and coats. I have another small closet where I keep my jackets, sweaters, and dresses and I also bought Huggable Hangers for that closet too.

Every time I open my closet and see all my clothes nicely hung on matching hangers I just have to smile....it was well worth all the work :)

Home Sweet Brother's Home

My brother, Glenn, just bought his first home and I am so happy and excited for him!! Mom and I went to Rockwall this weekend to help him put the finishing touches on it...yes, he let us help him decorate it and I was all about that :)

Glenn's first House

Proud Home Owner

Like most guys my brother hates taking pictures but I convinced him that one day he will want a picture of his first home so he let me take one with him in it :)

Come on in and I will show you around.......


The living room


Glenn had to basically furnish the whole house and he did a great job finding good deals being the finance major he is. He found these couches on sale at a furniture store somewhere in Dallas and got a great deal on them. I like how the room turned out. You can't see in this picture but there is a chocolate brown rag rug on the floor in front of the couch that looks really good with couches.


Another view of the living room..I love the fireplace!!


Kitchen Nook with breakfast table

He found the table on Craigslist and I think it looks perfect in the kitchen


The Kitchen

I LOVE his kitchen..the cabinets, the island, the gas stove (which I really want some day). Mom and I lined all his cabinets and helped him put his dishes up and get organized. Mom and Dad gave him the stainless steel garbage can as a house warming present that you see in the bottom right hand corner.

Dining Room

The dining room table was another Craigslist find and it looks great in the room. My sister, Stephanie, gave Glenn the metal wall hanging that we put up in the dining room. I think it really looks good there.

Laundry Room

I really love his washer and dryer. They are top loaders and yet function just like a front loader.

Guest Bath

I helped him pick out the shower curtain and bath mats and I like how it turned out

Guest Room..still a work in progress

Office/Work Out Room

You can't tell int he picture but this room is painted pink. So, he is going to paint it and make it his office and workout room. My dad is going to be able to help him paint it next weekend. He is trying to decide if he wants to paint it Astros red and paint the Astros star on the wall or just khaki and make it a golf theme room since he has allot of golf memorabilia and trophies. I told him I can bring my overhead projector from school and help him paint the Astros star on the wall but we will see. I have never done that before so it might be safer to go with the Khaki!

Master Bath

My favorite part of the house :) Notice the t.v. in the bathroom. I guess that is a guy thing because I like to relax in the bath not watch t.v. but to each their own :)

Master bedroom

He also found this furniture on Craigslist and while we were there we went to IKEA in Frisco and saw the exact same furniture for much more. We also found the black mirror at IKEA which I love!

Master Bedroom

Look who came to visit...did I mention he moved 20 minutes away from Heather (one of my best girlfriends!!) She is holding baby girl, Karah, and I enjoyed getting to love on her..she is so adorable and I am so glad Heather came to see me. Heather's husband's dad is having health problems and has been in the ICU in West Texas. They have been traveling there every weekend to see him with their three girls. They were driving home on Sunday and were coming straight through Rockwall so it worked out that they could stop and visit. It was so sweet of Wallace, Heather's husband, to stop because he had stayed on a cot the night before next to his dad and got 3 hours of sleep. He was so tired that when they got there he feel asleep in the chair while we went to eat.

Britni and Carrie also came over and we all got to visit and go eat. Britni lives about an hour and half away and Carrie lives 45 minutes away. It was so good to see them and I will say it again that I have the best friends a girl could ever ask for! Carrie and Britni helped so much at Glenn's house. I insisted they didn't have to work but they just ignored me :)

Mom and Grammy were there of course

Do you see the little golfer statue on his fireplace mantle...we found that at Kirklands and that was one of my favorite finds. It is not easy shopping and trying to decorate a guys home. I ended up telling Glenn that you can't decorate a home without somethings that might be considered "girly." We tried our best to keep It very masculine and I think it turned out great. I was worried at first his idea of decorating might be gluing golf balls to the wall or something :)

Glenn and Grammy goofing off for the camera

Me and my Bubba

Glenn and His girlfriend Jen

Jen was there all weekend and also helped out so much

I realized this weekend after visiting Glenn's place in Rockwall that I really do miss the Dallas area. I have been thinking about it for a while now and I finally made a decision that I am going to apply at all the school districts up there this summer and see what happens. I will graduate from Grad school in the Summer so I am no longer tied to Beaumont in that way. Of course, I want to be exactly where God wants me to be and if He says Beaumont then Beaumont it is, but sometimes you have to step out to find out what His will is. I am already praying that if He doesn't want me to move to Dallas that I won't even get offered a position. I am excited about the possibility and looking forward to what God has in store. Yet at the same time I love Beaumont and my friends here and would miss my church so much, so Please pray for me for direction and to hear God clearly on this matter. I know that the Word says that "the footsteps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord" in Psalm 37:23 and I am confident God will lead and guide me to where He wants me to be.

Sweet Mag

The last few days have been really hard. We had to put Maggie down on Monday. We went out of town this past weekend and boarded her at the vet so they could observe her and take care of her. When we got home on Monday mom called the vet and they told her that Maggie hadn't improved any and still wasn't walking and was being hand fed. I just couldn't believe she wasn't walking...they said that she was probably overcompensating to even get up before the accident because of her arthritis and that she was just too weak now.

They also said she was snapping at them when they tried to get her up and take her outside to try and walk and go to the bathroom...they knew like we did that she is not like that at all so she had to be in a lot of pain. It was exactly a week since the accident on Monday and she was just getting worse. We talked to the vet and she told us that putting her down was the best thing for her since she was in such pain. Of course, we didn't want her in any pain but I couldn't believe we were actually having this conversation...I expected to go visit her after work, hear she had improved and take her home. After many many tears we decided that was best. Mom and I got to see her and talk to her before and we were in the room when she left us. I was petting her and talking to her and it was the saddest and hardest thing I have ever done.

Maggie has been with us for 13 years....she was not just our pet but part of our family. Sometimes it felt like she had always been there. I was working at Market Basket in high school and someone found her in the garbage can and I had to take her home. She was so little and the cutest puppy you have ever seen. She was such a good puppy...she never did go to the bathroom in the little area we created for her in the garage from the day we brought her home. If you have had a puppy you know that is amazing! She trained herself from day one and would only go when we took her out in the grass. She was such a blessing to our family and the sweetest dog you could ever own.

I love how she always came and greeted anyone the moment they drove up in the driveway and how excited she was to see you. Dogs are such an example of unconditional love. She was so obedient and on cold nights we let her sleep in the garage on her dog pillow and I would have to wake her up in the morning and tell her to go to the back and she would get up and slowly walk back there even thought I knew she didn't want to. She loved her beggin strips and would go crazy for one. She also loved people..she won over everyone she met and people feel in love with her. Our neighbors are just as sad as we are.

I could go on and on about Maggie and I already miss her so much, but I am thankful she is not in any pain an I feel like we made the right decision. I really don't know if I will ever be able to have another dog because I can't imagine finding another one like her. We have always said that we weren't looking for a dog but God knew we needed one and sent Maggie to us. She had a great life, we spoiled her like crazy, and we were blessed to have her for 13 years.

Knocked down but not out!

My sweet 13 year old lab named Maggie got hit by a car Monday night. My church just started a 21 day Daniel fast (Monday was Day 1) and I knew there was going to be spiritual warfare but I wasn't prepared for this. However, I can say that God was right in the middle of it all and He reminded me that He is my provider! He provided everything we needed and has continued to as all of this has unfolded.

let me explain.....

We got the phone call Maggie has been hit at 6:30 on Monday night and I immediately called my neighbor, Lisa, because she has several dogs and helps us with Maggie allot and I was in a panic and thought she might know what to do. The lady who hit her called and said we should hurry and that she wasn't dead, but that is all we knew. So, my mind was picturing the worst and I just couldn't handle seeing her if it was really bad. Lisa volunteered to drive us to the accident scene so mom and I jumped in the car and we headed off. (By the way, mom had on her polka dot fuzzy socks and crocs and Lisa didn't have a bra on and I didn't look much better...these things never seem to happen when you are looking good! )

We got to the scene and I started sobbing as soon as I saw her and ran over to her lying in the grass with the rain falling down. A few people were gathered around and they told us they didn't see any blood or anything and that she was breathing heavy. The lady who hit her was so upset and she was crying and stroking her face. It broke my heart seeing her laying there so helpless. We didn't know if she had broken bones or worse, but we had to get her in Lisa's van and to the emergency vet quickly. Thankfully, Lisa had thought to bring towels and so we all scooted the towel under her and lifted her up and into the van. Lisa has a daughter that is in a wheelchair so her van was perfect because the inside as all open and I was able to sit on the floor with her for the ride.

Mom and I would have had no clue where to take her, but Lisa knew exactly where to go. As she drove I couldn't see anything because I was on the floor, but mom said she was running red lights carefully! It seemed like forever before we got there but we finally made it and they rushed her to the back. We sat waiting and the vet finally came in and told us that they did x-rays and she had no broken bones or internal injuries that they could see, but she did have a few cuts and scrapes and her heart was enlarged which is common in older dogs. We already knew she had a big heart :) They gave her some pain medicine and sent her home. Lisa surprised us an insisted on paying when we checked out..she would not take no for an answer. She said she loves Maggie and wanted to do something!

She laid in the garage Monday night and looked so miserable. She wouldn't eat, drink, or move and we were still worried about her. We monitored her on Tuesday and she still wouldn't drink and ate just a little bit. So, I got an idea to cup water in my hands and try to get her to drink it and she did. It was so sweet...she finally drank some water and then the next morning she seemed more herself. She drank and ate some more and seemed to be doing better. She tried to get up a few times, but couldn't so that worried us. The vet said since her paws were cut up that could be why she was having trouble standing and the fact she is 13 and probably really sore.

We are going out of town this weekend so we boarded her at our vet for the weekend so they can watch her. Last night, the lady who hit her called mom and said that she wanted to pay for everything and wants to come see Maggie when we get back. Mom explained that our neighbor paid for the vet bill and so she insisted on paying for the bill for this weekend and any additional treatment.

I have to admit that I did complain to God Monday night that it was the first day of the fast and my dog got hit by a car. He quickly reminded me how He was right there the whole time, providing everything we needed! God reminded me of all the ways He provided: the lady who hit Maggie called us and stayed with her until we got there (she could have left), Lisa's van was perfect (like a pet ambulance), Lisa was home and able to drive us to the emergency vet (we didn't even know where it was), Lisa thought to bring towels to pick Maggie up with (we weren't prepared), Lisa paid for the emergency visit, Maggie had no broken bones or internal injuries, the lady who hit her said she wanted to pay for the rest of her treatment!

My complaining quickly turned to praise!!! We serve and awesome God who knows exactly how to provide all of our needs before we even realize we need them! He knows everything that is going to happen to us before we do (that blows my mind). If life was always perfect we wouldn't be able to see God in this way and really get to know Him and His character. God never promised us bad things wouldn't happen, but He did say that "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart I have overcome the world" NIV John 16:33

New Year....New Me!

This is my first post of the new year. I love new things...new clothes, that new car smell, newborn babies, a new day, and especially a new year. It gives me time to reflect on the last year and set goals and make changes in the new one. I am so thankful that God must have known that we couldn't handle more than 24 hours and he created a new day too....I am glad I get a fresh start every 24 hours and that God's mercies are new every morning. That is how I feel about the new year too! It is a fresh start and anything is possible...I love dreaming about what could happen this year in my life and in the lives of friends and family...in one year things can change so much. My pastor said the other day that "God can do in 5 minutes what it would take us 50 years to accomplish.!" I am looking forward to all God has in store in 2011!!

I usually make new years resolutions, but this year God gave me more of a theme for the year instead .

The theme He gave me is........discipline!

As the new year began I started thinking about areas in my life that needed to change and what my resolutions would be and God showed me that they all had to do with being disciplined in different areas of my life...spiritually, physically, socially, emotionally, and financially.

Spiritually

I want to be more disciplined in my spiritual life and spend more time with God each day. My favorite time of the day is in the morning with God..I call this my quiet time with Him. I usually read the Bible, pray, listen to music, write in my journal, whatever God leads me to do, but I have to confess there have been too many mornings where my alarm goes off and I hit snooze and only end up having 5 minutes with God or none at all. This is why I want to be more disciplined in this area and go to bed earlier so that I can wake up rested and spend time with God every morning...quality time not rushed time!

Physically

This year I want to be healthier. I want to learn to cook healthier foods and eat healthier. I have been pretty disciplined with exercising this past year, but I want to try something new like taking a dance class this year, taking a Zumba class, go hiking...something fun! If you have any really good, healthy recipes please share!!!

Socially

This one might seem a little strange but what God is showing me is that I need to be more disciplined in this area and choose my friends carefully like it says in Proverbs 12:26 "The righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray." God showed me that this applies to facebook too! I just recently got on facebook for the second time. The first time I got on there was about a year ago and I got freaked out when certain people from my past tried to reconnect with me and I just got off. I think facebook is great for people that were Christians all their lives, had Chritstian friends in high school and college and they want to reconnect with everyone, but for people like me who were not Christians in high school and part of college it can be very dangerous and a reminder of a past you have left behind. I know I may sound like I am over exaggerating, but God says to leave the past behind and press on to the new things He has in store. God showed me that I need to go through my "friends" on fb and weed out the ones that remind me of my past in a negative way and make room for the new "friends" He has and will put in my life that remind me of my new life in Him!!

Emotionally

This area is one where God showed me I need to be more disciplined in guarding my heart. The Bible says in Proverbs 4:23 "to guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life" NLT. For me this means being disciplined in the things I allow into my heart. For example, the t.v. shows I watch, the music I listen to, the things I spend my time doing, what I look at on the Internet, the books and magazines I read, etc... Your eyes, ears, and mouth are all gateways into your heart. God has shown me some things in my life I need to let go of. One example is not watching "The Bachelor" this year. I love that show and it is so entertaining to watch, but such and ungodly example of dating. I read two books in college after I rededicated my life to Christ that completely changed my view of dating. One was "I kissed dating goodbye" and the other "Passion and Purity." After reading these books I decided to give up dating and trust God to bring my husband into my life in His time and His way. Of course, I will go on a date if I am asked and I feel okay about it, but I won't continue to date that person if I don't feel like God is leading us together in marriage. So, I need to guard my heart from watching a show that is completely opposite of God's way of dating...the women are throwing themselves at this man they barely know and they all want to marry him...they are all kissing him and trying to basically seduce him.....I could go on and this could be another post so I will stop and maybe right one later, but you get the idea.

Financially

I am excited to start this year on a new budget...I am going to do the envelope system and see how that works. My friend Britni and her husband do it and I have tried it before but never stuck to it. I am pretty good already with my money, but I really want to start saving more and the envelope system will help. If you don't know what the envelope system is...it is where you take cash out of each paycheck and literally put it in envelopes to use for specific areas like gas, groceries, entertainment, etc... When the cash runs out that is all you get until next payday. It is harder for me to spend cash so it really works for me.

My prayer for 2011 is that God will helps me continue to be more disciplined in these areas and that this truly is a new year..new me!.

Family Christmas # 2

Christmas #2 was at my aunt and uncle's house with mom's side of the family

Grammy and 4 out of 5 of her kids..one of my uncles couldn't make it this year


Sweet Alyssa

Grammy and Mom

Jaxon

We always get a $10 gift and do a gift exchange

Grammy opening her presents

Aunt Lynda and "little" Jimmy although he is not that little anymore

Alyssa opening her presents

Daddy helping jaxon open his present

Aunt Sandy and Savannah with their gifts

My cousin Jeff and his wife Chelsea

The whole group minus a few who weren't able to make it

I love Christmas time...remembering the birth of Jesus, the hustle and bustle, shopping for the perfect gifts, gift wrapping, the time off work, baking and cooking, all the good food, getting Christmas cards in the mail (although I forgot to send mine out this year), Christmas decorations, nativity scenes, putting up the Christmas tree, looking at Christmas lights, listening to Christmas music but most of all I love getting together with family and friends the most....we are so blessed and I am so thankful for the family and friends God has given me!!

Merry Christmas again!!!!