Long time, no Blog!

so I have'nt wrote on here for a couple of months. I know I need to get on here more often so I can release all of my thoughts and frustrations that come along in my everyday life =)

Back in September, I was offered a new job at Artsy Abode. I had been with Stein Mart for almost 5 years and I was ready for a change. Something new and better pay. Artsy Abode was offering me a dollar more than I made at the Stein, which was huge since no one at Stein Mart had been given a raise in about 2 or 3 years. The day came that I was gonna turn in my 2 weeks notice, and I was so nervous! I absolutely adore my boss, Charlie, and I was terrified of upsetting him. When I told him about my new job offer, he told me not to make any final decisions yet and that he would call me and let me know if he could offer me more money. He called me the next day and got me a 2 dollar raise! I was so excited! So, of course, I'm still with Stein Mart, and celebrated my 5th year there at the end of October.

For my birthday this year we went to Universal and Islands of Adventure theme parks in Orlando. I dont think I'll ever outgrow theme parks!! We finally got to visit the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter which was amazing. I had never seen any Harry Potter movie before this and I still found this part of the park to be incredible! I can't wait to go back! As a result of visiting this park, I have now seen all of the movies and am ready to start the books as well. Proud to be a Harry Pothead!! =)

stressed and conflicted

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct your path." Proverbs 3:5 & 6

"Cosinder it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

"It id the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed." Deut. 3:18

Shoes of the Day

Becky =) brought to you by Tahari

Shoes of the Day

Brought to you by Steve Madden =) This is my happy place

"Put Off...Put On"

"That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Eph. 4:22

A lesson God is teaching me in my life right now is to not be so easily provoked. I didn't realize this until I heard both messages in church and Sunday School this past week. I am easily irritated; who knew??! ;) A verse that I was shown regarding this is 1 Cor. 13:5 which says,

"...does not act improperly; is not selfish; is not provoked; does not keep a record of wrong doings;"

I am officially the queen of holding grudges and record keeping! I know I will never be perfect, but I want to try to be more Christ-like every day. That means I have to throw away my lists and "records" of all that any one has ever done to upset me or that I thought was wrong. It's a hard lesson to learn, but I'm definitely willing to keep at it. Another verse which was an encouragement to me in this was Proverbs 19:11 -

"A person's insight gives him patience, and his virtue is to overlook an offense."

As much as it pains God when we sin, He is still a loving and forgiving Father. Why shouldn't I be willing to forgive and overlook someone's mistake? Lord, help me to be more like Jesus everyday!

"But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof." Romans 13:14

Summer Vacation

Roatrip!!! Here are some fun pictures from our great southern roadtrip, from Florida all they way up to Louisville, KY!

the travelers =)

welcome to TN! and central time

beautiful state =)

our favorite movie. and now our favorite city!

the Brown Hotel in Louisville. this is where our Orlando Bloom stayed in the movie =)=)

bakery in Louisville

Paul McCartney show in Nashville, TN. my favorite band memeber- Rusty!!

Paul xxoo

Fantastic show. Love all these guys

an explosion of confetti. we were covered in it!

as of late

its thursday night and i am finally winding down after seven straight days at the big stein. im so tired, i dont even feel like sleeping!! restlessness has overcome me! =] im thinking that tonight may be spent going through my closet and creating something new...yeah thats what i do =)=)

its been busy at work the past two weeks. we found out last monday that laurie (the boss) was promoted to district manager in dallas, tx. we were all shocked but there was this small sense of relief and happiness amongst the ranks. lol. after days of tears and goodbyes and cake(!!!!), laurie finally got on a plane to texas this morning! the new guy comes on monday. im really excited to finally be working for a man. and hes cute!! after all this, i will not be stepping foot into the stein until 10am monday! 3 days of glorious freedom await me!

the other fun stuff going on right now is moving out with amanda and ashley in hopefully a few weeks. we began the application process for a lovely 3 bedroom/2 bathroom apartment downtown overlooking this breathtaking city. pray that everything goes smoothly. i cannot say enough how terribly ready i am for this to happen. the drama at home is getting way past ridiculous. i just want to be away from it all!!!!!

1 more thing before i go, april and i are trying to perfect our cupcake making skills. if anyone has any tips or recipes, please let us know!! we still have a lot of work to do! even though, i must say, our chocolate icing kicks butt =]

ok that is all for now! im gonna get the instyle mag out and get to work! gotta start working with what i have now that im gonna be paying bills!

and it is suddenly a good day

ahhhh perfection at it's finest =]

april, i hope that you see this! xxxxxx

a birthday

it's amanda bean's 23rd birthday!! happy day to my best best sister friend for life! youre my favorite hot mess =D=) xxooxxoo love, ringo

"strenghten your hearts, for the coming of the lord is near"

sermon notes from james 5

1. we are to face struggles with patience- james 5:7 when youre mistreated, don not erupt in a fit of anger. be patient for the lord is coming. jesus will handle the situation in his own, perfect way.

2. we are to face struggles with courage- james 5:8-10 strengthen your heart when you are struggling. the lord's coming is close, and that is what should strengthen our hearts. be steadfast and understand that he is coming again.

3. we are to face struggles with endurance- james 5:11, james 1:2 the testing of your faith produces endurance. dont seek to run away; stay under it until god moves you. running away from your struggles does not olease god (i.e. job) job 1:22- through all of his struggles job did not blame god. he kept trusting and pursuing god's will. job 42:10- god dealt with mercy. he restored job and he became twice the man with half the pride

It's Thanksgiving! Let's be thankful!

It's November 26- Thanksgiving day! I'm so ready for that turkey and pie =) I have much to be thankful for this year. Especially dad and my mema. Oh the things that they put up with day in and day out. It's been a rough time in our family for a while now, but I'm so thankful, everyday, for these 2. I'm also thankful for my brother, Richard, and my sister, Amanda. I do love April and Elizabeth to death, but these 2 are my absolute BEST friends! So what if we all wanted to kill each other when we were kids LOL I'm thankful everyday that I have them in my life and that we are so close to each other. I just wish I saw more of my brother more often =( April and Elizabeth are next. These are 2 of the most amazing girls I have ever encountered. It is so important to have such sweet friends in your life, and these 2 are no exception! And what little missionaries they have become! especially in the last year =) I can't wait for April's return home in less than a month! wahhooo!!!!! =D

Of course there is more to be thankful for, but i just wanted to let these sweet peoplel in my life know how special they are to me. we go together!! Happy Thanksgiving!! xoxo to all!

Proverbs 31-- November 23

"a good woman is hard to find, and worth far more than diamonds. her husband trusts her without reserve, and never has reason to regret it. never spiteful, she treats him generously all her life long...she's up before dawn, preparing breakfast for her family and organizing her day...first thing in the morning, she dresses for work, rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started. she senses the worth of her work, is in no hurry to call it quits for the day. she's skilled in the crafts of home and hearth, diligent in homemaking. she's quick to assist any one in need, reaches out to help the poor. she doesnt worry about her family when it snows; their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear. she makes her own clothing, and dresses in colorful linens and silks. her husband is greatly respected when he deliberates with the city fathers. she designs gowns and sells them, brings the sweaters she knits to dress shops. her clothes are well made and elegant, and she always faces tomorrow with a smile, and she always says it kindly. she keeps an eye on everyone in her household, and keeps them all busy and productive. her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise: "many women have done wonderful things, but youve outclassed them all!" charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. the woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the fear-of-god. give her everything she deserves! festoon her life with praises!"

Ashleigh's wedding day --October 17, 2009

Alright! So, Ashleigh got married a couple of weeks ago! woohoo! She made a GORGEOUS bride. I'm so proud of her! The wedding came together beautifully =) I just wanted to get on here and share a few pics from Ashleigh and Jason's special day:

the guestbook

Some of the guests (who shall remain nameless)

me and Liz

Ashleigh and Jason saying their "I do's"

THE kiss!

The cake (which arrived 2 and a half hours late! talk about a freak out moment!)

the first dance =)

me, Liz, Kristi, and Amanda with the newlyweds

Ashleigh and Jason making their grand exit through a cloud of bubbles

They are such a beautiful couple! I'm so happy for Ashleigh!! She pulled that entire wedding together pretty much by herself. Shes's quite the talented one =) Now if I can only see her now that she's married LOL I cant wait to hear all about her bear encounter =D

"My dear girl," said her ladyship. "I suggest you take this contest seriously. My ninjas will show you no mercy."

"it is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."

ok ok ok. just a little quote from a totally amazing book that im reading, pride and prejudice and zombies. not too shabby, huh?? so fall is finally upon us here in sunny jacksonville. nothing says fall like a 95 degree day, right? i should say so. work has been terribly busy lately. it seems like there is a new event everytime i turn around! exhaustion! if it is at all possible, stay out of retail! i feel like i have one foot in the grave already! eeek! all i can say is "vacation! please come soon!!" october 17th to be exact =)

there are lots of fun things coming up. first, like i said, vacation!! woohoo! i dont care if i have nothing to do; im excited! also, miss ashleigh's wedding to jason on the 17th! im so excited!! hmmmm oh and universal/islands for a few days at the end of october as well. and then...dun dun dun...my 24th birthday! say what??!??!! i know. it's insane. oh and of course there will be a not-to-be-missed halloween party =) maybe ill go as a jane austen zombie =D ha!

this is it for now. just thought i would share some thoughts. hope everyone is doing well! I MISS YOU APRIL TACCATI! COME HOME NOW!

jude law shows his poker face and then kills jimmy fallon

nothing to say...

...but here's a new blog design! my life is freakin boring right now so that's it =D peace

Ringo & Astrid =)

Rare and never-before-seen (atleast for me!)

Post #22: 500 Days of Summer

probably one of the best movies ive seen in a while. everyone go seeeeeeee this movie! jgl really rocks it out in this scene. he's amazing! its qute refreshing to see a non love story every once in a while =)

Post #21

hello dear readers! (all 3 of you),

it's been a while since my last post. i guess im not cut out for the blogging world =/ much has changed in my life over the last week or two. elizabeth has returned home from france. it felt like she was gone for so long yet this summer has gone by way too fast! my dear sweet friend april left for london on monday. i didnt think her leaving would be so hard for me. she is such a huge part of my little life, so i guess thats why i just wanted to cry and hug her and not let her go! she's in london this week for her orientation and then she's off to paris! what an amazing opportunity for her! she's going to grow so much over these next 4 months. i hope i recognize her when she gets back =)

im still on the hunt for a new job. my money situation is totally going crazy! ive decided to give it completely to God. ive been convicted lately of how i spend my money. this is something that is going to take a while for me to get a handle on. im not going to be perfect and i know im going to have slip ups, but tomorrow is a new day! if i mess up, just start over; and keep in constant prayer for God to help me any time im tempted to spend! as you can imagine, its hard to go to work everyday and see all of the new and beautiful things coming in. and of course, I just have to have it all! for some reason, God has given me the characteristics of a crazy shopahilic! please keep me and my love of looking adorable in prayer =) and a fabulous new job to come way!

As far as this layout is concerned, it's awesome, and you all know it! a happy pirate flashback from 2003 can never go wrong! i cant decide if i should've lived in the 1960's or if i should've lived in the good ol' pirate days of captain jack! haha oh to dream...

that's it for today! i leave you with our last pics with april (til december, that is)

for april

i changed my design for april =) this weekend will be ruckus!