Oh, my sweet husband. He rocks. He does things to make my life easier and he’s great at little (and big) surprises.  I love that he knows what I like and then does it–for no reason other than he loves me. I’m trying to be more like him in that sense. He’s so romantic.

Like, last night he spent his night cleaning up the entire down stairs while I was away babysitting for a friend and he left me this sweet note. The dishes were done, laundry was folded that had been sitting there since Monday, floors swept, counters wiped, toys up. He’s a better cleaner than I am, we joke that he should be the Stay-at-Home-Dad and I go make the living. Speaking of being a Dad? He’s a fantastic one! He knows how to make our kids giggle like nothing else can. He makes up the best songs and can make anything a game. He’s very involved in their lives and I’m grateful for the man he’s always been, that he’s stuck with me all these years in our ups and downs (*ah hem* like teenage pregnancy). Many guys would run away from the responsibility on his shoulders at his age, but he carries them with strength. Especially as He’s growing closer to God.

6 years ago he saw me sitting alone at a bus stop at Appalachian State University and thought, “Some how I’ll know that girl.” Who would of thought I would end up his wife and we’d have this beautiful life together now? So thankful for God bringing him into my life!

I love you too, punk. Thanks for all you do and all you are.

Last Christmas, my wonderful Mom gave Mark and I the gift of a couple’s weekend away to a hotel in the NC Mountains, baby sitting by Grandma included. Sweet deal! 9 months later, we finally got to use it a few weekends ago in September.  I chose September because its my birthday month (I’m 24 now, woo!), the weather would be cooler and more fall-ish, plus Jaxson would be over 10 months old and less dependent on me. Boy, did I underestimate the stress on me though in leaving my breastfed-on-demand child. I worried for his comfort, would he be okay leaving me for the first time? Would I have enough milk stashed? Would he sleep at all in a new setting?! Regardless, we couldn’t back out of the trip for many reasons so I just prayed a lot and trusted in my Mom’s ability to take care of my kids and looked forward to quality quiet time with my husband.

So, here’s a few lessons I learned in the mountains:

1. My kids do just fine without me, if not even better. Jaxson actually slept through the night one time for my mom…not fair! But, it was a relief to know that they were doing great and comfortable in their new surroundings.

2. Salsa’s in downtown Asheville is one of the best mexican-ish style food I’ve ever had, probably because everything seemed so fresh and healthy! I thoroughly enjoyed my chicken empanada stuffed with veggies and side of black beans and fresh salsa. Amazing. Even my non-veggie-loving hubby was brave and enjoyed it.

3. French Broad Chocolates has the best chocolates. Ever. Sure, my little souvenir box of 6 chocolates was a lovely’ $13….but it was worth the price. Mostly. I had a few that weren’t good choices for my taste (strawberry balsamic? Gag). My favorites were the lavender and honey, salted honey caramel, and one other one that I can’t find online that had caramel as well. Oh my word…such goodness. I treasured those 6 chocolates and spaced them out for days to enjoy when I got home.

4. The Waynesville Inn needs to work on their landscaping. Sure, their golf course was in excellent condition and beautifully taken care of….but for those who wanted to watch or enjoy the mountain view? Well, lets just say some bushes got in the way. Seriously? Whose grand plan was this? It sure gave Mark and I a good laugh though! We did enjoy their row of rocking chairs on the patio instead, which was a lovely way to spend our mornings watching the fog uncover the hiding mountains, hand in hand.

5. We needed this. All tourism aside, Mark and I needed this trip. We hadn’t had a trip just the 2 of us in about 3 years. This weekend made us realize we need to do this more…simply treasuring each other’s company and having quiet. Maybe that doesn’t mean a mountain getaway or a second honeymoon, but at least more date nights regularly. It was so incredibly nice to just feel like us again– letting go of chores and work responsibilities, getting to eat my food while it was still hot, not having to worry about getting strollers out, or tag teaming who gets who into the car. It felt like…freedom. Not to say I don’t enjoy and love our kids– I’ll take cold meals and dirty dishes any day if it means I have their joy in my life. But, it was so nice to step back and breathe for 2 days and come back feeling refreshed and in more in love with my husband.

And that, makes us even better parents in the long run.

Thank you mountains, and thanks Mom!

I officially became Mrs. O (aka Momma O)

It’s amazing to look back at what we’ve been through in the past 3 years, it’s flown by yet feels like we’ve been together forever.  I love this life! Especially now that I can enjoy it at home :-)

Happy Anniversary Mr. O!

In our latest trip post, I forgot to show what I made for Breanna and Aaron as part of their wedding present. As some of you may know, I’m all about giving sentimental gifts (Like the book for Kaylee’s birthday). Yea, Bre and Aaron could use money to help furnish their new house or something, but I wanted a gift that was meaningful to go along with it. I wanted something that they could display or use that Bre would look at it and think, “Aw! My Leah gave me that for our wedding! What a beautiful day that was. Hey, when is the last time I talked to Leah? I should call her. But oh, what a wonderful day our wedding was. I’m so lucky to have Aaron, I love him so much…” Etc. At least that is how I envision it. ha!

I decided to make this hot plate, (ya know, for at dinner time when you don’t want to hurt your table with your bowl of steamin’ hot mashed potatoes) but it can be simply displayed as well. It was done at one of those local pottery painting places (You really should take your kids and go have fun!). I chose the pink and brown because it matched their wedding colors.

So it serves 3 purposes: 1) To be a hot plate or just look pretty. 2) Remind Bre of me. And most importantly, 3) Remind Bre and Aaron what love and marriage is all about and what it takes to keep a healthy marriage going. Love for each other, living for each day, laughing with each other, trust, and lots of praying together.

Hope you enjoy it, Bre! May it bring you the reminder you may need on those rough days, and joy on your most joyous days with Aaron. I love you!

I mentioned earlier that I’ve read 3 books so far and I had to share what I’ve learned. It’s amazes how stories help reveal things in your own life.

The best so far was “A Time to Dance” by Karen Kingsbury (Any book by her you can’t go wrong, she’s amazing). It’s about a married couple on the brink of divorce and how God brought them back together when they thought it was too late. I have to admit, at times it made me angry to read and watch how silly they were being. Not speaking to each other or when they did it was rudely, or didn’t listen to what the other was trying to say, one character was practically cheating on the other, ignoring God, etc. And yet they both obviously still loved one another. It made me realize that often that is me (not cheating or anything serious!). Whether it’s being too busy sitting here blogging or reading other’s blogs to spend time with Mark some nights, or saying something without thinking, it can put a wedge between us that eventually could build up to be worse if not addressed. Thankfully, Mark is pretty good about being honest and up front about issues like that. It made me see how truly painful divorce can be and that I never, ever want to experience that first hand. It’s made me very thankful for the man I married and work harder to be the best wife I can be.

It also reflected my relationship with God at times (more often that I’d like), where clearly He knows the right path for my life and yet I keep ignoring Him and His commands. As I was reading it was like seeing life through God’s eyes almost…knowing what could be if they would just accept it and not letting pride get in the way. I also felt like God does sometimes when looking down at his people making the wrong choices. Angry, sad, and hurt. Thankfully, they did accept God’s truth and ways in the end and things turned out with lessons learned and blessings just as God promises for our lives.

I’m looking forward to reading the sequel, “A Time to Embrace” as soon as it arrives at my library.

Yes, we’re one of those couples. We’re corny. We like to match.

This picture was taken on our first wedding anniversary last Monday the 19th. We were headed out to eat at Firebirds, where I was so excited to finally get me a Filet Mignon and shrimp only for it come out burnt. Twice. And so, we got our entire $50 meal for free. Free! God certainly has a sense of humor, but I’m not complaining! The night didn’t turn out exactly as we planned, but it was still wonderful to spend some time with Mark and we were thrilled about our free meal.

And, we were thrilled to show our lovey-dovey-ness by matching. It actually kind of happened by accident on this day, since I knew I wanted to wear this new outfit because I don’t have a job to wear it to, and Mark just happened to wear red and black to work that day. I even got to wear my beautiful red shoes that about killed my feet!

Matching was something I grew up with in my family, especially on holidays like Christmas, but Mark and I match often regardless of the event. This Sunday to church we both wore brown. Some times Savannah gets lucky and matches us, too.

Told you, we’re corny. I can just see us when we’re 80 wearing matching sweatshirts, can’t you?

I didn’t have time to post yesterday (us girls went on a birthday party decoration hunt), but I won’t be around much this weekend.  We’re attending the Weekend to Remember Conference hosted by Family Life, which so far is amazing. I’m sure when I get the time I’ll share some helpful, useful and truthful things we’ve learned.

We’re defintiely growing closer together this weekend. We even made last minute reservations for a hotel for the entire weekend–away from Savannah!  We sure do miss her, but it’s nice to be able to just focus on us. And as we’ve learned and the speakers here have stressed, marriage is the priority relationship. Without it, you can’t be the parent God intended.  Oneness with God and your spouse is essential. 

 I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend, I’ll be back next week when things settle down!

Tonight was a unplanned date night! Of course, it consisted of nothing romantic what so ever. In fact, most people would think of it as a typical outing and nothing special, but those people must not be parents. As parents, every outing without children is a date.

And so, our trips to JC Penny’s, Kohl’s, Target, Dollar Tree (see the pattern here? Cheap! We’re poor college student parents), and Chilli’s to eat, were simply wonderful.

Granted, the picture above was taken on our honeymoon when it was nice, warm, I had longer hair and was all about romance….still. It reflects tonight’s couple time and the love we find even in the simple things.

Like Target. What’s a date without Target? We go there every. single. date.

Remember my 2008 goals?  Well, I’ve (we’ve) gotten started on the getting closer to God part. Mark and I have read the Bible and prayed every single night.  My new Bible has been good help guiding us to the topics we’d like to read about. And, since we are (finally) back home we made it to church this morning (which, was an excellent service).

I’m a firm believer that if you ask, you will receive. Of course, that doesn’t mean that we’ll get the answer/opportunity/whatever that you expected because God knows what is truly best for us, but we will receive something (but in His timing).  Well, one of the goals I had in mind for 2008 was to work on our marriage. Like I said, there are no serious problems between us, but I’d rather learn the best way to communicate and avoid serious issues all together right now from the start. So, today at church we found out that there is an opportunity to go to a marriage retreat the weekend for Savannah’s birthday (but, I’ll have to miss a friend’s baby shower…but I think marriage is more of a priority, yes?).  And so, God has opened the door to not only creating a closer relationship for Mark and I, but between us and God as well.  He is a good God, and He does listen.

But about that working out part?  Bleh…we’re not there yet.

Well, only 6 months. But it seems like forever ago we were married, and it seems like we’ve been together forever. It surprises me that it’s only been 6 months!

Mark brought home some beautiful flowers for me. And, a few days ago we brought out our frozen cake top. We didn’t want to wait a year, we’re impatient.

It was extremely lopsided and covered with wrinkles from the plastic wrap that was around it for the past 6 months, but still tasty. That butter cream icing and raspberry filling, yum.

Speaking of anniversaries, it’s almost been a year since I’ve started this blog! Oh, what a year it has been.