News and Trips and News

I got a facial today.

Oh you guys (or gals). Facials are heavenly! They have a special room just for it, and you lay down in a bed like you're going to get a massage, and it's candlelit, and there's soft music playing...and then it's basically like getting a face and neck massage for 30 minutes. Well, mine was an express facial, so it was 30 minutes. Her normal facials are 1.5 hours long. I told Mari I'm going to treat her to one, and I mean it.

If anyone is wondering how I can afford it (because I'm sure I've talked about our tight finances on here before, although I try not to mention it too often), in May, I bought a promo from this spa and salon for $40. They offer four different treatments on four different appointments. All for $40. So it's basically like paying for one treatment, and getting three more for free. I got a hair cut right before I started my job, and I still have a mani and pedi left.

Oh yeah. It's a really good deal.

So if you feel like treating yourself, maybe skip the usual manicure or pedicure. Try a facial. They are soooooo relaxing.

In other news, I mentioned that I kind of had a secret that was still in the works, and that I wasn't quite ready to share it yet, because we were still hashing out some details. But my husband spilled the beans, so you all pretty much know about it already. In less than two weeks, Art's family and I are taking a 10-day road trip to California. Art's dad hasn't seen his grandmother in a while, and I think she's sick and quite possibly dying, so he wants to see her again.

So we'll visit with them for a few days (and I'll be meeting some of Art's extended family for the first time). And then. And THEN. We're going to DISNEYLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've never been, honestly thought I'd never go, but we're going, and I'm beside myself with glee! We'll be there for about 2.5 days, and after that we drive back. And Art's parents are paying for all of it. I can't believe it, and I actually didn't believe it for a while. But they really are, and I got the time off from work, and I still have a job when I get back (which is something I was worried about).

So yeah. California. I've been to Cali twice before, and for those of you who haven't been, it really is as nice as everyone says it is.

Ooh, and some other exciting news: Kat is going to be here tomorrow! She is my bestest girl friend, she was a bridesmaid in my wedding, and she lives far away, so I haven't seen her since the wedding, and before that, I hadn't seen her for.....over two years. We became quite close friends in college, and she is one of two people with whom I've stayed in contact. So yeah, she's taking a short, impromptu road trip out this way, and she's staying the weekend!

And I have no plans. I have no idea where I should take her, and what I should show her. I also don't have a car, so that could make things interesting. Also, I should be cleaning the house, and the weird thing is, I have zero motivation. I don't know if that's ever happened before. I mean, it's not just a bit of tidying. I have to clean. And I haven't started yet. Oh dear. I hope Mari and Art are feeling helpful tomorrow while I'm at work.

Well, they say that starting is the hardest part, so here I go!

Every Good and Perfect Gift Comes From Above

I had this huge long post all typed up about all sorts of things that have happened lately/that I have been thinking about lately, and then I deleted it. On purpose. Because that's not really what I wanted to say.

I just realized how much God has blessed us lately, and my heart is too full not to share it.

God answered my panicked prayers about finding a new place quickly, and the blessings will keep on coming, because our rent is lower, as are our bills.

God used a woman in our old church to help me get a job. I was one of the last to be hired, and who knows how many resumes they got. I just barely got in there.

God answered my prayer about finding a way to get to work. I take the bus now. So easy, pretty cheap. And this week it's free, which means Art got to keep his quarters for himself instead of me stealing them.

God has recently answered some prayers about some personal things. I'm not going to share any details, but basically, only God could make a change in this area, and it's something I've been praying about for a while, and I'm finally seeing some breakthrough. I just keep praying that it only gets better.

He has answered some "smaller" prayers as well. All of my jeans have holes in them, except for one pair, and I can't wear holey jeans to work. I was wondering when I would be able to purchase some new ones, and wondering wear I would buy them (I haven't shopped for clothes since I moved here.) Then, my friend came over with some jeans that were given to her by a co-worker, and she asked me to try them all on.

They all fit. One pair is a bit lose, but they all fit! And they don't have holes in them. So God answered that prayer, even though I technically never prayed about it. He knows my needs.

The jeans do need to be hemmed though. I've thought about hemming them by hand, but hand-sewing denim is difficult, and painful. It's really better to use a sewing machine.

On Sunday, our church had "Beautify Sunday." Instead of having a service, we go out and do service. The church finds out about needs in the community, and then we just volunteer for the one we want to do. A big group of people put together sack lunches and gave them to homeless people downtown. Some guys went to cut down a few dead trees somewhere.

Mari and I went to an elderly widow's apartment to help her clean (side note: James 1:27). I got to bless her by scrubbing her oven and her fridge. And she blessed us back. By giving us a free sewing machine. I definitely didn't pray about that one. I never dreamed about having my own. I assumed I would find someone who owned one.

We told Sozan that we would give it to her, but she said that we could keep it here and share it. She is free to come over anytime to use it. We just need to buy some thread. And then she and Mari need to learn how to use it. I have watched my mom use her sewing machine all my life, so I'm pretty comfortable setting it up.

And then today, at Wal-Mart, I found a $1 soap dispenser. Such a little thing. But I was too cheap to buy an $8 soap dispenser, and I couldn't find one for less. Until today. Just one of those little things that we kind of needed, but I would never pray about, because it's so trivial. Or how about the shelving unit that stand over the toilet? You know what I'm talking about? One of these:



Art had talked about getting one, because our bathroom doesn't have much storage, other than under the sink. And I wanted a place to put towels. And then a friend of his moved, and gave us one! Again, totally didn't think to pray about it. But God new our wants/needs, and provided anyway. Because He is so loving like that.

So I that's what I really wanted to share. And I guess I'm done sharing, because I've been talking to Mari for about an hour now, instead of finishing this post. Have a great weekend, and God bless!

My First Video Blog!

A Really Round-About Way To Tell You I'm Back

Our internet, cable, and phone are all hooked up.

Our living room is a mess again because the guy had to move all our stuff to set up the cable/internet/cable.

Art put some hot sauce outside our bedroom windows last night so the cat wouldn't come and yowl RIGHT beneath our bedroom window. We heard it a little bit last night, but it wasn't close. And we finally slept.

I'm getting a bus pass tomorrow.

Did I ever tell you that I don't like dishwashers? I don't trust them (the machine, not the people). You have to rinse them before you put them in, otherwise they might not end up completely clean. Some dishes can't be put in the dishwasher. Since I'm rinsing some, and fully washing others, I might as well wash them all. It doesn't take that long.

So we have a dishwasher. And I LOVE it. Because after I'm done washing the dishes, I put them in the dishwasher to air dry. And that way, we don't take up more counter space. :D

I also don't like mops. I think they just push dirt around. And I'm not willing to spend money on replacing cloths on a Swiffer. So I wash them on my hands and knees, with paper towels and some cleaner. Art thinks it's a waste of paper towels. I think it's a clean floor. :)

I finally have a key to our house too! Mari and Art made me one today. There were only three keys, because it's a three-bedroom house. Which means they've had to keep it unlocked for me when I come home, and they're gone. But no more.

And I have a teaser for you: I'm pretty much for-sure taking a trip. I didn't think I was going to, but it seems I've got a sweet after-summer vacation to look forward to. But we still have to finalize some things, so I don't want to get all excited about it just to find out that it's not possible. Crossing my fingers...

One of the girls in my department has heard of CrossFit and the Zone/Paleo diet, and she's obsessed with it, and very badly wants to work out at Art's gym. I love having someone at work that I can talk with about workouts and healthy recipes, and all that nerdy stuff. Usually, when people hear about it, they think I'm crazy. It's hard not to make it sound like a cult, because those who know it LOVE it. It's addicting, and it really does change your life.

Of course, I feel a bit like a hypocrite, because I can tell you practically all there is to know about CrossFit, and how great it is, but I don't actually work out. YET. I'm quite anxious to get my own membership, or go on Art's. But Joe is on Art's. So maybe it'll happen after Joe gets his own. Which might be a few months.

But at least I eat healthy. So I'm not a hypocrite about that. I walk the walk. We've been SO bad with our diet this summer. I don't remember when we fell off the wagon, but boy, we fell way off, and stayed off for almost two straight months. But now we're back.

Wow, this blog ended up being a lot longer than I thought. So anyway, just wanted to update you, and let you know that we have internet, which means I can get back to blogging. Yay!

City Life

So apparently I can read other blogs, but I can't comment on them. Here is what I wanted to say:

Elleah - I love the new pictures of Kiera! (As if I would ever not love them.) Her hair is getting so long! Also, I had a dream about you last night that you had a boy, and you named him John. Also, Kiera was like, 3 years old, and speaking in full sentences. So my dream wasn't that accurate. But I'm still convinced you're having a boy.

Ruth: Your post about Jerusalem was beautiful. I got a little choked up. "My savior walked these streets!" That would be just the most incredible experience.

Callie: I am not shocked at all that you love country music. I am very glad. Because I love it too, for the EXACT same reasons. You took the words right out of my mouth.

Moving on.

So we have been here in our new place just over a week. Do I love it yet? Honestly, no. I really loved our other place. It was basically perfect, except for the fact that it wasn't in Bellingham. Which is why we are here in Bellingham.

I will tell you what I DO like about this new place though: I already mentioned the fact that it's in a city, which means it's close to everything. And I can take a bus to and from work. Very convenient. About the house iteself (duplex, actually): it has a huge garage, which is good, because we can't fit everything from two households in the house. So a lot of it is going in the garage. But there's still enough room to set it up for working out.

And even though we are 4 people in a 3 bedroom house, Art and I get our own bathroom, and it's a bigger bathroom than our old one. More counter space, more under-the-sink space, and it isn't crowded when both of us are in there (our old bathroom was seriously tiny).

And, of course, there's the saving money part. I definitely like that. I do miss the ocean, but we are close to 2 lakes, and we've been to one of them already.

Now I'll tell you what I don't like about the place: the fact that it's in a city means it's not that quiet. Our immediate neighbors don't make a lot of noise, at least not at night, which I am VERY thankful for. But there are still others in the area who have no sense of "people are actually asleep at 1 AM, maybe I shouldn't scream and shout and play my music insanely loud." Weeknights, weekends, it's all the same to those people. I'm hoping this will change when school starts again.

And then there are the dogs. Our neighbors dog is pretty annoying during the day, but at night, it's someone else's dog who decides that night time is the right time to start up a lenthy, uninterrupted monologue. Which makes me wonder about their owners. I mean, if I had a dog, and I knew it was outside, making a racket, I would take it INSIDE. Because it's MY dog, and even if it keeps me up, it's my responsibility to make sure it doesn't bother the whole neighborhood.

Apparentley, other people don't feel this way. They're lucky that I don't know who they are, because I would find myself quite tempted to give them a piece of my mind. And maybe a piece of my fist too. I'm kidding. About the first part.

So yeah. It's going to take a while to get used to the night time noises. But that's pretty much the only truly negative thing. Oh, and there's this cat somewhere that sounds like it's being tortured, and again, only at night. Every night I pray that it dies. Because the sounds coming from that cat give me the heebie-jeebies.

So that's how it's going so far. I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel as far as unpacking goes. If I can manage to tear myself away from this computer, I think I can finally tackle our bedroom. It's just barely liveable.

The kitchen has been done for a while, since I unpacked it first. Yes, I did it all, by myself, because I'm a bit of a control freak that way. I wanted to make sure that we weren't trying to put too much stuff in there that we didn't need (because it's a tiny kitchen). Also, I wanted the whole layout to make sense. Pots and pans go in the Lazy Susan beside the stove, because that makes sense. Stuff like that.

The living room is almost finished. We get our internet and cable hooked up next week (yes, right now we're technically stealing our neighbors internet. It's only temporary). Our bathroom is done. And the other bedrooms are up to other peoples. Those are their private spaces. If they never unpack them, I do not care. As long as the mess doesn't spill out into the living room.

Today I've got the place all to myself, for basically the entire day. Which means I can get a lot done. So I should get to work. Here I go.