it's been a long time coming

Hello sweet friends...I am FINALLY updating after a month an a half of a stagnating blog. My life has been busy, but really not busy enough to warrant no blog posts. I will sum up what has been going on in the last month and a half or so. Russell and I have still been looking for work...it has been almost 3 months of living in Houston [at my parents...more on that later] without an income. This has definitely been something that has grown Russell and I closer and increased our faith. With the economy, the changes that will be soon occurring in our government, and Russell possibly deploying next summer, we have been pushed to grow and rely on the Lord. I can tell you I never thought I would live at home again, especially since graduating, getting married, and living on our own for a little over a year. We love my parents, but we would love them even more if we didn't live with them ;) JK!! Really we want to live pretty close [we have found a house and are waiting for a job or two with which to pay for it with!] and see them often, just not every day. Currently I am getting ready to begin substitute teacher training here in the Cy Fair School District. If no jobs in the mktg/business world open up in the next few weeks, then I will begin an alternative certification program in order to be able to teach elementary school starting next fall. We have really been praying about this, and feel this is where the Lord wants me working. Russell has had lots of interviews, but between the recession, election, and holidays, he has been put on hold and told they will let him no soon [as in yay or nay on hiring him] He is also currently at a job interview as I type this. I am praying hard for my sweet husband that he will have a job in the next couple of weeks. I know, especially as a man/husband Russell is really feeling the pressure to provide, etc.
In other news, we have been busy with the holidays in general, spending time with my family, and Russell's family, Russell was in one of his best buddy's wedding a couple of weeks ago [Jonathan and Kerri] will be in another this weekend for Stephen and Michelle, we are looking forward to being an Aunt and Uncle this spring, I got to see my sweet Joebellina and Blairebear when Jo made a trip down to Houston last month, we saw snowflakes in Houston, caught up with some friends, etc.

This past week though, we were saddened because Russell's sweet Poppa [his mom's dad] went home to be with the Lord. He was 77 years old, a sweet man who welcomed me in from the first time we met [when I had only been dating Russell for a few months]. He loved music, playing the harmonica, piano, and guitar, he loved to dance, hunt, go to coffee with his friends almost every morning. He had 4 daughters Mary Alice [my mother-in-law], Sylvia, Belinda, and Lisa. The wake/Rosary/mass of Resurrection/burial were all very sad but good. He had so many friends and relatives that attended and said many good sweet things in his memory. He is now in heaven with his wife Chella. The whirlwind time we spent down in Harlingen [in the valley] was bittersweet, but still was good family time.

I promise my updates will be more frequent and some picture hilights from the last month or so will be coming soon. I love and have missed you all!

REAL girls retreat!!

This past weekend CBC had a girls retreat for junior high and high school girls. It was so great, and I totally wish they'd had retreats like this when I was in the youth group. Sometimes to minimize distractions [ie no boys] you really just need to have a girls only retreat. It was all organized by miss Lindsee, and she did a fabulous job. She got two of her fabulous blog-friends. Shelly and Abby to come be the speaker and the worship leader. Shelly spoke on the Ephesians 1:1-14 focusing on reminding the girls that they are chosen, adopted, blessed and one more thing that I can't remember...let me know if you remember what it is. I feel these are truths that we need to be reminded of, that we don't find our worth in our appearance, a boy, our insecurities, etc, we find it in the Lord, we are His daughters. Abby was the worship leader and has such a beautiful voice, you can tell she is just earnestly praising the Lord as she sings.
Of course sweet Linds and I had to get a picture, and we even matched!!

I was the small group leader for the senior girls. They are so great, and some are so biblically wise, wiser than I was when I was their age!

This was us at the end of Saturday, a little sleepy and silly, but filled with knowledge and truth from Him!

tail gate contd'

Alas, unlike I thought, there were no pictures taken of at least my momma and me, but there was a super cute one that Karin took of Russell and I :)

The A&M vs OU weekend

This fateful weekend that we went to Aggieland to see a game, the only one of the season, and it just had to be the OU game...a game we knew we would lose. And LOSE we did. We still love our Aggies, but we aren't really that proud of their playing this year...case in point yesterdays loss to BAYLOR....Baylor people, I mean seriously! The church I grew up in, as well as the church that Russell and I are currently attending has an annual A&M tailgate. Sweet Karin and Greg Monson have been in charge since Matthew [their oldest son ] and I started school, and cause they still have two kids going there [luckily for the rest of us!] this uber fun tailgate occurs annually. This is a picture of Russell and I before the game, while enjoying conversation and BBQ :)

A very small picture of a lot of the 'kids'. And ya'll , I just have to be honest and say other than the few bunched right around me, I don't even recognize some of these people. I know they were at the tailgate, but I don't know them from Adam!

CHEESE!!! Being silly with my girls Lindsee and Kirsten :)
With my Lindsee Lou Love ;)

I am sad to say that this is it of the cute blog worthy pictures, and am also sad that I don't have any pics snapped of me and my cute padres...though I think Karin took one, so I'll have to see if I can snag a copy...

I would love to tell you that being the dedicated Aggie Alum that I am ;) I sat [cause alums get to SIT!] and cheered the Aggies on to that horrible defeat, but alas I did not. Mom and I decided that we really didn't want to go to such a hopeless game, that we got rid of our tickets and let Russell and dad go on their own :) I mean really, we just go to the football games for the socializing anyways. SO, mom, Lindsee, and I just chatted it up all 4 hours the game was going on, which in my opinion was time well spent, cause they are wise and I love em :)

surgery, retreats, and waiting oh my!

This week has been a long week of waiting on the Lord's timing when it comes to finding jobs, a house, etc. It was so apropos that last weeks sermon that we further discussed in small group on Wednesday, was on Patience. How God has patience with us and how we need to have patience with others, ourselves, and situations. Russell and I know that everything that is happening [or for us not happening] is all in God's timing, which is perfect. We know He knows better than we do, for that matter, when it is best for us to be resolving all of these situations that are currently waiting in the balance.

Yesterday Cupcake [our 4.5 month old puppy] was spayed yesterday. They heal best when they are puppies, and she had begun displaying impolite body movements a couple of weeks ago, which clued us in that it was time to get her 'fixed'. She was adorable when we took her to the clinic yesterday, just in love with everyone she met, and forgot about us the minute she got excited by seeing new people. When we took her home last night she really didn't want to sit calmly. We have had to put her in the kennel more often, or keep her in a room with just us so she will be calm. She has lots of energy and wants to play, but can't for the next week while her stitches heal. So consequently, we have the cutest little invalid puppy ever :)

Last night I had a coffee date with a good friend from growing up as well as college. Becky and I though, hadn't seen each other in almost a year. It was really fun to catch up and hear about her wedding [since I didn't get to go :(] Talk about being a wife, life, etc. It was great to just be able to talk really open with someone that knows you, this is why I love that we live where I grew up, because there are still people that live here that I know.

This weekend I am going to be a leader on a girls retreat called REAL [respect, encouragement, acceptance, and leadership] and I am really excited, I love retreats, and I love getting to know girls. SO updates an pictures will come soon, as well as I'll post ALL the pictures and stories from last weekends A&M tailgate/game!

EASY caramel filled cake cookies

This recipe is REALLY easy and tastes OH so good!

1 box devils food cake mix
1 egg
1/2 cup slightly softened butter or crisco [crisco makes for a fluffier cookie]

mix ingredients together and form doughballs slightly bigger than a teaspoon, or however big they need to be to wrap around a chocolate. Use Dove caramel filled chocolates. Wrap the dough around the chocolate, making sure you seal it well inside the dough.

Bake for about 12 minutes at 350 degrees.


Enjoy with a tall glass of skim milk so it's healthy and all ;)

busy busy

This week has been filled with lots of activities. My mom's birthday was on Tuesday, so Russell and I made her a homemade lasagna and cake, for the family celebration. Wednesday I had an interview with a staffing agency, and will hopefully find out more information this week. Wednesday evening we drove to College Station for a brief family visit, to vote, and go to the Career Center on campus. A highlight of the trip was getting to have dinner at the Blom's [Russell's military ministry boss from last year] and catching up with them, as well as getting to know the two new interns and their wives better. It made me excited to get more plugged into our church here, so we can experience community here like we did in CS. Friday night Russell and I manned the door and oohed and awed over the cute kiddos in their costumes. On Saturday my parents, Russell and headed over to Bonnie and Russ's house to paint ALLLLL day with them. By the time we left the kitchen/living room area no longer looked like a cave, and we had earned laborers to paint in our future house :) That evening we made cookies and just relaxed while watching the DRAMATIC UT vs TT game. The outcome was a shock, and I surprisingly felt bad for UT and their fans. Today our Sunday school class began a month long series taught by Greg Despres [current missions pastor, and former youth pastor when my sisters were in HS]. It was about evangelism, not the hokey kind [tracts, fire and brimstone, etc] but by forming relationships and having genuine conversations and not just trying to evangelize to people, but actually getting to know THEM and what is going on in their lives. Russell and I left really excited about getting more involved in our class and ministry. We think we might have found our niche here :)
After class, we went to a picnic with other couples from our class and enjoyed the nice summer, oh I mean November day...

Now I think I'm going to go soak my sore back [from painting] in the hot tub :)