A Busy and Blessed Life

There has been so much that has gone on since my last post.

Lately life has been a busy whirlwind with so much excitement it's exhausting! Last week my family was nice enough to help me move everything from my apartment in Lincoln to my parent's house in Aurora. It was a multiple day event because I just have SO MUCH STUFF. I have realized that I need to purge and I do not NEED all of those things to live my life. So, now I am in the process of cleaning, going through and throwing away piles and piles of things.

On top of all of this, Tim and I are in the process of buying our first house. We are so excited about our three bedroom house with room for a spacious (new) kitchen and a gigantic yard. There are quite a few things that we would like to fix up or change in our house, but we are eager and willing to put in the work in order to make it the way we would like. We are also hoping that all of our hard work will pay off in the end and when it is time to move out of our first house, we will reap the rewards of updating our home. I especially love the location of our house, which is right across the street from the elementary school in town. I joke with Tim that when we have kids and they are just bouncing off the walls I will take them across the street to play on the fun playground that they have at the school. All joking aside, we are very excited to begin our adventure as home owners and ready to make many memories in our new house.

I am also blessed enough to have had a job offer when I came back to town at a salon in York called "The Avenue". I start my job on Tuesday and am excited to get back into the salon world. I think my mom is especially excited to be able to come get her hair done in a salon setting instead of in her bathroom. (You gotta love "kitchen hair"!) I am praying that everything goes well at my job and that I can start up a great clientele there. The extra prayers would be greatly appreciated.

In all that is happening in my life, I still had time to squeeze in a quick weekend trip to Kansas City for my girlfriend's birthday. We had a fun time just hanging out with the group of girls and enjoying the city life with shopping, eating, and a really great hotel room. I think some of my favorite times were the car rides to and from Kansas City. What a fun experience!

I need to remember that amidst all of the chaos and craziness with planning a wedding, starting a new job, buying a house, and everything else, that this is what life is all about. Cherish these moments because you may never get the opportunity to live them again!

Ode to Jazzercise

Before I moved home, I absolutely would dread going to Jazzercise to work out because I always felt I didn't have enough time, was too tired, didn't feel like going, or was sore from working out the day before. Basically I had every excuse in the book why I didn't want to go. Since moving home my mom has whipped me into the habit of going pretty much everyday and let me tell you, it is so much easier that way!

The Aurora center for Jazzercise just has an amazing vibe to it. There are so many welcoming ladies (and sometimes gents) that I know personally that invite you in the "jazz community". It makes a world of difference when you're going to a place where you have friendly faces you know compared to a place where you don't really know anyone. If you have yet to try out Jazzercise in Aurora, I strongly recommend it! The floor is AMAZING...so much better than dancing on a hard floor.

Yesterday was Valentines Day, so at Jazzercise it was "Bring Your Sweetheart to Jazzercise" day. So of course, Tim and my Dad enjoyed being drug to class. My sister came along and loved it (she wants to get a membership). My dad had a special surprise for his sweetheart, he ripped off his sweatshirt and sweatpants to reveal him in one of my mom's Jazzercise tops and dance pants. On the back of the pants he embroidered two hearts that read "I love Carolyn and Jazz" and "MS + CS". Pretty creative and gutsy, but if you know my dad, that's just the way he is..not afraid of anything!

Today I wanted nothing more than to lie in my bed and take a nap to try and get rid of my headache and my mom said, "just go to class and see how you feel after". Sure enough, I got rid of my headache, had a fun time, and burned calories! It also helped that my mom's set for this jazzercise class was pretty easy because it was still the song list from Valentine's Day (had to take it easy for the boys)!

If you like to move it, shake it, and dance then you should try Jazzercise. The class includes a cardio workout, stretching, and strength training. The classes are very diversified using different types of dance (hip-hop, jazz, kick-boxing, country, etc.), stretching with pilates and yoga, and strength with weights, resistance tubes, and workout balls. The best part about it is that you can set your own level of impact with the same amount of intensity. Overall providing a totally customizable workout. If you haven't already, try it!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

With Valentine's Day approaching, I wanted to take the time to reflect on all of the people and things that I love most in life...

1)My faith in God and trust in Him. Without it I do not know where I would be to this day. It is so vital and important to me to know that no matter what happens, no matter what I do, there is always someone who loves me unconditionally.

2)The love of my life and future husband, Tim. Tim makes me feel complete and I always feel love and acceptance from him. He understands my quirkiness and jumps right in when I'm being silly. He helps pick me up when I'm down and low and makes me feel like the most special girl on earth. He is my valentine, now and forever.

3)My family. My mom and dad are two of the most loving and understanding people that I know. I appreciate their advice, their support, and their kind words. They have amazing character and I respect them greatly for that. My brother and sister brighten each and every day with excitement and energy. They are definitely one of a kind and there is never a dull moment when we are together.

3)My friends. It is such a neat thing to have friends that want to spend quality time with you, and that you love to get together with. Many of my friends, no matter how long it has been since we have seen each other last, we just pick right back up where we left off and have a blast doing it. Each and every one of them is truly a blessing in my life.

4)My Health. Although I do seem to get minor sicknesses throughout the year, often, I am thankful that I am overall very healthy. There are many people around the world that are fighting for their lives and I pray that they find comfort in the Lord and know that in Him, all things are possible.

I am thankful for all of the "loves" in my life and am glad that there is a day that is designated to remembering all of them. I hope that you have a very Happy Valentine's Day and are able to reflect on the "loves" in your life that mean the most to you.

Friends, Family, and Fun

Tim and I have been so blessed to have been spending so much time with friends and family lately. I thought that living back at home would be a little more difficult for me, but it has been amazing. Spending so much time with my family has made me realize how much I cherish them and how amazing (and at times zany) they are. Living at home also means spending more time with Tim which has been great. I can't wait until we get to spend everyday with each other.

Lately we have been on the go a lot with visiting friends and family in different towns. Tim's niece (my soon to be niece), Reese was born in December, so we went to their house in Kearney to visit the family. It was nice to just hang out with his sister and brother-in-law and to hold baby Reese. We also got to watch the Miss America Pageant (which was surprising because a hockey game was on at the same time) and picked out who we wanted to win. Miss Nebraska made it a lot farther than we usually do...so that was cool!

A couple of days later, I went to Lincoln to pack up some more stuff to move back home, and while I was there had a fun night "watching a movie" with friends, Em and Carrie....we did more talking than watching, of course! The next day while Tim was at school I went out to lunch with Emily M and Emily D. I am becoming a bigger fan of Panera Bread, which is good because Em and Jill always love going there. After lunch Tim and I met up at Target to start a wedding gift registry. We had a blast using the scanner to add items to our list, even if it took us 30 minutes to get through one isle of kitchen goods...whew!

For Super Bowl Sunday we got invited to a couple friend's house in Lincoln to watch the game. It was encouraging and exciting seeing their new home that they built and having dreams of eventually building a house of our own someday...hopefully sooner than later! Tim and I are loving having so many couple friends to hang out with lately. Some are married, some not, some with children, and some expecting. I always try to cherish the time we get to spend with them because I'm sure with all of the life changes for couples our age, many of our friends will be busy with their own lives.

Tomorrow I am planning on driving up to Omaha to meet up with Stacey and Kristy, two friends from hair school that I haven't seen in a VERY LONG TIME! I miss them so much and it will be fun to catch up and possibly get a pedicure in. Who doesn't love that? After staying the night in Lincoln tomorrow night Tim and I will be starting another gift registry at Kohl's. Hopefully we have the hang of it so it won't take us as long this time!

For now I need to concentrate on cleaning out my closet at home so I have room for the junk that I will be bringing home. I'm beginning to think that I need a "hoarders" intervention! Geesh!