Now You're My Whole Life: October 2012

Sunshine!

By Mama’s Minute - 9:39 AM

I am beyond blessed with amazing friends! I don't say this lightly.

I know that there are "friends" that are acquaintances, those you have for a season, reason, and those that you can always count on and they count on you.

Then, there are those that love you at your best and those you cry with at your very worst.

I am blessed with several! One of them helped make my day shine! I am so grateful for Colleen! She and I co-teach together. We have had the very best time pushing our students to grow and supporting one another!

Today she set up fake meeting with our principal, API, and gifted teacher! I thought I was just super popular with all of them, but come to find out I had something waiting for me!

When I made my way down to the classroom this was waiting for me!

SURPRISE!!!!

A whole party had been planned for nearly a week! How exciting! The kids kept a secret and enjoyed bringing in goodies, presents, and sweet homemade cards!

Colleen brought some sunshine to my 28th birthday! I appreciate her so very much!

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It's never too late for fun!

By Mama’s Minute - 5:58 AM

As I get older, I think it's even more fun to get creative and dress up. CHECK OUT MY PAST HALLOWEEN POST HERE! The only problem is...I am a procrastinator. Although, some of my very best work is in the last hour before something needs to be done. Anyone else like that?

When we were told that our small group Halloween party would be on Monday, I started coming up with ideas. Ryan would reply, "I don't want to be ________!" So back to the drawing board I would go.

Finally, I asked Mom and she came up with several. One that I knew we could do was Barbie and Ken! I simply needed boxes, pink spray paint, wrapping paper, and Ryan's neat-freak cutting to make it happen!

After school on Monday, I tried to collect any boxes that were ready for recycling...it wasn't happening. That was too much work. The second option was a lifesaver! Our friend, Bobby, works at Home Depot and put some boxes to the side for us. I grabbed the rest of the supplies and flew home to start and complete the project in hopes it would work!

When Dossinator got home he was greeted by Lyla, myself, and a couple of giant pink boxes! He helped me by cutting the front of the boxes out.

We dressed up in fancy Ken and Barbie fashion and headed to our annual small group Halloween celebration.

We carved pumpkins, took photos, ate good food, and laughed.

This is what living is all about!

How cute are everyone's costumes! They are so very creative!

Happy Fall Y'all! Have a safe and happy Halloween!

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Marvelous Monday

By Mama’s Minute - 8:09 PM

Mom and I had a great, productive Monday. We had a plan to hang out, but we weren't quite sure what to do. I really love crafting with my Mom. She makes it all look so easy, and we hadn't gotten to craft together in a while.

Mom has been pinning some of the cutest fall crafts, and this one was definitely a winner! We had some leftover burlap from wedding showers and other crafts, so we put it to good use!

We even had time to add to our Christmas collection! Check it!

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God

God is in control! He knows just what we need!

By Mama’s Minute - 3:11 AM

I am reading a devotional by the Osteen's! It is so powerful when I start my day off with The Lord! This passage certainly spoke to me about more than one area in my life. I am hoping someone else is blessed by it!

"MARKED MOMENTS

Before the foundation of the world, God laid out a plan for your life. He created you with a purpose, for a purpose, and He created you to be successful! He has marked moments already laid out that are going to come across your path. These moments are not ordinary. They are destiny-altering moments. They are designed to thrust you years ahead.

Ecclesiastes tells us that time and chance come together for every person. That means you will have opportunities to meet the right people, opportunities to advance in your career, and opportunities to fulfill your dreams. God has already prearranged for you times of increase, promotion and blessing.

Today, open your eyes of faith and see the good things God has in store for your future. Thank Him for what He’s doing and what He’s about to do. Thank Him for divine connections and marked moments because He is ready and willing to fulfill every dream and desire He’s placed within your heart!

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for marked moments and divine opportunities in my life. I trust that You are working behind the scenes no matter what the circumstances look like. I choose today to keep my heart and mind focused on Your goodness, knowing that You are a rewarder of those who diligently seek after You in Jesus’ name. Amen."

Ecclesiastes 9:11
I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn’t always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn’t always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don’t always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time.

How perfect is His Word?

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Our 3 Year Celebration

By Mama’s Minute - 7:28 PM

We have been newlyweds for 3 years now! We knew we were going to do something to celebrate, but we weren't sure when. Ryan totally surprised me and took control of the planning! The past two anniversaries we have headed north and headed up the Blue Ridge Parkway into the hills of TN, but this year he was ready for something new.

Buckhead is not far from where we live, and we rarely take advantage of this cool city! On Saturday afternoon we headed down. We started with a quick lunch at Cracker Barrel! HOLY COW! We started off right. The next time you are in you have to try their Wholesome Mornin' Sampler - yogurt, granola, scrambled egg whites, and turkey sausage! YUM!

After our great meal, we headed to Ikea! Ryan hadn't even been and I had only been once or twice. It's an experience for sure! He loved it. I told him we'd probably need a cart, and he disagreed like we weren't going to buy anything! YEAH RIGHT! I ran back to the front to grab their big yellow bags and thank goodness I did. We picked up some great organizational tools, duvet, and some other odds and ends. He loved it, and he woke up this morning saying he could go back!

{ Taking it all in! }

{Finally checking out!}

{What a fun time so far!}

He planned for us to stay in Buckhead at the W! What an amazing property. You feel like you walk into a glamorous scene straight out of the movies as soon as you pull up. The whole atmosphere changes the way you feel. BEAUTIFUL and DETAILED for sure.

{lobby}

Our room was called Fabulous, and that it was! How precious. I loved how everything had a unique touch. The wallpaper, the tv mounted in between two mirrors, the lighting. It was all very cool.

After getting freshened up for dinner, we headed to the rooftop for some good views! Whiskey Blue was 13 stories up and gave a great view of the city.

Ryan made reservations for us at Maggiano's. Neither of us had ever been there and absolutely loved it! I ate mushroom ravioli (LOVE) and Ryan had Lobster Carbonara. Our favorite part was the zucchini appetizer. It was delicous.

{Maggiano's}

After dinner, we walked around. It was a bit breezy, but relaxing to walk around downtown. We stopped in a couple of places, but decided on Dante's. If you've never been...grab your sweetie and go. It was only my 2nd time, but Ryan hadn't been before. We decided to sit in the ship and listen to the live jazz, had dessert, and enjoyed each others company. This was probably my favorite part of the evening. I am so in love with Ryan. He is my soul mate for sure. I love where we are right now in life. He planned a great evening.

After listening to jazz, we went back up to the rooftop of the W, to enjoy some people watching, chatting, and celebrating.

We called it a night and got some rest in before Sunday!

When we woke up (early - an hour before the alarm went off), we got ready to head to breakfast and church.

{Ryan's "quit-taking-pictures-of-me" face}

We checked out, grabbed our car, and headed to breakfast at The Flying Biscuit. We weren't super impressed, but it was hard to be wowed when we had Maggiano's and Dante's the night before. All the while we were eating, we were praying we weren't being towed. We talked each other into parking in a 15 minute spot. I got a bit paranoid when we saw the security guard get up from his post and head towards our car around the corner. When we headed toward the car, thank God, he was just picking up breakfast!

Buckhead Church (a sister church of our very own Athens Church) was right near our hotel, so that's where we ended our anniversary celebration. We praised God for what He has done in our life. We are so very thankful to have one another. Happy Anniversary Dossinator! I love you!

Another anniversary down, 100 more to go!

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Three Years

By Mama’s Minute - 3:47 AM

Happy 3 years to the most amazing man and my best friend! I am 100% blessed through our marriage!

Our wedding day was a beautiful day in October full of family and friends!

My favorite moment of our wedding was the moment we got to see each other! Ryan's expression was wonderful!

From the first year of marriage until now, God has taught us a ton about who we are and how to get stronger together. One of the best things we have done for our relationship is read the book "Love and Respect". It really showed us the difference between men and women and why communicating the right way is so important! Marriage is fragile, so pouring into it and each other makes all the difference in the world.