We have another niece or nephew on the way! 2011 is going to be a joyous year indeed.;)

This old house

So, I have to admit to my own stupidity and ignorance. With owning a old house now, there are some things that I just don't think about. Like, say, tearing into the wallpaper, little thinking that there could be lead based paint in there. Thankfully, God is good and sent me a father in law who could test the paint to make sure it was safe to proceed.;) The tests turned out to be negative, so I could proceed and rid the room of its 5+ layers of wallpaper and paint.:) Ah, the adventures we are having with our first home!:D
We also were quite blessed to discover that the linoleum we tore out was not asbestos, which was a huge blessing, since the deed was done and the linoleum removed. It is nice to know we didn't stir up anything hazardous.
It has been amazing to see how many ways God has already blessed us and the lessons He has started to teach us with the house.

If all goes according to plan, we should close on the 24th! Andrew told me that mean Thanksgiving at our house.;) (with the bat and unfinished rooms. lol)
There have been a lot of set backs with the house, with waiting on the title company, and then having the bank back out on us. But, God has blessed us through it all with a temporary place to live (one that we didn't have to rent for a set amount of time) and a better loan now then what the first bank offered us. Its hard to know what why things happen that way they do until you see the bigger picture.

Our house! We had to fill out paperwork today to get the extension needed by the title company. So, it could be at least another thirty days before we are in it. I would complain about that, if it meant we would be on the streets once we are married, but we have been incredible blessed to have relatives offer a empty house to us until ours is ready. *confetti*
Things are coming together nicely for the big day, though I find myself making massive to-do lists of all the things we can't do until the week of.;) I just hope that I don't wind up losing one of those lists, since they are the equivalent of my brain these days.;)

So much to be thankful for

Lately, I have been rather blown away at the amount of answered prayers there have been in my life. After hearing "wait" for Dad to get a good job for so many months, he recently got hired on by a local college. I'm thrilled that he is working for a place that values all his gifts and areas of expertise! The job has been a huge blessing so far.
We are finishing up the last minute plans for the wedding, which included finally sitting down and writing up a schedule to make sure everything is done in time. (finally, those nightmares regarding a half planned wedding can stop! lol) Right after we finished, I had several friends offer to help with whatever needs to be done the week leading up to the wedding. *whew* Now I don't have to try and figure how to decorate the church with just three pairs of hands or plan on a all nighter working on flowers.;) I feel incredibly blessed by the friends I have!
Is it wrong for me to be super excited about how the cake is looking to turn out? I think it is one of the things I am most excited about, since I have had a clear picture of how I want it to turn out for so long and yet didn't think it was possible. I want the cake to taste good, and then the look is second, so I didn't want to have to go with fondant as the design seemed to call for. Well, Poppy came up with this ingenious plan to do buttercream frosting on the actual cake, but then make the flowers out of fondant. So, it will both taste good and look the way I want.:D Because, it is just wrong for the baker to have a awful tasting wedding cake. lol.
We started the gluten free bakery and it has been amazing to see the doors open for that! God has richly blessed my family.

We are still in the midst of working out the paperwork in regards to the house. There were a few problems with the contract, so we used up our three chances to get it right... The realtor just sent it in the for the third and final time, so I do hope that everything looks good! I mean, now I know how to spell my middle name. lol. I didn't realize until two years ago that the way I have always spelled my middle name is not how it is on the birth certificate, so now I have to decide which way to go with how I spell it. So, when the government finds that I spelled my middle name one way on the paper work and then another on my SSN card and drivers license, they kind of frowned on that.;) But, hopefully that is all worked out now!

Once we have the house, though, we can finally finish registering for the wedding, since we won't be blindly guessing what we would like to have in a future house.;) So many things up in the air until then though!

VBS is going on this week, ending with the community BBQ on Saturday. So, the kids went out last night to collect cans of food for the food pantry and invite the neighbors to the BBQ. It has been cute to see their zeal.:)

Andrew and I bought a home! We found out today that our offer was accepted.:)

What do you think it takes to be lucky? I was reading a book called The Survivors Club and it talked about this idea that some people are lucky than others. You know what I got out of it? That most people aren't so much lucky as that they choice to take what life throws at them and dwell on the positive. Not the negative. They also notice the chance opportunities, which I would venture to say is because they are upbeat and enjoying life around them. They also generally listen to their hunches, persevere in the face of failure, have the ability to turn bad luck into good fortune, and can have a uncanny ability to make their wishes come true.
So, what do you say? I thought it was interesting, but I think luck really boils down to how we handle life and what is thrown in our direction. We all have bad days, but its what we do with those bad days that can make all the difference.

I try to hear from heaven, but I talk the whole time

It has been hitting me that I'm getting married in just over three months and that there are a bazillion little details we need to have figured out before the wedding date. Who knew there were so many little things that need attention? Its fun, even if I have no clue what kind of wording to put on the invitations (though I do know that I want both sets of parents to be on there) or the order of the service. Its been a journey for us, alright!

We took some of our engagement pictures last week with my mom. What fun! We went to an old estate, which Andrew's sister in law had suggested. Its perfect for taking photos!

Talk six times with the same single lady and you may get the wedding dress ready. Lord Byron

Planning wedding invitations.;)

Today has been one of those days that is filled to the brim with blessings. I found a key that I didn't know I had lost in the driveway, which is a blessing in more ways than one! I didn't have to wait till I knew it was missing (as in making a trip to the new store and finding that I didn't have a key to open it up).:)
When I opened the back porch door, I dropped a gallon of milk. Not just any gallon of milk, since we buy raw milk and it is in glass jars. So, seeing it bounce and not burst open was pretty amazing! I was happy not to have to clean milk out of the indoor/outdoor carpet and run the risk of smelling sour milk through the summer months.;)
Our a/c here at the house is now working correctly! It will be especially appreciated tomorrow, when we get home from a long day in a warm bakery.;)
I also picked a bunch of gooseberries this afternoon, to add to the basket from last week. It felt good to be outdoors, since it was relatively cool out after the storm last night.

One of those pointless updates :D

For some reason, I kind of like this furniture.;) It wouldn't exactly go with the antiques I own....:D

Also, I have added a playlist to my blog. Its a bit eclectic.;)

"I see my purpose in life as making the world a happier place to be in .” David Niven

School is out for the summer! I have never been this happy to be done with a semester.;) I'm ready to have time to work on other projects, like planning a wedding and learning how to play the cello!
I actually haven't truly started in on all the projects I need to do though, since we have been working on the new store. Its amazing how clean a place can feel once you put some paint on the wall. I love old buildings, but sometimes, the task of making them into something presentable can be a bit daunting. There is something satisfying about taking the impossible and turning it into a thing of beauty.

I had another cello lesson yesterday. I can now (kind of, with the help of pencil markings) play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"! Next piece to conquer, Canon in D.;) Why? Because the cello part is made for beginners like me!

Brown paper packages tied up with string

I received a cello from my fiance this year for a birthday present, something I have always wanted.:) Andrew tried to talk me into wanting to play the bass, and almost had me convinced that it would be just the thing for me. He did that partly so I wouldn't suspect what he had found for my birthday present.;) I love it, though I will mention that it has been quite an experience to have to start at the beginning on another instrument.:D I have to remind myself that it will be a lot more fun once I have learned the fundamentals and can actually play something familiar on it.:D

My brother married on Saturday.:) I would say there was a flurry of birdseed and confetti, by that would just describe what their car was like when they went to leave.;) The only thing is, Luke surprised Mandi by leaving in Corvette instead of his SUV.;) Unfortunately, their SUV will be waiting for them (in all its glory) when they return from the honeymoon.

If you were to spend a Saturday with a fictional character, who would you pick?

Raindrops on roses

Andrew surprised me with flowers, which made my day.;)

International packages are always such fun! And yet, so hard, since I love a good surprise and they make hat near impossible with their list of the contents on the customs form. I'm afraid I peaked this time...

To market, to market

Market morning. We had an Earth Day fair in addition to the regular markets today.:) They usually have a book sale going on in one of the gyms (which I look forward to, as one can never have enough books!). They didn't have it this year though, which was a disappointment. I'm sure Andrew doesn't feel to sorry for me, since it means less books for him to have to move when we get married in October.;)
Having skipped last year's Earth Day fair because of remodeling the gym, it kind of threw off everyone's groove. I was glad they held it again this year though!
We saw a young lady today who became one of our most memorable customers some years ago when she spent her whole allowance at our booth.:) How many 8-10 year olds are interested in free range, farm fresh eggs? I think we have a future farmer on our hands! It was lovely to see her again. It reminds me how old I am growing.;) I'll be a quarter of a century at the end of this month!
We catered the lunch for the event, which is always a fun experience. My mum's worst fear is to run out of food early on.;) We didn't, which can be a mixed blessing.
I am so thrilled that Spring is finally here, bringing with it the markets and warmer weather.

To guys in general

You need to realize how wonderful my single girlfriends are and start nabbing them up!
That is all.:)

When I was dead, you gave me life/How could I not give it away so freely. Leeland

We had the opportunity to do a Passover Seder meal with some friends. It was amazing! The Seder dinner marks the beginning of the Passover feasts and is focused on the numerous plagues that God cursed the Egyptians with before they set the Israelites free.


The first big step toward our wedding: pulling the sequins off the lace for my dress!
(proof of how much Andrew loves me;)) Six months and a day until we get married!


Andrew and I at the Expo on Saturday. We were blessed to have sold both weekends.;)

Love is not a place to come and go as we please. But a house to enter in and then commit to never leave.

My sister is now married and living happily ever after with Chris in their quaint farmhouse.;)

So, now I am quite out numbered against my brothers. I do believe I need another sister...

A new year. The chance for a fresh start.

Christ tells us
"This is my commandment
that ye love
one another"
But we do not listen.

This is not His doctrine
to cause contention
to let anger fester
to choose to hold grudges
to build walls.

Christ longs
to draw us ever closer
to Him,
to each other
but there are walls in the way.

He cannot force us
the choice is ours
to continue to build our personal walls
or to focus our efforts
on building His city
the New Jerusalem.
*ANC*