Seems like all I do on here is catch up.

This past weekend Britt and I had another celebration of our "1 Year" together. You see, the place that we purchased our wedding cake from has this deal where on your 1 year anniversary you can come back with a picture of your cake and they will make an exact replica of your cake topper for $10. That a way you still get to have the tradition of the "Eat your cake topper on your 1 year" and have good cake too! Basically, 'You get to have your cake and eat it too.' ;) Pun intended!

Here is what our actual cake looked like! :)

Here is the cake topper!

Not too bad! It was a lot of fun to eat and talk about the past year.

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Other than eating cake our weekend and life in general has been filled with a lot! A few weekends ago my little brother Justin came to stay with us and it was a great time! the week following that I had work and Western Hills was having their VBS which they call "Character Week". I helped out with that some too and it was fun because it was like the 'old times'.

This week has been full! Britt found out that next Wednesday is his last day at Hobby Lobby *happy dance* and he will finally start his new part-time job. He is going to be working for a guy in our church who has a roofing company. The hours will work out great with everything going on at the BSU. This summer, until school starts, he will be able to work full-time which is great too! Although, he is going to be out of town for 2 weeks coming up because they have a work project in Tulsa. So, if anyone wants to hang out PLEASE let me know! :) And then after he gets home just a little while later he will be going to CA for some BSU training. Like I said, if you want to hang out.... :) I am available!

For those of you who did not know I am working as a nanny for a family in Norman. They have three little girls. Two identical twins who are 18 months and a newborn that is about 8 weeks. They keep me on my toes for sure but the job is a really blessing and will work out great with my hours at the BSU too! The Lord has really provided some great jobs for Britt and I both and we are so excited to began doing the work that we know God is calling us to. Our next big step is raising our support. It is not going to be an easy task but the Lord has already proved so faithful in this I am excited to see all that He will do!

Well, Happy Thursday to you all! I hope your weekend is going well and cheers to an "almost here weekend!" :)

Update on the month of May

Wow! Life has been CRAZY and has not slowed down. I think that I am finally in the clear and might be able to actually take a breath here and there for the next few weeks.


We have been out of town the last 2 weekends and we were busy both weekends before that as well. That has taken up a lot of time not to mention everything that we have done in-between.

I am home though and able to actually update the blog.

Here is a picture of Britt and his two best friends from the second week in May. I just had to put them up here, I think they are really good pics!

I don’t have a lot of pictures from our trips but will post the few I have. Our first trip was to Dallas, TX and we celebrated my birthday and our 1 year anniversary. My birthday is on the 29th and our anniversary the 30th but we decided to celebrate a week early. While we were there we mostly swam, ate and shopped. It was nice to just relax and have a good time together. :)

Britt in the car on the way there...and half of me. :)

Here I am! haha

And again. :)

Our room! I loved the bedding!

Another view...

The bathroom...

The outside. - I did not have a picture of the outside so this is from the hotels website. :)

The swimming pool. Once again thank you to the Hotel website.

Downown Dallas.

I love this building!

This past weekend we went to St. Louis, MO to see Britt’s best friend Todd. We brought Todd’s girlfriend with us and had a great time hanging out and just having fun. Todd is leaving to go to North Africa for the summer so it was good to see him before he left.

Britt and I at Crown Candy. GREAT place to eat! :)

Katie and Todd!

The counter! haha

The outside.

Again.

I did not take many pictures this trip other than this day. We were really busy the whole time and since we had been to St. Louis before we didn't do a lot of the "tourist" things.

Now we are home and it is good to just take a deep breath, let it out and then of course tackle the massive pile of laundry. ;) Seriously though, this week SHOULD slow down a bit and it will be nice.

The main thing going on this week is that my little brother, Justin, is coming to stay with us for a few days. It should still be pretty chill though. If you did not know Justin was in the car accident with my dad and busted up his right ankle, right shoulder and two fingers on his right hand pretty bad. He has been in a wheelchair since the wreck but last week he was able to graduate to a pair of crutches so he is now able to climb the stairs at our apartment. We are going to have some fun this weekend but with his injuries most activities will be pretty calm so I think we will be hanging out by the pool, going to see a movie and eating lots of yummy sno-cones! It should be relaxing and I am looking forward to it!


I am going to jump back a moment here and talk a little more about Britt and my One Year Anniversary. I would have really liked to write a post on the day of our anniversary but we were out of town and it would have been crazy so consider part of this post the “One Year Tribute”! :)

When I look back over the past year it has FLOWN by. I never knew time could go so quickly. People always tell us, “Wow! You made it through the first year; it is always the most difficult year!” If that is truly the case then I am excited beyond words because this first year of marriage has been a joy and not even close to a struggle! I personally believe that marriage will get more difficult when kids come into the picture but for whatever reason a lot of people say it is the first year and that was just not the case for us.

It is probably because I married one amazing man! Seriously! He is so great and I am beyond blessed to have Britt as my husband. Until you are married and actually share your life with someone it is hard to understand exactly what people mean when they say they love their husband/wife more and more everyday. I can truly say that I love Britt at LEAST 365 times more then I did last year at this time. ;) So it is true, you do love the person more and more each day. Is marriage always perfect? No, in fact it can be quite difficult. Am I always an angel as a wife and Britt always a Saint of a husband? No, not quite. But the thing is that the Lord is the center of our relationship and because of that we have a great marriage that is full of lots of love, laughter and fun! I am so thankful to be married and there is no doubt in my mind, in fact one year later I know even more, that I married the perfect man for me.

Here’s to another year and then 60+ more!

Quicky

It's been way to long since my last update. I have been way to busy to even think about updating. I am back though, at least for a little while.

Britt and I went out of town this past weekend to celebrate our 1 year anniversary a little early. Our anniversary is not technically until the 30th but we will be out of town in St. Louis that weekend seeing a friend and his family and so this past week was out celebration! :) We had a great time and I hope to post pictures soon. I really don't have that many pictures of our trip at all but I will post what I have when I have a chance.

Random Question: Has anyone ever read the book "The Glass Castle"? Really just curious.

Happy Monday!

Say what?

I changed my blog look.... again. I know, I know, I just love change! :)

I am going to be buuuuusy this rest of week/weekend. Actually, I have already been busy this week. :p

For the rest of this week we have:

*Mothers day dinner tonight at our place for Britt's mom.

*Going to Starbucks on campus corner to meet the manager, suck up a little and pray I get a job there.

*Go see Amy! :)

*Come home.....Get ready for Spring Banquet.....Go to Spring Banquet.

*Go get stuff ready for Garage Sale

*Go to Bryce's birthday party.

*Go spend time with Katie!

*Go to Hospital

*Go to church

*Go to mothers day dinner with my mom.

Eh! It is scary when I type it all out. Needless to say life is busy right now. It is ok, we are going to celebrate our anniversary weekend May 22nd and it will be a WONDERFUL escape.

….wait. Did I just say I was going to celebrate my anniversary weekend soon? That means I have almost been married for 1 year. People, this is CRAZY!

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You might be interested to know:

1.) I plan to take pictures this weekend.
2.) I plan (hope!) to post them on here at some point. We all know people like pictures!
3.) Since I do not have a picture to post of my own I thought that I would share this one....

 

Ok... and maybe this one too....

Happy Thursday! :)

.Yesterday.

...I went to work. It was Monday but it was a good Monday. I slept well the night before, had a good hair day and the sun was shinning promising a beautiful day!

After work I met Britt at home and we prepared to go on a date. Tea Cafe on campus corner was the destination and delicious food and some of the best tea around was the result!

Tea Cafe is located in Norman Oklahoma and they have two locations. Britt and I went to the Campus Corner Location but there is also a Tea Cafe on 1241 Alameda Street in Norman.

I had the "Ice Peach Green Tea with Boba" (aka - little tapioca balls that are really good!) And Britt had the "Ice Milk, Carmel Black Tea with Boba". There are so many options to choose from it will make your head spin; but don't worry, you can ALWAYS come back and you will because it is that good!


After eating our Chinese food and drinking the wonderful tea we headed to Salvation Army to find "something". You never know what you are going to get at Salvation Army Stores. However, they were closed, so we decided to try "Daisy Exchange" a consignment shop that I love and alas, they were closed as well. Instead we headed to Good Will. They were open! We had a fun time looking even though we did not find anything. Sometimes you score big and sometimes you don't. Just be patient and you will eventually find the prize! ;)

After that we went to my mom and dads house to watch the latest episode of 24! It was epic! This season started out a little rough but Jack Bauer is back in full form and ready to kick some major butt! I love it!

That was my Monday. It was good, relaxing and full of lots of laughs with My Love! Can't really ask for a lot more!

Tonight after work I am going home to make delicious Chicken Parmesan and then we are off to Community Group.

Happy Tuesday to you all!

Every Couple is their own Couple.

If I was to give someone marriage advice, in my not so expert opinion, I would tell them:


“Don’t think you will look like me or any other couple. You are your own person, your husband is his own person and together you are your own couple. You are unique and that is OK”.

Throughout my married life, as short as it has been, I have learned and battled with not comparing myself to other couples. There are ALL sorts of “couples” out there.

The serious
The giddy
The romantic
The affectionate
The lovable
The crazy
The weird
The loud
The quiet
The touchy feely
The not so touchy feely
The……. You name it!

What I am trying to say is that no one couple is alike and no matter how hard you try you will never be exactly alike. We can learn and gleam from one another’s wisdom and experience but we should learn what it looks like for us to be a couple that brings the Lord the most glory.

Sometimes I feel like couples will look at other couples and think “Wow – They never show affection in public, they must not love each other as much as I love my husband/wife” or “Wow – My husband takes me on a date night every week and her's does not, they must not love each other like we do” maybe “Wow – they are so giddy all the time, eventually it is going to wear off and they will realize they don’t have anything serious in common like we do”. Basically the list could go on and on…


I would like to say for the record:

1.) I love my husband with every fiber of my being. I would do ANYTHING for him, I love him more and more everyday and will until the day I die. I am hopelessly in love with him and I am a hopeless romantic.

2.) Just because I am not like you does not mean you are more happy or more in love. That is just a lie.


So – For those of you who feel the way I do, don’t let other people tell you, whether with words or actions, that you have to be like them to be happy. Yes, learn from others and soak in the wisdom of those who have gone before you; but don’t think you have to live a life of comparing yourself to others.

And if you are not married you can still think about this. Look at other couples, find out what you like and don't like and learn from it.

Cheer up! :)

Yesterday was a hard day. In fact this past week was a hard week. When I got home from work Britt had these beautiful roses waiting for me. :) It is amazing how something like this can brighten a day and now they get to brighen our whole apartment. He did a wonderful job!

Thinking about him...

Sometimes I joke how this is “Britt and Lauren’s Blog” but really just me, Lauren. The thing is that Britt is apart of this blog because he is apart of me. And today I am thinking about Britt. We are not a really “mushy” couple in the way that some are, just because that is not us. When we are with other people we make a point to be with them and not in our own little world. Not that it is the only way to do things, or the right way but because it is what we feel we should do. But today…today I feel mushy. Today I want to take a moment, give a shout out, tell the world just how wonderful I think the man I am so blessed to call my husband is. Today is not a “special day” (i.e. anniversary, birthday, holiday…). It is just a regular old day, but no matter the day I find more and more that my love for him grows and it is wonderful!

I am thinking about him today and how we have been married for almost 9 ½ months. Thinking about the fact that 1 year is so close; right around the corner. He is so different from me; sometimes it is frustrating but mostly wonderful! Thinking about how tall he is and how I always knew that I would marry a tall man. Thinking about the lines around his eyes when he smiles - I love those lines. Thinking about evenings together, just the two of us, when we sit and talk, laugh, cry and just be. The way that I still feel to this day when he holds my hand or puts his arm around me; the way I know I will feel even 20, 30, 40 years from now… I don’t tell him enough how wonderful he is and I don’t express enough how much I love him; because I could never express it enough. He is just that wonderful.

- The Weekend -

Friday Evening:


Britt and I went out to dinner with Britts parents and younger brother. We went to Bricktown and had some good Mexican Food at Chelions. From there went to the Bricktown Candy Co.  I love that place!

After leaving Britt's parents house we went over to some friends house to talk, catch up and soak in the hot tub. It was a lot of fun. In fact, we were there until 2:30am and the time flew!

Saturday:

We slept in. Who wouldn't after going to be at 3am. After getting up and around we packed a picnic lunch and went to Lake Hefner for a fun date! It was a little chillier out that we expected but we had a great time none the less and made wonderful memories. After the Lake we came up, cleaned up a bit and then went out to the mall and grabbed some dinner. We also rented a Movie (Although it was VERY sad) we had a great time and a fun day together!

Sunday:

We woke up and started cleaning and cooking because we were having company for lunch! We had:

* French dip Sandwiches
* Potato Salad
* Fritos
* Italian Sodas.

It was very yummy and lots of fun to spend time with new and old friends! :)

From there we went to church and heard a excellent sermon by our pastor, Dave. It was convicting and a good reminder to show patients to people and forgive. I know the Lord really used it in my life.


Britt and I were just talking about how we have grown closer together in the last two weeks. We really have! We have faced some trials recently and it has knit our hearts closer together and I am so thankful for it. He is such a wonderful husband! I am so thankful for him and the encouragement that he is to me on a daily basis!

Out on the town!

Saturday afternoon, after leisurely getting up and doing a whole lot of wonderful nothing, Britt and I decided to do something. The question: What? Winter Jam was in town and we thought about that. After calling a few friends who could not come we opted out since concerts are, with out doubt, more fun with groups. Then we thought, why not go to a movie? We were on our way to do that when plans quickly changed. It was a beautiful day, the kind that gives you hope that spring is right around the corner. We decided to go downtown and just walk around.

We got out on the "West side" of downtown and walked all the way through to Bricktown. It was so much fun! We saw/went to:

*The Library
*The ground work for the Devon Tower
*The Renaissance Hotel
*The River Walk
*The Bricktown Candy Store (Jones Strawberry Lime Soda + Peach O's = Happiness.)

While out that day we also went to Academy where I purchased an Exercise Bike and Britt some Weights. We have been talking about getting a gym pass but just can't afford it right now (They are lots of $$$) so we decided on this. We had some money to "spend" from our tax return and that is what we decided on. Before getting married I had a really good exercise routine which quickly ended when we started renting an upstairs apartment. I

don't think our neighbor bellow would appreciate 100 jumping jack and whole work-out video routine. :p Just a guess.

Basically, Saturday was a perfect day. I loved the weather, the spontaneity and mostly the company. :)

Me and My Valentine - And a good laugh!

Britt and I had a great Valentine's Day! We decided to celebrate on Saturday and it was so much fun! I woke up that morning to find Red Roses and a pair of Red High Heels as a gift from Britt. If you did not know I have wanted Red High Heels for a long time and I was so happy to get them. What a great day to wear them on too! (Take note of the color red)

After sleeping in for a while and just being lazy we decided to finally venture out. The shoes that Britt bought for me were not quite the right size so we went to the place he bought them and they of course did not have the size that I needed. Since we had blocked out the whole day for "us time" we decided to drive the 30 minute drive to another store that had my size. Of course on the way we made a sonic run as well. :)

After that we went to blockbuster to get some movies. We could not decide on anything and we ended up going to Wal-Mart to just buy two movies. One of Britt's Choice and one of mine. I think that we should make that a Valentine's Day tradition because it was a lot of fun!

We then went to Red Lobster for dinner. Britt and I both really like sea food and it has been sounding really good. Of course Valentine's Day is a day that you can splurge so we did and it was delicious! 

After that we came home and watched one of our newly purchased movies. It was such a fun day and I really enjoyed just spending it together with nothing "planned".

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On a totally different note...

We found this sign hanging above the light in the walkway near our apartment door....

If you are having trouble reading it, it says:

"Do you think people get mugged and raped more often in well-lit places or in the dark? I would say more in dark places. When you unscrew this light bulb you put everyone who lives here in danger. If this light bulb inconveniences you by being turned on, I would say it is definitely not such an inconvenience as to put other people's safety at risk."

Let me just say, I laughed! haha... Apparently someone unscrewed it, which is probably not the wisest thing to do, but this response is just too funny. There it was, hanging below the light, stuck into the wall with a lady bug push pin. 

So, I would just like to say, if whoever wrote this is out there and reading this:

1.) I did not unscrew the light bulb

2.) I never planned on it and definitely never will.

3.) Thank you for making me laugh! 

Hope that was a good laugh for you as Monday draws near...

Happy 'belated' Valentine's Day!

Children

Being married means that there are times I cannot help but think about having children. How fun it will be to have a child of my own; to see Britt and myself through/in a child. Is it all a cake walk? I am not so naive to believe so, but I am still looking forward to it in so many ways.

I would like to put on record that I am NOT pregnant. I hesitate to post anything about kids because I am leery of the conclusion that people might draw.

I am ready to be a mom though. It is something that I believe God puts in every woman. The desire in me is so great right now. It is not the Lords time for Britt and I to have children but I am looking forward to that day with great joy!

I cannot help but wonder what kind of mom I will be. I hope to be the “fun” mom of course and I think that I will be fun. I love adventure and creativity. I thrive on spontaneity and laughter. I know that those are gifts from the Lord and things that I can use to bring laughter and create wonderful memories in our home.

When I think about kids being the good mom is not my greatest concern. I am worried about the responsibility I will have to be a Christ like example and a spiritual leader to my children. Britt, of course, if the spiritual leader in our home and he does, and I know will do, a wonderful job! I know though, that he will be a work during the day and the face my children will see the most, the character (good or bad) they will see the most will be from me.

Wow!
What a responsibility.
What a privilege!

My parents did an awesome job of raising my three brothers and myself. They were amazing and spent hours upon hours talking to and teaching us. I learned from them what it meant to love the Lord with all my heart. I saw in them what it looked like to love others more than myself. I saw what it looked like to stand for what is right no matter the cost.

As I result I experienced for myself a relationship with the Lord and good relationships with other believers. I also felt the sting of persecution for standing alone. I scares me at times to think of people hurting/mocking my children some day. I want my kids to be cool, have tons of friends but even more I want them to do the right thing and often that eliminates “coolness” and so called “friends”.

I was reading a ladies blog today and she was touching on a similar subject. She has the following quote on her blog:

"You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something in your life."

I am working towards having this mindset for my children. I am not even a mother yet, I have not met the precious baby the Lord will bless us with, but I already feel that protective instinct of “No one hurts my kid.” But the thing is that people, other children, WILL hurt them. I will be there to encourage them and wipe their tears, but I also want to say “I am glad you are persecuted.” That sounds so harsh but it is not. Jesus told us “Blessed are the persecuted”, “In this world you will have trouble..”. I want my children to experience the blessing of the Lord and if they choose (Lord willing!) to follow Him then they will experience the hurt and persecution that comes with it but the blessing on the other side will be FAR greater!

100!

This is my 100th post! 100 and still going strong!

Does that make this my blogs 100 birthday? haha... I guess if I count a post like a birthday. That is retarded.

Anyway, I can hardly believe I have wrote something on this page 100 times. (I am trying to see how many times I can use "100" in this post)

I am wondering if there is really that much significance in 100 posts. Other than the fact that it is something to post about, probably not. Oh well, here I am anyway. ;)

I was trying to decide what I should to to commemorate this occasion. Maybe a list of 100 things, write 100 words, have a cake? haha... Then I decided to just write about life, because that is what this is anyway. Life, in the written word.

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~LIFE~

- Work ='s CRAZY. 'nough said!

- Britt and I went to eat at BJ's last night, shoe shopping (for him), and grocery shopping. We had such a great time! Seriously! I love how we can just do random things and still have a wonderful time.

If you have never been to BJ's -YOU SHOULD GO!- We LOVE it. Almost every time we get the "Parmesan Crusted Chicken" and split it. It was yum! In fact, I am really hungry right now and my mouth just started watering.

Shoe shopping was fun. Britt was in desperate need of a new pair of tennis shoes (Since he walks about 12 freakin' miles a day he kind of wore his other ones out!). We found a GREAT deal at Famous Footwear. If you need shoes, you should go there right now because they are having a good sale!

Then we went grocery shopping. I love grocery shopping with Britt. He pushes the basket, I walk in front with my little list, as I find things I toss them in the cart, and then he meticulously organizes the cart. It's cute, it works, we fit well together! :)

- Tonight we are going to go see a movie. Leap Year. It looks cute. I think that cute is the right word for it. I feel like seeing a cute movie.

- This weekend we don't have anything planned and I am HAPPY about that. I love lazy weekends. We will go see my family on Friday night or Saturday, and we are planning to have lunch with Britt's family this Sunday because his two older sisters, plus the nieces and nephew will be here. Other than that. Nothing. *Happy sigh*

- I need to remember that Britt has to get his drivers license renewed.

- For those of you who did not know, I do not work Fridays. It is nice. PLUS, this Monday is "Martin Luther King, Jr. Day". Of course I get that off because I am a state employee and we get everything off! haha...

So... Happy four day weekend to me! :). And Happy "100 posts" to my blog. And Happy "Thursday to you!"

6 Months!

Today have I have been married for 6 months! I can hardly believe it. Time has really flown by. I was sitting in a chair with Britt the other day and my brother Jonathan looked at Britt and said, "If you were sitting with her like that 3 months ago I would have to hurt you." I laughed and informed Jon that we were married three months ago. He quickly replied with, "How long have you been married?!?" and when I told him almost 6 months he was very surprised. I think that it is surprising to most people. It seems like my wedding was MAYBE two months ago but not six by any means!

I am so thankful for the wonderful husband that God has blessed me with. Seriously people, he is amazing! He is so thoughtful and really cares about me and my feelings. He is so helpful around the house and such an encouragement to me. He is so fun to be with! I hate being away from him. I love sitting next to him. I love holding his hand. I don't think any of this will ever get old.

I am blessed!

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Thanksgiving. What can I say? The first word that comes to mind is exhausting. Seriously. I am worn out! It was very "Go, Go Go!" and when it was over I felt like I might crash and burn. In fact, we ended up not going to church last night. We seriously thought we were going to fall over dead and I thought that might cause a scene at church. haha. So, we took some much needed rest.

That was Thanksgiving. Haha... It really was good though. I know I make it sound terrible. We are SO blessed to have so much family close by that we can celebrate with. I just don't want any more turkey for awhile!

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Check out this website:

Big Give!

Fill out the form and tell them I sent you! It is a great win!

Bliss is:

Going to Macaroni grill and having the Chicken Catalonia and Iced Peach Tea.

Going to Lake Hefner with your hubby and walking the trail.

Bringing a quilt along and spreading it out to watch the sunset.

Instead of watching a sunset get to lay back and watch an amazing storm roll over head.

Talking about anything and everything.

Just BEING.

I am so grateful for the man in my life!


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St. Louis pictures coming soon!

Weekend:

~Friday night out on the town with "The girls" for a dear friends 21st birthday!

~Saturday, Amazing weather!

~Saturday morning Grandy's breakfast

~Saturday Afternoon going to see Britt's family

~Saturday evening old friends lovely wedding

~Sunday, amazing weather!

~Sunday morning lazy morning

~Sunday afternoon Target, Sonic, NCSI, In Style Magazine and chocolate pudding

~Sunday evening Church and fellowship.

It has been a good weekend!

I start subbing tomorrow. I will sub at CHA 3 days this week.

Friday Britt and I leave along with Todd to go to St. Louis, MO for Labor Day weekend. We are really looking forward to that.

Hope you had a great weekend too and a great start to this new week!

Our Children! haha...

Britt and I went to a website and uploaded pictures of the two of us and it gave us "What your children will look like". haha... Too funny! We had fun doing it. Although it may not be accurate it was still a lot of fun! :)

So, what do you think of our kids? Aren't they just the cutest thing you've ever seen? haha