Life Lately #21

Hi friends! I've been a little quiet around here lately so I thought I'd give a little update as to what life has been like lately. I'll start with the funny stuff =) 

1. Breading - Dave said he heard of this new thing called 'breading cats'. Well, it just so happened that someone had brought a lot of extra bread to church so we thought we would put it to good use on Static (our cat wasn't around at the time). We cracked up laughing! She would tried to chomp on the bread but couldn't because ... well you can see why =). Milo is next! Would you do this to your pet? 

2. Milo - Because of moving overseas I knew Milo would have to find a new home. I've been dreading finding him a home because he is a unique cat and has to be an only pet. Also, I'm super attached to this little guy so letting him go will be hard. However, God has sent the perfect person to take Milo. It's a nice lady who is looking for a companion cat. I'll be giving him away in a couple of weeks and I'm thankful he is going to a good home. However, before we give him away we will be breading him! 

3. Tomatoes - They are one of my favorite foods! My grandpa used to have a massive tomato garden and when I was a kid we would sit on the big swing and eat tomatoes. He would eat tomatoes as if they were apples and I'd eat the cherry tomatoes. All that to say that a local farm here had 600lb. of tomatoes! I got a whole bunch and they have been so delicious! What's your favorite summer produce?

4. Jamberry - I have a new obsession you guys! I hosted an on-line Jamberry party and got 11 sheets of nails. That means I have 22 manicures which will each last me two weeks. I'm excited! Have you ever tried Jamberry?

5. Blogger Friend Hangout - Last week I went to OKC to hang out with Amanda (The Lady Okie). We have become good friends over this past year and occassionaly we will get together to hang out. I'm so thankful for her and our friendship. This time we rode bikes and walked around downtown OKC. We also exchanged b-day gifts and check out this awesome gift! It's a coffee table book all about Burma. The pictures in there are beautiful and I just love it! It makes me more excited to move over there. 

6. Burma - I'll be honest and say that moving overseas is stressful for me. I think being anxious and stressed out is a choice and I haven't been choosing joy and peace lately. I've been going back and forth from knowing God will take care of me to extreme anxiety with drama and tears. I finally sat down today and wrote out some verses on God taking care of me as well as verses that focus on the main things, like seeking the Kingdom of God and loving others rather than planning, planning, planning, planning. =)

Also, I ordered some super cute bags from Samantha for Christmas gifts for people. You should check out her shop. She has really cute pouches as well as great blogger resources.

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How has your life been lately? 

Are you enjoying these last few days of summer? 

Photography Friday Week 7 // Pets or Nature

Welcome to week 6 of Photography Friday. Photography Friday is a 20 week challenge to help improve our photography skills. There is a weekly prompt / theme for each week that you can be as creative with it as you'd like. This week's theme is pets or nature and next week's theme is a pretty place. For further information please click here. 

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Ah! This is a good Photography Friday, friends! pets and/or nature. I'm choosing pets because I have a cat. Meet Milo...

1. Milo lived at my parent’s house but when Dave asked to marry me my Dad said the cat was part of the package deal. Dave totally got tricked... you know it Dad! =)

2. While at my parent’s house my cat loved to go outside. He was the bully cat who got into fights, and didn’t let other cats around our house. So protective (and mean).

3. Milo now lives in a second story apartment with Dave and I. He is no longer a brave guy. He is petrified of anything outdoors and sleeps probably 20 hours a day. 

4. My Mom has the patience of Job and taught my cat to shake, give high fives and ‘up high’ for treats. It’s pretty amazing and fun. 

5. My cat’s favorite treat is … tape. Yes, you read that correctly. If I am opening a box he comes running and tries to eat the tape. He has also chewed up some stickers I have left out. Weird. Weird.

6. My cat has an obesity problem. Seriously! I only feed him about 1 – 2 tbsp in the morning and at night and he still weights about 18#. 

7. My cat likes to be the 'only' cat. I won't even tell you some of the naughty things he has done because of #9 listed below but I will tell you this one little tid bit ... my Mom brought home another cat once and Milo took revenge by peeing on my head at 6am in the morning. He literally got beat! It really isn't funny but yet it is funny. I'm happy to report that the smell did NOT stay in my hair. My family still laughs and laughs at me about that incident. 

8. Although my cat is a bit weird and terrible (see above)… I still love him because he is my cat and he has been good company for me during this past year while I live in Woodward.

9. I might have to give my cat away in June when we move. I'm praying we find someone who can take him. I think he would do well on a farm where he could still be fed but run around freely. 

Got tape?

"I'd never pee on my Master's head. Look how nice and cute I am"

Do you have pets? If so, what kind of pets? Has your pet ever done something really terrible but funny? 

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New Year's Celebrations

Happy New Year! I hope you had a great time celebrating. Whether you stayed up late, went out for some fun or went to bed at 9pm - however you celebrated, I hope you enjoyed bringing in 2014. 

After being gone over a week for the Christmas break Dave and I decided to stay home for NYE. We played games, watched movies, ate cookies, ate guacamole (not at the same time we ate cookies, ew!) cooked and of course took some fun pictures. I picked the above picture because I think Dave's smile looks like a million bucks in it and our cat was beyond agitated that he had to take a picture lots of pictures with us (which is funny to me). He couldn't even sit still so that is why he is blurry in it. Don't worry - he his happy now because I gave him treats. What better way to start the year for that big 18 lb. cat, eh?

Between NYE and NY day I tried 4 new recipes I found on Pinterest. I figured I need to start using all the wonderful things I pinned. I'm going to write a post soon and share the recipes I've tried that are simple and delicious. 

Dave and I also picked up some confetti poppers for NYE and Dave had to show his ID before he was allowed to purchase them. When we got home we read the label and it said you need 33ft. of space to shoot off all the confetti. We decided shooting that off in an apartment at midnight wasn't the best of ideas. So, today, Dave suggested walking to the woods near our house and having a confetti fight. Guys, it was so much fun! I never knew a confetti fight would be fun (or even existed). I think some of the best memories are the spontaneous and random ones. That 33ft. popper of confetti filled the trees with color and it was amazing! 

 confetti time!

How did you celebrate NYE? Did you go out? Stay home? Sleep? Hope it was great for you as you celebrated a new year that God has given to us. Blessings on you in 2014!!!

Shepherds and Swaddling Clothes

It's Christmas Eve!!! Yay! Today is the last day of my Christmas devotionals. If you missed the other days you can read  day 1 here and day 2 here

My cat has nothing to do with this post but he is cute so I had to share

For today's devotional we are going to look a bit at the Shepherds. I learned this at church last week and had to share it. I don't know about you but when I think of raising sheep I think of loving on all those fluffy animals. I bet their kids even picked out their own favorite white fluffy sheep and named it. Well .... did you know that the cutest most perfect and probably favorite sheep was the one that got set aside to be sacrificed? God only accepted lambs without spot and blemish. When a lamb without blemish was found they wrapped it in swaddling clothes to keep it from getting dirty or injured. The swaddling clothes signified that the spotless lamb was ready to be sacrificed.

Now, imagine sitting out in a field at night and angels suddenly are in the sky declaring to you that The King has been born. The angel starts out by saying "For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord". How joyous that must have been for them to hear. A Saviour, born in their time but then, the shepherds stopped as they heard the next statement, "And this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger".

Can you imagine the joy, wonder and maybe sadness they experienced as they saw this beautiful baby in swaddling clothes. Just like the spotless lambs they raised Jesus was also a spotless lamb wrapped in swaddling clothes. It was a sign of what was to come. From the day He entered the world he showed us that he was the spotless and perfect lamb. Oh how He loves us friends!

Lately #8

My cat has thoroughly enjoyed all the boxes from UPS. If he hears me open a box that has tape on it, he comes running until he can chomp on a piece of it. Tape is one of his favorite treats - weird cat! 

Lately I've tried to get back into running. I'm thankful that Dave helps me get out to run even if it is the last most miserable thing I want to do. I'm also thankful for my work spouse Kirsten who tells me what a great job I did even if it was just 1-2 miles. I'm waiting for my runner's high to kick back in!

I found this at a store this week (no, I did not buy it). It is a 'butter portion control server" ...America, we have some serious health issues! I think we need a good dose of veggies, portion control and maybe even some kimchi. ;)

Happy 1st Birthday to my sweet nephew Elliot. Life is so much sweeter with you in it. I love that you can eat for 1 1/2 hours and I love it when you crinkle your nose when you are laughing! There is just so much I love about you.

The flowers Dave bought me remain alive! Miraculous in my book. This is their second bloom and I think they look beautiful.

That's it folks! Honestly, my life lately could be classified as 'simple'. I'm trying to learn how to live in a small town and enjoy time alone as I don't know many people yet. It's a learning process.

What have you been up to lately? 

Lately #6

Lately, I moved my cat from Wichita to Oklahoma. He acts brave but is really a big scaredy cat. This is him sitting by the bathroom door looking around because he thinks something is around the corner to get him. 

Lately, I crafted my little heart out. I made cherry blossom branches for our open house / wedding reception.  

Lately, I took Woodward by blades! It was awesome! 

Lately, this snack has been my go to! Grab a tortilla, put some peanut butter, honey, cinnamon, blueberry, strawberries and wrap it up. So good! 

What have you been up to lately?