Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day is considered the 'Day of Love'. Some people love it! And some hate it. But honestly, everyone should know that regardless of whether you are with a boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife today there are people who care about you and love you and are so thankful you're in their lives. Parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, family, friends. People love you. So whether you have that special someone to go on a date with or not tonight. Tell the people you care about that you love them.

One of my favorite Valentine's Days as a single young lady was when a dear guy friend of mine text me and asked if I'd be his Valentine. I knew in no way did he mean it anymore than just friends. So we went out and had a great time chatting and laughing over a late dinner. Another year a whole bunch of us single kids from Rhema (the college I attended) went out to celebrate our friendship. We dressed up and went out to Ihop. :) It was a blast. Just because you're single today doesn't mean you have to be alone. :)

I, however, have not been single for a few Valentine's Days now. :) Joel and I celebrated our 4th Valentine's Day together this year. And it has been even better than all the others so far. This morning, Joel came into our bedroom with a bouquet of beautiful roses and a note... which was a clue. :) He sent me on a little scavenger hunt for my presents. Here's the notes:

The first note took me to our refrigerator... because that is where the food we make breakfast comes from every morning. The second clue took me to our board games, because I don't like it when he puts in no effort. Haha. The third clue took me to our Blu-ray player, because we love watching movies. And the fourth was a smooch from my hubby. Haha. It was adorable. Here were the gifts I received:

These roses are GORGEOUS. They've been made to where they grow with two different shades of red. So pretty.

I found this necklace on Etsy a month ago and told Joel I absolutely loved it. :) Perfect for the photographer in me!

And CHOCOLATES! Mmmmmmm.... I like chocolates sooooo much!

And that has been my Valentine's Day so far! A wonderful day.

And remember to think of the love that God has for you today. He sent His ONLY son to die on the cross so that He could bridge the gap between man and God. We can walk freely into His throne room because of the love He has for us. Even though we do nothing to deserve it, He makes us whole and clean when we come to Him. So give God some thanks today too. And let Him know how much you love Him. :)

Goal: Books to Read This Year

I know that reading is so good for you. And I admit... I've definitely not done enough of it. So I've made up a list of books that I want to read by the end of the year. These are not necessarily in the order I plan on reading them... but somewhere around there :)

If you click on the title of the book it will take you to the description/ordering page of each book. Just so you can check it out if you want to.

Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller

Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller

Through Painted Deserts by Donald Miller

To Own a Dragon - Reflections On Growing Up Without A Father by Donald Miller

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller

Praise Habit: Finding God in Sunsets and Sushi by David Crowder

Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, but Nobody Wants to Die by David Crowder

Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell

Sex God by Rob Bell

Jesus Wants to Save Christians by Rob Bell

Genuine Christianity by Larry F. Low

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan

Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan

Wild at Heart: Discovering The Secret of a Man's Soul by John Eldredge

Turn: Remembering Our Foundations by Max Lucado

The Barbarian Way by Erwin Raphael McManus

Authentic Beauty: The Shaping of a Set-Apart Young Woman by Leslie Ludy

This Beautiful Mess by Rick Mckinley

One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven by Mark Cahill

The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers by Shane Claiborne

Follow Me to Freedom by John Perkins & Shane Claiborne

Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne

Flickering Pixels: How Technology Shapes Your Faith by Shane Hipps

The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture by Shane Hipps

Redefining Beautiful: What God Sees When God Sees You by Jenna Lucado

Vintage Jesus by Mark Driscoll & Gerry Breshears

Vintage Church by Mark Driscoll & Gerry Breshears

Thats all of 'em! I want to read 28 books in the year of 2011. If not more! I'm already almost done with 'Blue Like Jazz' so that'll be one down! 

I love reading. I love seeing different views on subjects that I've never really given thought to. Or just hearing what someone has to say and going 'Wow! I never heard it put THAT way?!' Maybe I'll do a book review after each book. :) We'll see.

Why am I telling all of you every single book I plan on reading this year? A couple reasons...

Reason #1: I feel that I'll do a better job of doing this if I tell the whole internet world my plans.

Reason #2: Maybe you've been wondering what books to pick up and read... here are some ideas!

Reason #3: I know that my friend Danielle H. reads this blog and her status on Facebook the other day really motivated me to get moving on this. So thank you Danielle.

Anyways, I'll let you go now. I encourage you to get out and read something! It keeps you thinking!!!

The Most Important Meal of the Day

I LOVE breakfast!

And for more reasons than one!

It is the most important meal of the day. Breakfast helps you have energy throughout the rest of the day. It gets your metabolism going! Eating breakfast has been proven to help you lose weight.

But THIS is the other reason I love breakfast. Because most every morning, I get to get up with the most amazing man in the world (pictured here with his guitar spatula... which he loves) and we make breakfast together. He makes the eggs, bacon and toast. And I make the coffee and (usually) use our juicer to take fresh fruit and make amazing concoctions of juice!

I have so much fun every morning with this man. My husband is just a blast and usually on any given morning we're dancing around singing some song in the worst possible way...  laughing hysterically. I love Joel. And my mornings that don't start out with us spending time together before he goes to work are usually a little harder for me. (With exceptions of Mondays & Thursdays... when we go to my grandparents for rolls and coffee) :) 

I'm blessed to get to spend as much time as I do with my hubster. I cherish every single moment we have together. I always appreciate every morning and night we have together. And I love when he has a day off. 

I know that God places people in our lives for a reason. And a spouse has a BIG reason for being there. Joel is the love of my life. And he is a strong man of God who treats me like the child of God that I am. We walk beside each other in this path of life. And I so look forward to the many more places God is going to take us.

After breakfast of course ;)

My Inspiration:

I have the most amazing parents... and they have such an amazing love. Which is my inspiration :)

We just celebrated their 25th Anniversary on February 1st! We threw them a Surprise Open House on Saturday and it was so much fun! They actually had NO idea!!! Here are some photos from the party.

My Aunt Wendy made the cake... she is so talented! There is no way I could do this!! I definitely don't have the patience for it. :)

25 years... still so crazy and weird to think. I mean really! Think of how rare this is now...

My grandma made the sheet cakes. This was just all so good! And cute!!

My parents are amazing. They have a love for each other that is so beautiful. I have so many memories of Mom cooking in the kitchen and Dad walking in and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. :) They still do it and it just makes me smile. Their relationship is based on God. They've always taught us that a relationship without God is empty. But a relationship with God is full! And I've seen this first-hand. I thank God for my parents... for the influence they've had on my life and the example they've set.

My family :)

My family + the boys! :)

My sister painted this for my parents. It is a couple on a hill by the tree. And the really cool thing is that you can have it upside down or right side up and its a gorgeous photo either way! :)

Thank you to everyone that came and helped us celebrate! And thank you Mom and Dad for being so amazing and being such examples to us all! Congratulations again!

Friends....

I so appreciate friendship... I believe that friends are so important in life! And I'm not saying dozens of them. But those few BEST friends. The ones that you would do anything for... the ones that you know will be by your side for the rest of you life.

I have a few of those... Some for a very long time... and some for not near as long. But I love them all so much. 

I had a very very special friend come up and stay with me this weekend. We have known each other since I was 2 years old... so crazy! We have been best friends every since. We've had our random times of losing contact with each other, life got the best of us and we were too busy to keep a real effort in. But one of the things that I appreciate more than anything... are those friends that you can not talk to for months... and then when you pick up the phone or set a date to get together its like you've never separated!

I don't believe that there will be too many of those types of friends in anyone's life. But I pray that each of you have a few. Those friends are the ones that God has placed in your life so that you two can lift each other up in prayer, so that you can have someone to laugh with, cry with, and just be yourself with. They are there to walk along side you in life until the end.

I also treasure those friends that have been, and are, in my life for only a season. I know that they play a specific role too. None of my friends are less important than the other. Some are just here for life, and some for a small part of it. The friends that are here for only a small part always leave a real imprint on your heart, they help you learn things that you didn't know. And help you see things in a way you'd never seen them before. They may come in and out of your life, but they will forever be in your heart.

I'm so appreciative of every single one of my friends. And I know I don't say that enough. So thank you. 

And thank you, Cassie, for being the beautiful soul that you are. For knowing its ok to say that you're not perfect, knowing that those are the people God has the easiest time molding into His perfect will. For being someone who loves the Lord with ALL of her heart. For being such a WONDERFUL mother. And most of all, for being one of the best friends a girl could have. You're amazing. And it was so great to see you this weekend. :) I love you girly.

Our House!

I thought I would put up a few pictures of some of my favorite parts of our house! I mean, now that we've been living in it for 3 months! :)

The colors of the walls and stuff will be changing in the next few months. Just so you know! 

This is the chandelier in our entryway... I LOVE chandeliers... I always have. My granny had a chandelier above her dining room table and it was one of my favorite things about her house... I was so excited when I walked in and this was the first thing I saw.

Our wooden staircase... :) It just makes me smile.

This is the spare bedroom!

In our upstairs bathroom we have an old deep tub... yet another thing I so enjoy about this house.

Wood floors... that was something I was definitely looking for. I love the character of wood floors. I love that every time you step on just the right spot it creaks. Wooden floors just look like they have stories to tell. The wear of any wooden floor never looks bad to me... it just looks loved.

The old fashioned door knobs! They're on almost every door inside.

Joel and I are so blessed to be in this house. I'm sure I'll get around to taking more pictures. Especially as we paint and do all the things we have planned. But for now, you have a little sneak peek.

Have a great day!!

Time Away...

It has been quite some time! Yep... But I'm back! And I thought I'd just show you some of my amazing vacation with the husband! I'm gonna break it up into a few different posts because I'm going to be editing all the photos and I need to be doing other things too... haha. :)

Anyways, Joel and I flew to Ft. Lauderdale, FL and got on our cruise ship from there. Today I'm gonna be posting photos of Day 1 (on the ship) and Day 2 (Key West, FL). So enjoy! :)

I'll be posting more tomorrow! :)