I'm ready for Spring

I don't know about you guys, but I'm ready for spring. As much as I do enjoy the cooler weather, I absolutely HATE the wind that comes with it. When the wind picks up here, my allergies get so bad and my skin dries out. I'm also ready to break out my cute skirts and spring-y outfits. I'm ready for warmer weather.

Things haven't changed much in our home. My husband is still out looking for work. There was a moment where something sounded promising, but it never panned out. Well, at least it seems that way. If God has that job in mind for Eric, it will happen. I have to admit, I am losing patience. Not with Eric, mind you, but with the whole process. With the whole country in a major recession, it just does not seem likely that Eric will find a job any time soon. I do get discouraged at times, but I just need to focus that God is greater than this and something bigger than we could ever imagine will come our way.

My job is okay. It's definitely not what I want to do at all and I often find myself getting discouraged at my situation, but I still remind myself that is a million times better than my old job and that my paycheck is really helping pay the bills. My only source of hope is that once Eric is in a steady job, I can quit this job and stay home. Finally! Looking back, I realized that I could have always stayed home. We are living on so little and and can still pay our bills and eat. I don't know why we never realized that to begin with!

As far as my baking adventures go, Eric and I and a friend of mine tried our hand at scones and lemon curd the other day. Eric worked on the lemon curd while my new found friend and I worked on the scones. They were so delicious! We will definitely be making those again. It's so fun to be able to be hospitable without spending a ton of money.

Well, that's it for now I guess. I will leave you guys with a cute picture of my snuggle bug, Stella.

A closeup of her sweet face!

Catching Up

I'm such a horrible blogger. I think about posting something, but then I never get around to it. I am so envious of the other bloggers that have something great to write nearly every day, while I struggle to put out a single post. I don't know how many readers I have, but I don't want to lose any, simply because I don't post that often.

That being said, I think I going to try to make this more of a fun journal. I may post something serious, I will probably post about what's going on in my life and my ever evolving walk with God, but I will mostly post things I'm finding interesting at the moment. It may be something from another blog I read, it may be a fun You Tube video, or it may be some lyrics to a song that is speaking to me at the moment. I'm just thinking about this as a journal, so some day I can look back and see what I found entertaining or thought provoking at the moment.

That being said, this post will be about what happened this past week. "What happened?" You ask? Well, Let me just show you:



Oh my lucky stars! It's snow!! In the desert!!! Yes folks, it snowed in the desert. I woke up Wednesday morning at 6:30 and thought it looked whiter than normal outside, so I got out of bed and peeked through the blinds and there it was. In all it's wet and cold glory. SNOW!!!!!

I opened all the blinds in the house and just stared. I figured it would all be gone by 9am, so I was soaking it all in. I also went out and took tons of pictures, just to capture the magical moment.

Here are a few of them:

Down the street

Our backyard

Come rain, sleet or snow, USPS will always deliver

Earlier in the morning

Our front yard

By 11am, the snow was not slowing down. It was actually coming down more! Eric wanted to go drive in it, so I bundled up, grabbed a blanket and off we went. The main roads were pretty bad. Desert people just don't know how to deal with snow, so Eric went down some side streets. He had fun testing out our TCS and anti lock breaks on our car. After about an hour, we went home to go sit by the fire. By 2 in the afternoon, it was STILL snowing, so we decided to go to my aunt and uncles house to watch the snow from their picture windows. It took twice as long to get there, but we made it and my dad took some pictures of us by the snowman my cousins made earlier that day.

Close up!

When we got home that evening, we couldn't even pull all the way in the driveway, because there was too much snow. I couldn't believe it. This is the most snow I have seen. Ever. By the time we went to bed that evening, we had 10 inches of snow, and it was still coming down.

Our car stuck in the driveway

Our poor tree. Three branches broke off

The front of our house from across the street

The snow lined up with the sidewalk10 inches!!

The last of the snow melted today, but I will never forget the fun we had last Wednesday. I'm still hoping and praying we can have another day like it soon!

I Will Praise Him in this Storm

Eric and I were laid off yesterday. To say we were surprised is the understatement of the year. It was more like we were blindsided.

I'm still in shock. If I'm not crying, I'm walking around like a zombie. Eric is doing well. He said it hasn't really hit him yet, however, he feels that God has something bigger and better for us in store. I'm so thankful for him right now, because he is my rock.

I'm scared, confused and overwhelmed and yet, I know God is there. This didn't surprise God at all. He knew it was going to happen and He knows what will happen in the future. I'm just holding onto Him with all my might as He leads us down this new path. Who knows, maybe we were given this forced time off to help us strengthen our marriage. Maybe there is an even better job out there for Eric that he never would have found if he hadn't been laid off. I'm just trusting (well, trying to trust) and praying that God will work in wondrous ways through this storm.

Since we got the news yesterday, the Casting Crowns' song Praise You in this Storm has been running through my head and today I heard it twice on the radio within 30 minutes (I was channel surfing). This will be my theme song for awhile.

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

Chorus:
And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
and raised me up again
my strength is almost gone how can I carry on
if I can't find You
and as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away

Chorus

I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth

Update

I've had a couple people mention to me that I needed to update my blog. It had been awhile hasn't it? So in the words of Marvin Gaye, "What's Goin' On?"

Well I have been working in my new position for the past 2 1/2 months and I must say I love it! It keeps me busy, which makes my day fly by. Having every other Friday off isn't half bad either. I just told Eric the other day that I can see myself doing this for another couple of years. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed my work.

My "side job" with Cookie Lee is going well too. I have had a few parties and I have done really well with them. I think the most fun is going to the showroom and buying everything. It's also fun for me to "display" my jewelry by wearing it every once and awhile. I had thought it would be nice to make extra money (which that is pretty nice) but I'm just having fun with it right now. It's not like this is my "real job" and our bills depend on it. I think that is what also makes it fun for me. There is no pressure to make a money deadline.

Hmmm, what else have I done since the last time I posted...

Oh! I saw Johnny Depp's head! Back in May, I got the crazy idea to go to Disneyland at the butt crack of dawn and stand in one area for many, many, many hours just to see the Pirates of the Caribbean celebrities come down Main Street U.S.A. on the largest red carpet I have ever seen (Okay, it's the only red carpet I have ever seen.) I figured I only live once, and an opportunity to be a part of something big like that won't ever happen again. So I packed up some clothes and headed down to my cousins' house and spent the night. I got up at 4ish the next morning and took my cousins Katie, Maggie and a couple of their friends to Disneyland for the day.

We found our spot and stayed there for most of the time. Katie is my hero because she literally stood in the exact same spot for 14+ hours. Her perseverance paid off and she was able to get Johnny's autograph. I'm still bitter! I did have a good time making fun of the 12 year old girls who said they have loved Johnny Depp "forever". I wanted to tell them I've loved him longer than they have been alive!

It was so crowded, I ended up just hanging in the back of the crowd and standing on my tip toes as the celebrities walked down the red carpet. I tried to take pictures, but I kept getting bumped and my pictures didn't come out. I was able to get a good view of some celebrities( most of them "B" list), but as soon as Johnny came walking down, hundreds of people just crowded around me and I was only able to get a glimpse of his head. Oh well, I still got closer to him than just seeing him on my TV. If they do make a Pirates 4, you bet I will be there again to experience it all over again. Only at that time, I'm pulling a Katie and I plan on staying in one area the whole time.

Other than that, nothing too much has been happening. Eric and I are busy with work, and there have been a few family events, but other than that, nothing too exciting.