New and I like it.

There have been so many new "happenings" around here lately; I feel like I'm living a different life.

We moved into a cute place in Barrington.  We have definitely had to simplify our life a bit.  We gave a lot of our furniture to family who can use it at this point more than we could, we sold a good portion of our books (thank you HalfPrice books for the $87), and I boxed up about 1/3 of what was in our kitchen to sell at a garage sale in July.  Simple is good.  It continues to remind me how nothing is really mine anyway.

Pulling two jobs a day is no more!  I will miss my previous place of employment but I am excited about this new chapter.  I am greatly looking forward to pursuing photographer even further because of my less rigid schedule.  Here are some fun pictures from the session with my brother and his family two weeks ago.

 He is sooo my brother's child.

I have 3 goals now that life looks a lot different than it did a few months ago.  I hope to keep an update here on how I'm doing.  Accountability is a good thing.

#1 Run a 5K

There is a 5K in August that I hope to run in.  I began the "Couch to 5K" plan last week and am already on Week 2...7 weeks to go!  Let's see if I can bring my 14 minute mile down to a less embarrassing 10.

#2 Make my own cleaning supplies

I don't feel quite educated enough to do this yet, but I have made a huge effort to buy supplies that are a lot safer.

#3 Make a new meal a week

Heh...we'll see how long this one stays on the list.  It's not that I hate cooking.  I don't.  There is just this small part of me that wants to rebel against the statement that "a woman's place is in the kitchen".  If someone were to ask me to bake brownies I would probably subconsciously do it wrong just so I'd never be asked again.  There are a few things I make well.  Mostly...mac n cheese.  No, but really, I can cook.  I just don't want anyone to EXPECT me to...because I'm a woman, a future Pastor's wife, etc.  But I suppose now that I work until 2pm everyday instead of 7pm I should take the lead on meals.  I suppose that's fair.

I'll let you know if I can control my subconscious and make something edible.

Red light! Green light!

Red light, green light!

I always hated the end of red light, green light when everyone got too close and no matter how short I made the "green light" I would be tagged.  I remember yelling frantically, "Red light!  Red light!  Red light!" in the hopes that I would be the one calling the shots for just a little longer, but then...
Whack, some kid smacks me yelling "Gotcha!"

I feel like mentally I've been yelling "red light! red light! red light!" these past two weeks.

Wes has graduated!  After his internship this summer he is completely done!

We're moving!  Good-bye noisy neighbors, obnoxious car alarms, loud hardwood floors, children who roam the streets at 10 at night, and solicitors who won't sell me tamales!

Downsizing is never fun.  I thought when we moved in two years ago we'd just continue to increase our stuff, our square footage yada yada yada.  It just painfully reminds me that none of this is ours anyway.  

We'll be renting a carriage house in Barrington.  Very exciting.  We begin the move June 1!  

Yikes!  We still have so much to do.

What do you get when you combine a seminary student and an English major?  Sixteen boxes of books.

A New Season

First wedding since last fall.  It was so good to be back.  I love studying people.  Wedding photography is a study in psychology perhaps with a little anthropology in there too.  I am a stranger who is invited in like a long lost friend.  I study the bride and the groom...but mostly the bride.  I watch as they relate to their family and friends and try to bring smiles and a sense of calm as a carefully planned day sometimes doesn't go as planned.  I love what I do.

It's been a busy 2012 thus far...can't wait for more.

Now I get to do it more often.
I will be working as an Administrative Assistant in the church we attend.  This job comes with a more flexible schedule.  I am extremely excited.  I get to put my experience in a school to good use but also enjoy not always having to be "on".  All this being said, I will be able to do photography a little more intentionally.

A wonderful four years as an Assistant Teacher is soon to be just memories and a blurb on a resume.  A new adventure is on the horizon.  As I sit here listening to my Zac Brown Band station on Pandora I am reminded how there are seasons of life...chapters.  I am sad to see a chapter of familiarity closing....but I am ecstatic to venture into new territory, take a deep breath, and see what God has in store for His daughter.

"Future"

Welp...our journey is beginning and I don't think I buckled my seat belt fast enough.

For 5 years I knew this would eventually happen but as I'm coming closer and closer to that door that says "Future" in bold letters I am finding myself wanting to turn around and run away.

There is that part of me that KNOWS God's plans are so amazing as He has proven that time and time again.  But for anyone who has been in this position, it's the not knowing that can be so exhilarating and so terrifying at the same time.

what happened to my common sense?

When I got married I think I lost all common sense.

There are too many stories to tell but the most recent was putting the plastic milk cap on our hot electric stove.  Oops.

There is a country song about a wife driving the car into the garage door...that's totally me.  I haven't done it yet but mostly because we don't have a garage.

the day I lost all common sense

(Photo taken by Michael Carr)

Ah well, I suppose without me he wouldn't have a social life...that makes it even, right?  He stops me from burning our home to the ground and I make sure we see friends.

Peaches and Biscuits...drooling.

Dinner is a little unconventional tonight.  As much as I don't love to cook...this recipe is worth making a mess in the kitchen.  Wes is working and I am tired of boring one-person dinners.

It's so delicious.  My stomach is ACHING right now waiting for the timer to go off.

Necessities:
A large skillet
1 large can of peaches (or 2 smaller ones)
1 cup of Sugar
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 can of large biscuits (the flakier the better)

Drain 1/2 of the peach juice into a small bowl or medium sized measuring cup.  Add 3/4 cup of sugar.
Discard the rest of the peach juice.
Empty peaches into a large skillet.
Pour juice/sugar mixture on top.
Bring to a boil
Place biscuits on top of peaches and mixture
Combine 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 tsp of cinnamon
Sprinkle mixture on top of biscuits.
Cover and set to low for 20-22 minutes.

Thank you Princess House for making my dinner so delightful.

TWC...the ultimate cookie cutter perception.

I am part of a club I never thought I would belong to.
In fact, I distinctly remember telling my mom about 7 years ago that I would "never" do it.
She laughed and wisely told me "never say 'never'".

I am part of the Trinity Wives Club.  Well...this is a semi-fictitious club....semi.  (The real group actually has a different name and I in no way want to put this group of hard-working women down.  I'm just poking fun at the stereotypes that I am sure they roll their eyes at themselves.)

I am part of it whether I like it or not.
Late night paper writing, pinching pennies, planning social gatherings around big projects and finals, and not being able to plan a concrete future because who knows what will happen after graduation.  But the "cookie cutter" part of this TWC is something I do not fit into.  Don't ever ask me to bake...seriously, like, I get offended if you ask me to bake...(are you asking me because I'm a woman?!).  I hate doing dishes.  I really don't find cooking much fun.  When we invite people over it's Wes who does the cooking.  You'll never catch me with piano books and a long skirt (this joke is only funny if you went to TIU).  I do not have ambitions to lead a children's choir.  And if someone says something negative about my husband...let's just say they'll be on my "list".

I'm aware of my positive qualities that will aid Wes in his/our future ministry together but I just chuckle to myself about all the stereotypes I don't fit into.  I'm okay with that.  Obviously God is too.

 But in all seriousness, don't ever ask me to bake.