Countdown begins...

Well, I feel like this weekend was over before it even started! But that means we are just getting closer to moving into our new home!!!!!

Friday night was spent geting ready for our YARD SALE! Since we've been packing for the past 3 weeks, we have been making a pile of stuff to go in a yard sale. I thought our pile was HUGE, but I was so wrong. As I toted everything to our back patio to price, I began thinking to myself, "do we have enough stuff to even have a yard sale?" Well, thank the Lord, we did. We actually had a whole set of sitting room furniture (remember the set I just got???), an old couch that was in the "man room," and a small loveseat that was in the office. We had a few other odd and end pieces - not too much. I told Brad that if we made $100, I would be happy. Good news, we made $150!!! I was so excited to know our junk became someone else's junk! Ha!

I worked all day Saturday at The Write Impression - from 9:30 until 6:30! I was exhausted when I finished! Thankfully, my mom worked with me or else I would have been there for many more hours! My mom, Brad and I went to eat at O'Charley's (chipotle chicken, yay!) and did a little shopping at Kohl's - I have been dying for some new tights to wear with my skirts! It was a long day that started at 5 a.m.!

On Sunday, we met my nearest and dearest friend, Diane for church - I'm so glad she has started to go World Outreach, I hope she gets as much out of it as I do! I will try and post on the sermon from this past weekend - totally opened my eyes! After church, I spent the rest of the afternoon with my mom shopping for Christmas ornaments for our tree!

We are down to the wire with moving in - only4 more days until we close! Both mine and Brad's family will be helping us move all weekend, and I think I may go ahead and get the tree up! Brad will be so mad - he says I just bypass Thanksgiving! Anyways, we have LOADS of things to do before we move - please, if you can, say a prayer for Brad and me. Just pray that everything goes okay when we close on Friday and pray for a safe and quick move! Blessings, y'all!

A little Christmas preview...

These pictures may be a little dark, but I'm proud to say that my mother and I worked for 10 and a half hours straight to get The Write Impression in full Christmas mode! Everything looks better in person, so go to The Write Impression in Murfreesboro's historic downtown to see everything firsthand!

The main "pink and green" tree with Vera Bradley paper gifts and assorted gifts as well.

One of the front windows with a traditional red and green tree - as well as the Christmas card display! If you are looking for a cute Christmas card, definitely go to The Write Impression. For the holiday season, there is complimentary imprinting on all Christmas cards!

Another red and green tree that features all of our Magnolia Lane ornaments, as well as all of the Christmas dish towels!

So, I'm completely worn out this morning, but it was so worth it - I love getting to spend one-on-one time like that with my precious mother! (Even though I'm sore as all get out this morning!) Oh, and on my way home, I happen to turn it to my favorite radio station, and guess what? Continuous Christmas music was playing! I love it!

Always be joyful.

The past few weeks have gone by so quickly - but almost too quickly! We have been working with our FABULOUS realtor, Justin (FYI, if you are thinking about buying a house, the only advice I can give you is to enlist the help of Justin - trust me) and the bank to finish all the details out regarding the house. I can't tell you how excited I am about moving! We officially close next Friday, and Saturday is our big moving day! We are having a moving sale this weekend to get rid of the things we don't want to take with us to the new house. Hopefully we'll make a little cash along the way :) I've been making a list of things we need before we move into the new house.

In other news, my small group at church has really taken off. It has truly been one of the best decisions I have ever made to join this small group. My leader, Diane, has been a blessing to me in every way possible. She challenged us last week to find a "life verse" and have it with us at all times. She told us to say it out loud and memorize it - you have no idea how absolutely amazing it is to speak - out loud - the Word of God. It has already made a HUGE difference in my life in just the few short days I have been doing it. I will share my life verse with y'all - I have been wanting to be more grateful and joyful in all situations - good and bad, so I chose I Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

Today is Halloween - so Happy Halloween. Don't eat too much candy. As for me, I will have my one faithful trick-or-treater tonight, and I have already made him a wonderful bag full of candy! I'm taking a half-day today - wanna know what I'm doing? Decorating The Write Impression for CHRISTMAS with my mother! Oh believe me, starting tomorrow this girl will be cranking up the Christmas tunes!

For those of you wondering, only 55 days until Christmas!

Sleepwalking nightmares???

I thought I would leave a funny post to lighten up your day - funny for you, but not so funny for me....anyways, when I was younger, I used to do a lot of sleepwalking. I mean a lot. I always dreaded whenever my parents would have company over, and they would stay the night. Wanna know why? Because, I would most likely embarass myself. I can remember one instance when some of my dad's old baseball buddies spent the night at my house. They stayed in my bedroom, and I slept with my younger sister, Katy. I, of course, do not remember this at all, but apparently, late in the night, I went to my old bedroom and begged the man to let me get in the bed with him!!! I must have been about 8 years old, and it was quite the embarassment to hear about it at the breakfast table the next morning.

Anyways, I have not done any sleepwalking in the past several years, but for some reason unknown, it re-occurred last night. Brad had to go over the scenario for me this morning because I had no idea what happened. Apparently, last night, I threw the covers off and jumped out of the bed, ran straight to the television and turned it off (we always fall asleep with the television on - a habit I'm trying to break), Brad then said he heard me walk straight into the bathroom door frame with a loud THUMP. I then remember feeling this AWFUL pain - in my nose. Brad ran to me to make sure I hadn't broken my nose. It was the worse pain I've ever felt. I didn't get much sleep after that, and I awoke to a swollen nose and two black eyes this morning. And it still hurts - badly.

What a great way to start my day. I may just keep my sunglasses on all day.

Home sweet home.

I'm full of happiness and excitement today, as Brad and I have made a HUGE purchase today....

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!!! (well, we have a contract on a house!)

Anyways, we've been looking for the past month or so, but let me tell you, we were getting discouraged. We got pre-approved and all, but we made a decision to find a nice house under $140,000. And that is NOT an easy feat - at least for me, because I'm extremely picky. We working with a WONDERFUL realtor, Mr. Justin Holder. I really couldn't have asked for anyone better. Justin explained everything in detail to us - since we were first-time buyers and all. I'm truly grateful to the good Lord above for Justin.

We love living in downtown Murfreesboro, but Brad and I soon came to the discussion that we would not be able to find a move-in ready house downtown. Everything we looked at in our price range was in horrible condition - it would have taken lots of time (and even more money) to make it a home.

Justin was patient with us, and he emailed us this past Friday with a new listing - he said it was really cute, and we should definitely check it out. So, we looked at it on Monday at lunch, and I WAS IN LOVE!!! It was everything I wanted and MORE. My parents were able to come look at it again with us on Monday night - it was really important for me to have my parents' approval. Although, if they had said they didn't like it, I might have ignored their opinion! We put in a contract, and thank the good Lord they accepted! They are a young couple with a new baby, and they said they were excited to have someone move in that would appreciate all the hard work they had done on the house! We are very blessed to have this opportunity, and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for us now!

I have attached some pictures of the house for your viewing pleasure - I will have to attach new ones after we move in! Enjoy!

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. - Psalm 67: 2-3

I will try to post some more pictures later of the outside of the house!

'Til later, y'all!

What a weekend!

This weekend was a lot busier than I would have liked it to be - but that's how things go! Friday night was spent with my 5-year old cousin, Tessa. My mom took her out shopping for clothes, and she begged and begged her mom to let her spend the night with me. We had a blast! Of course, we had to go eat mexican at our favorite restaurant, and then I had to buy her some cute outfits as well! She stayed up until nearly 11:30 playing video games with Brad - bless his soul, he let her win everytime! It was hilarious!
We both fell asleep watching "Hannah Montana," and I awoke to someone tickling my nose and giggling. I slowly opened my eyes and looked at the clock. 5:45 a.m. And she was ready to get up. It was STILL DARK OUTSIDE! So much for sleeping in! Brad made breakfast, and we decorated the front lawn with fall decorations. I had to work at the shop from 10-2, but I don't really consider that work! I got to freshen up some of the displays and even had time to buy a great Mom agenda for my good friend, Keisha, who is expecting a sweet little boy in November. For all you moms out there, if you don't have a Mom agenda - YOU NEED ONE! They are FABULOUS!
Saturday afternoon was spent at Walnut Grove with the MidSouth Bank crew for their team tailgate! It was lots of fun - good fun and great friends! I got to see a lot of my ADPi girls that I haven't seen in quite sometime. The game was close, although we would have LOVED to see the Blue Raiders pull out a win!
My weekend was so long, Brad and I decided to sleep in and skip church (I know, shame on us). We got a lot of cleaning done around the house - it needed it BADLY! I'm such a neat freak that it kills me if it's not SPOTLESS. I then went to Keisha's baby shower which was so much fun - I can't wait until little Landon gets here!
Last night, I worked on my stuffed tomatoes for my Junior League meeting/potluck that it tonight. Let me just tell you, stuffing little cherry tomatoes, is NOT fun! They tasted pretty good - we'll see how they are tonight!
Thanks for the prayers that are being sent my way in regards to my health issues - they are very much appreciated!
Have a wonderful week, y'all!

Like a child...

It's been almost a month since I have posted last. Every once in a while, I think to myself "I need to update my blog!" So, I have a few minutes before my weekend OFFICIALLY starts, so here goes!
I have some really good news - after months of wait and MANY interviews, I have FINALLY been placed with a little sister. And I couldn't love her more. She is seriously my new best friend!
Her name is Kayla - she's 15 - when they first called me, I was hesitant to take such an older girl. They assured me that Kayla was really excited about the program, and would be a wonderful little sister. Her father is disabled and going through many health problems, which can be a potential problem for Kayla. I just hope that I can be a good role model for her through her pain and suffering. ANYWAYS, she's ADORABLE! She's very little and full of personality. We get along very well, and we even share a favorite restaurant - TOOT's! I am very excited about the possibilites with Kayla, and I think we're going to be great friends. We already text message each other daily!
In other news, I have been going through a lot of pain lately with migraine headaches. I had gotten so used to having a headache every single day, that I began to ignore the pain. Last week, I experienced some of the most horrific pain at work. I did visit the doctor and was given some pain medication. I will have to visit a neurologist to make sure nothing serious is going on. I am also experiencing a lot of "woman" trouble - there might be some issues as to whether or not I will be able to carry children, so please pray for these things in my life.
I do hope that those of you that read get something good out of it - it's really my way of telling my story for those that are no longer near me anymore.

I hope you each have a blessed day and weekend!
'Til later, y'all!