The Story of Us

This will definitely be a two-parter, and maybe even a multiple-parter, I haven't decided for sure yet. Because I'm wordy and I know it (heh).

But I promise I won't try to fit this all in one post because that would just be too much reading and not as much fun as dragging it out. Well, not as much fun for me, anyway. This will be interspersed with pictures from college which may or may not directly relate to the part of the story I'm telling, but pictures must be had.

So our story kind of starts my Sophomore year of college, but doesn't really get going until my Senior year. I will 'splain:

I met Adam's sister Emily through my friend Kevin, and she was in my Music History class my Sophomore year of college (Yes, Music History. I was a music major, and I love music, but this class was as boring as it sounds). The three of us (me, Kevin, and Emily) suffered through that class together. I mean, really suffered. One of our regular assignments was to listen to and analyze Gregorian chant. I wish I was kidding.

Adam and Emily

So we would sometimes go over to Emily's house (her family lived in town) and hang out, watch movies or TV, etc. One time in particular I remember our regular group of 5 plus several other people came over to watch old Boy Meets World episodes (we binge-watched TV before it was cool). There were a lot of people crammed in that living room and I remember Adam and a friend of his dropping by briefly and we all kind of waved and said hello, but that was about it.

Over the next couple of years we would see Adam every now and then, but he didn't hang out with us a lot. He's about a year older than me but a couple of years younger than Emily, so he had his own friends and interests.

Fast forward a couple of years to January of my Senior year. Our group all still hung out together constantly, it was me, my roommate Sarah, our friend Rebecca who lived next door to us in the dorm, Kevin (who lived in an apartment off campus), and Emily (lived off campus as well).

The Crew

Adam told Emily that he wanted to get to know me better and so he wanted to start hanging out with our group more (unbeknownst to me at this point). So Emily invited Adam, Sarah and I over for a game night at her apartment. This way it could be a little more one-on-one and Adam and I could interact more directly than being in a larger group (Again, I was clueless at this point).

So we arrive at Emily's apartment that night. I think it was a Tuesday. Ahh the carefree days of college life when I wouldn't think twice about going out and staying up late on a school night! Now I'm like "I have to be in bed by 10:30 PM I have work tomorrow, are you nuts??"

Emily had MadGab (funnest game eveeeerrr) and conveniently Adam and I were placed on the same team, with Emily and Sarah on the other team. We had a great time! But I had zero idea of his interest in me and thought we were all just hanging out as friends.

A couple of days later Sarah and I were chatting and she suddenly stops and goes "Do you want to know something?"

Me: "Sure"

Sarah: "Are you sure??"

Me: "Ummm....I think so?"

Sarah: "Ok...well, Emily told me Adam had a really good time the other night..."

Yeah, this is definitely going to be a multiple-parter. Sorry for all the words and stuff. But it's really fun thinking back and reliving all of this! Stay tuned for part 2 next Thursday!

Thankful

I have so many things to be thankful for. Here are just a few: 

I'm thankful for the love and grace of God in my life. This means everything to me, and I wouldn't be where I am today without His love. 

I'm thankful for my husband. He is my best friend and I couldn't imagine doing this life without him. 

 

I'm thankful for family. I've learned never to take it for granted and to cherish time with the ones you love.

I'm thankful for my friends. I've never been one to have a ton of friends, but the ones I do have are the kind I can always count on. 

I'm thankful for my dogs! I know that may sound silly, but they really are like family to us, and they bring us so much joy! 

I'm thankful for our home. It's not huge and fancy, sometimes it's messy and cluttered, but it's ours and we love it.

 

I'm thankful for provision- food to eat, clean water to drink, clothes to wear, and a roof over our heads. So many people don't have these basic necessities, and we are so very blessed to have all of these in abundance. I never want to lose sight of that in the constant push we feel for more.

 

I'm thankful for my job. I don't always feel like getting up in the morning to go, but it's a great job, I work with great people, and it helps to pay the bills!

 

I'm thankful for all of you, my readers! It's still kind of crazy to me that there are people who show up to this space to read my words. But I am so thankful for it, and for the amazing community of bloggers I have met.

 

I'm thankful for the legacy my parents left me of their trust in God, their kindness, and their integrity. I am so thankful to have such wonderful examples.

 

There is so much more I could say, but suffice it to say, I am truly blessed.

 

I'm going to take a little break from blogging for the next few days to unplug and really soak in my time with Adam and friends. I will be back on Monday to recap all of the Thanksgiving awesomeness! 

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

Enough already!

"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."- Philippians 4:12

I have been thinking a lot about contentment lately. Probably because we are trying to actually stick to a budget these days and really watch where the money goes. It really does open your eyes up to how much frivolous spending goes on without your even realizing it. It's also made me think twice before purchasing something: I'll stop and think, do we really need this? Could we get by without it, or do we have something already at home we could use instead?

A silly example: lotion and body sprays from Bath and Body Works. I have SO much of that stuff, and they are all partially used bottles! Really?? So instead of being drawn in by the latest delicious scent (You know what you're doing, you evil BBW), I'm trying really hard to consider what I already have at home and focus on using that up before I buy more. I mean really, how many bottles of lotion does one girl need anyway?

Or clothes. Clothes are a BIG one for me. I love to just go look at all of the cute clothes, the latest styles and find great deals! But do I really need yet another pair of shorts or pants? Or another pair of heels? Or are the 6 pairs of shorts and who knows how many pairs of shoes I have at home just fine?

That's just a couple of examples, but thinking this way is really making me realize just how much STUFF we have, and how so much of it is unnecessary. So many people in this world survive on the true bare necessities of life, like food, water, shelter. And so many don't even have those.


Now I'm not at all saying that it's bad to have nice things and enjoy the blessings I have, because that's certainly not the case! There is nothing wrong with enjoying a shopping trip and indulging in a treat! But if I'm not careful, I can so easily slip into the mindset of "more stuff, I need MOAR" and feeling like all of these things are something I NEED rather than something that would be nice to have, but it is no way necessary to life, or even necessary to happiness.

In fact, the more I feel that drive to buy, buy, buy, the less true joy I feel. Because those things, while they may provide temporary happiness, don't in any way feed the need for true satisfaction and contentment. They just leave you wanting more.

It's so easy to look at what everyone else has, nicer car, nicer house, nicer clothes, and feel like your missing out on some crucial part of life. But then, are those really the things that make life worth living, the things that make us truly happy?

I'm learning that it comes down to the fact that when you have true peace and joy, you can be content in any situation. Whether you have lots of extra money to buy whatever you want or whether you have just enough to get by.

So instead of feeling frustrated when I want something and it's just not in the budget, I'm going to work on being thankful for the amazing blessings that I already have, both the material blessings and the infinitely more important blessings like love, grace, friendship, peace, and joy.