First Time Homebuyers!

My husband and I have decided that we are ready to buy a house! I have been looking online for months and the fact that it is finally time is a little crazy. I feel so grown up!

We have already gotten pre-approved so we know the budget that we are working with. We also have a realtor so she has been sending us houses as well. My mom actually found one that I really like and I can't wait to go and look at it next weekend. Our biggest must have is space. We want to have a family so I want to make sure that we can grow into the house. 

Everyone says that it is really stressful and I can already see that. It is such a big purchase, you want it to be perfect. I have already spent hours on pintrest looking at decor and renovation ideas. 

We are going to our first showings on Saturday! Does anyone have any good tips for buying a house? 

Wedding Wednesday: Reception Details

It's finally time to start talking about our reception. Our reception was such a blast, I loved every minute. I'm going to talk today about the room in general and some of the details. 

Decor 

I wanted my wedding to be classy and with lots of sparkle! There was gorgeous draping and lights in the room already and that was something that totally sold me on the venue. I also convinced my mom to spend a ridiculous amount of money on chivari chairs and in my opinion, it was worth every penny for how beautiful it made it look. 

Centerpieces

Our decor package included the hurricane centerpieces, but my fiance didn't love them so we decided to also make our own centerpieces and have a mix of the two. I really did love the floating candles that my fiance convinced me to do so I think the money and work was worth it. 

I also made all of my own table numbers, lots of modge podge and glitter! Then I just added a few small plastic diamonds to add some color and texture to the table. 

Cookie Bar

My fiance loves cookies so I had to have a cookie bar. It doubled as a favor and everyone loved snacking on them throughout the night. We also had a lot leftover to take home with us. :) 

Cake

We went with the cake/cupcake combination and it was better than I ever imagined. My mom's friend did the baking and they were the best cupcakes I've had in my life. We have some leftover in the freezer at my mom's house and I take them out four months later and the are still just as delicious! Her husband made this cake stand and it totally blew my away. It was HUGE, the pictures don't do it justice. Also there we so much detail on all of the cupcakes which included glitter and pearls in my wedding colors. 

Sweetheart Table

We went pretty simple with our sweetheart table. We had the crystal toasting flutes that my mom gave us as an engagement gift, my bouquet, and a sparkly 'Mr. and Mrs.' sign that hung behind us. There was also a fake fireplace with uplighting in it which looked great in pictures. 

If you can't tell... I loved my reception details. I obsessed about them leading up to the wedding and it all ended up being so much better than I expected. One of the hardest parts about planning is not being able to see things completely set up and I could not have been happier with the final product. 

Linking up! 

Cozy Winter Break Reading.

One of my favorite things about winter break is having time to read. I have spent a ton of time reading this winter break and I wanted to share some of the books that I read. 

Finding Our Balance

I am a gymnastics super fan and this is a book written by a fellow gym fan who I follow on twitter. It follows three girls training for the Olympics. It's fitting since the Olympics are this coming year and I follow all of the gymnasts on social media and love seeing their preparations. This is a young adult book for the language and some content but I give it a 5/5.

What She Left Behind

This was our book club book for this month and it was AMAZING. I didn't know what to expect and it totally blew my expectations. It goes back and forth between two characters, Clara and Izzy. Clara is sent to an insane asylum by her father in the 1930's and it follows her time there. Izzy is a foster child who is helping her foster mom, a museum curator, go through belongings of patients at the now abandoned asylum. I highly recommend this book, not only is there some fascinating historical information but there are also great characters and a plot that keeps you guessing.

Quaker Summer

This book was a Christmas gift with one of my friends. It is about a woman on her journey to find her purpose and get closer to God. It examines quite a few big questions that I think many people ask themselves. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoyed it. It is part of a series called 'Women of Faith' and I'm looking forward to reading more. 

Have you read anything good lately? 

2016 Goals.

January 1st, 2016. The first day of a new year. Maybe it's because I'm a teacher or because I've always loved school, but this first day of the year on the calendar doesn't feel as much like the first day of the year as the first day of school does. I will still go back to the same job with the same kids and be counting down the days until June. 

Regardless, I do like the time of the year to reflect and look forward. This past year was the best of my life. Most importantly, I got married. Along with that I had so many fun events with my friends (bridal shower, bachelorette party, trips to Pullman) and generally good things happening in many areas of my life. I feel blessed to have had such a great year. It makes me a little nervous about if 2016 will be able to live up to it, but I will do everything I can to enjoy every minute and find the best in each day. 

Here are some goals I have for this year:

1. Buy a house! 

We have been living in an apartment for two and a half years and I am ready for more space. We started looking at houses more seriously in the past few weeks and we are going be getting pre-approved soon then looking for a realtor. If anyone has a great house buying tips, feel free to share. :) 

2. Spend less time on social media and more time present with my husband and others in my life. 

I spend a lot of time on my computer and phone, especially after school and in the evenings. It's hard because I do enjoy it and think of it as my time to unwind but I also feel like it's way too much. I need to put it away and focus on my husband and us spending time together. Even if we are just watching tv together I would rather be focused on that together instead of texting or scrolling through twitter at the same time. 

3. Get back to the gym 3 times a week and run at least one 5k. 

I am the epitome of a yo-yo dieter and gym goer. I was working out twice a day in the summer and on a super strict diet to lose weight for my wedding. I didn't have a lot to lose, but I made it to my goal weight and was the smallest I have ever been in my adult life. I loved how I looked for the summer and all of the events that took place surrounding my wedding. I don't need to go on as crazy of a diet, but I know how good I feel when I am working out so I need to get back to that. 

4. Spend more time in the word, journaling, and in prayer. 

I have a one year bible that I started last year and didn't make it all of the way through last year. I want to try to finish that this year. I have also been given quite a few Christian books, both novels and other studies, that I want to start getting through. I should be spending time doing this as opposed to being on social media, so those two goals will go hand in hand. I am also leading a high school small group and I know that will help me grow and I look forward to growing through that as well. 

5. Read at least one book a month 

I enjoy reading and I don't make enough time for it. I want to be more intentional with my time and that includes reading which is both enjoyable and relaxing for me. I am in a book club where we read one book a month so that should make this goal easy, but I still wanted to include it. 

What are some of your goals for 2016? 

*All images from Pintrest 

Christmas Recap.

My Christmas was better than I ever could have imagined. We spend Christmas Eve with family friends. We went over there and had a big lunch, exchanged presents, played some games and then headed off to church. Christmas Eve service is probably my second favorite of the year after Good Friday, there is such a sense of peace and calm, absolutely amazing. 

This year I decided to start a married tradition of drinking champagne with our toasting flutes from our wedding and opening our presents to each other on Christmas Eve. It was great to have that time to ourselves and have those moments. I can see them being even more special as we get older and have kids and the alone time doesn't happen as often. I get so excited thinking about how our Christmases

On Christmas morning we spent the day with my Mom's family. Each year we get matching PJ's and this year we went with snowflakes.

One of the gifts that I was most excited for was tickets to the Pacific Rim Championships for gymnastics. I'm a big gymnastics fan (even though I never did gymnastics) and I watch all of the meets online and follow all of the National Team on social media. This is an event that is happening in my state and gymnasts from all over the world will be there. I'm super excited to be able to see these athletes competing in person just a few months before some of them will be at the Olympics.

I also gone a ton of other awesome presents, cute sweaters, booties, earrings, and a bunch of stuff for our apartment/future house. I am so blessed to have been able to spend this day with my amazing family and be given so many wonderful gifts. I hope everyone else had just as wonderful of a Christmas! 

Weekending: Winter Break is here!

We have reached winter break, can I get a hallelujah?

Unfortunately the weather wasn't cooperating and while we were supposed to travel to my in-laws on Friday after school, we had to wait until Saturday morning because the mountain pass was closed. It opened on Saturday, but the roads were super snowy and it was a terrifying drive. Thankfully we made it here safely.

I did some last minute shopping with my sister in law and picked up a few stocking stuffers for C. I am trying really hard to make our first married Christmas a memorable one and I think it's going to be great.

Today we are celebrating with his family and exchanging gifts. I love all of the things that we got them and I can't wait to see them open them all. It's been a relaxing few days here with his family, but I'm excited to go home to our apartment and enjoy the last day before Christmas! We have a full Christmas Eve and Christmas day, so I am excited for the festivities to begin!

Linking up with Meghan! 

Christmas Card Reveal 2015

Last year I saw so many awesome Christmas cards and I made the decision that this year I would make sure we got really good ones. I had been planning to go with MINTED and even though I told myself that I could splurge on them, when the time came to buy them I just couldn't justify it.

We ended up ordering them from Snapfish after a free trial where we got to order 5 cards.

 I liked the quality so I ended up ordered all of ours from there. I got a white back so that I could write a personal message on the ones that I wanted to, and I paid to get our address printed on the envelope. We changed the design and this was our final product. 

It was so much fun sending these out and hearing from friends and family as they received them. I love Christmas and I look forward to making sending Christmas cards a tradition. This is our first year, but you can bet that next year we will be doing it again! :)

Linking up with Mary and Macy! 

Weekending: On the go.

This weekend flew by, typical! It was a little too packed for my liking, but I made it through and managed to take a nap on Sunday afternoon.

Friday night we went to my Aunt's house to celebrate my Grandad's birthday. He's 82, I love him so much. This was him being goofy. 

On Saturday, C and I slept in until 10:30! I couldn't believe it. I don't even remember the last time I slept that late. It was glorious. I had a lazy morning cleaning our apartment, shopping, and wrapping Christmas presents. 

Saturday night was our staff christmas party. I have an awesome staff and we had a blast relaxing, chatting, and doing things outside of school. It's so nice to get away and not be surrounded by students and stress. It was a lot of fun. 

Sunday after church we had a work day at the student farm. I had some quality time with my lambs and pigs. :) 

We went to lunch with my college roommates at the Cheesecake Factory. YUM! It's always good catching up with these girls who I spent every day with for two years. I am blessed to have friends as good as them. 

I took a nap Sunday afternoon && just relaxed to get ready for this week. I only have one night meeting so that means it will be a lot easier than last week.  Two weeks until break! 

Linking up with Meghan!

My Christmas List.

We are only 20 days from Christmas, can anyone believe it?! I have put together a few of the things that I am hoping to find under the Christmas tree. I also love gifts that are totally out of the blue and surprising so I am looking forward to those as well. :) 

Phone case

I got a new iPhone 6S a couple of weeks ago (thanks, hubby!) and now I would love a new case to go with it. Right now I have an otter box which isn't very stylish, but it will protect my phone. I'd love some pretty ones to alternate it with. 

Make up Brushes 

I am not good at buying things for myself, especially make up brushes which can be so darn expensive! I asked my mom for some and I  know she's been shopping at ULTA so hopefully I will be getting some. 

New TOMS 

These are my favorite for work when I want something comfy, but also a little dressy. I have black glitter ones that are pretty worn out now so I would love some gold ones which work perfectly for our school spirit days when we wear purple and gold. 

Booties! 

These are one of the things I always thought I would never be able to pull off but surprise, I can and I love them. I'm hoping for another pair this year. 

There really isn't much else that I am hoping for. Clothes are always great, scarves, accessories, etc. and I am not picky about those. I honestly have so much 'stuff' and am so blessed that I really don't need anything. I am hoping for a lovely Christmas with my family, that everyone is in good health, and that we have another great holiday filled with laughter and joy. 

What is on the top of your Christmas list? 

Friday Favorites: December!

Happy Friday! Can anyone believe it's already December? I know that I can't. This year has been flying by and while I've been in the Christmas mood for a while, now it's actually Christmas time! 

Favorite Song: I have been playing Christmas Pandora in my classroom and this song came on which I really enjoyed. It's fun and upbeat, plus she has a wonderful voice. 

Favorite new clothing item: I just bought this top to wear to my staff Christmas party on Saturday. I'm going to pair it with leggings and booties, I'm excited. I love the color and the little bit of sparkle! 

Favorite thing about this week: All of my black friday orders are starting to arrive. I am amazed at how fast things are arriving, I love it! 

Favorite Verse

Two weeks until Winter Break! 

This week has been so busy and work continues to be stressful and overwhelming, but I feel like I have a good handle on things until at least break. I can use that time to get myself together and make a plan for the spring. I hate feeling like I'm stretched so thin that I don't really do a good job at anything. Hopefully that won't last much longer. Thank goodness for this weekend. I don't think I would be able to keep my sanity without them. 

Linking up with Amanda!

Wedding Wednesday: Receiving Line

I read a lot of articles about how to greet guests at your wedding and receiving lines get a lot of debate. We opted to do one and I ended up being so thankful that we did. Here's three reasons why we went for it. 

We wanted to eat dinner. I read so many stories about  couples who don't even get to eat the meal that they paid so much for. While we didn't eat much, at least I got to taste the food and have a minute with my new husband before the rest of the reception happened. 

We wanted to make sure we saw everyone. There were some friends of our parents attending the wedding and we wanted to make sure that we were able to see everyone and thank them for coming. I've been to weddings before where the bride and groom had the best intentions of getting to every table, but it didn't happen and then they felt terrible for not saying hello to everyone at their own wedding. 

We wanted it to be quick. I knew that time would fly by during the reception and I didn't want to be obligated to spend a lot of it going from table to table. 

Ours was a little untraditional, we did not include the family or bridal party, it was just us. We stood at the door that connected the cocktail hour space to the reception room. About halfway through cocktail hour we opened the doors and greeted everyone as they went in to the reception. It was a quick hello and hug to everyone as they walked in. We had seen all of our family the night before at the rehearsal dinner and we knew we would be dancing the night away with our friends. We spent a little longer chatting with people that didn't fall into either of those categories and it worked perfectly. We were ahead of schedule and it only took about 20 minutes to get all 125 guests through the 'line'. 

It was totally worth it for us and worked for our wedding perfectly. 

Are you for or against a receiving line, what did you do at your wedding? 

Linking up for Wedding Wednesday!

Weekending: Black Friday & Holiday Decor!

We had a great holiday weekend! We went to my in-laws for Thanksgiving and had a relaxing day and delicious dinner. Thanksgiving night I went out with my sister in law for some Black Friday shopping and I got everything on my list! I was so happy with all of the great deals that I got and all of the gifts I was able to buy.

Friday was the Apple Cup, our huge rivalry football game. We went to a restaurant to watch it with some of our friends from college who live in my husbands home town. Our quarterback was injured at the last game so our back-up stared and it was ugly. Probably the worst game of the season which totally ruined the day. Such a disappointment. Thank goodness we have a bowl game to look forward to.

Saturday we drove back home and went to my mom's to visit with my brother who is home from grad school, have dinner with the family, and decorate my mom's house for Christmas. Even since we moved out we try to come together to decorate with my mom and keep the tradition alive so I was glad that we were able to again this year. 

Sunday after church we came home and set up our Christmas decorations! We still have a ways to go, but I am most excited about our new nativity.

Linking up with Meghan!

Have a great week! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with laughter, smiles, and delicious food! May you all enjoy the day with your friends and families.  

Wedding Wednesday: The Ceremony

Happy Wednesday, time for another Wedding Wednesday!

As I was planning our wedding I tried to make sure that the ceremony was meaningful, because that is truly the heart of the wedding. We kept ours pretty traditional and I loved it. 

My dad walked me down the aisle and it was such a surreal moment. I tried to take it all in, I remember looking at my family and friends in the seats and also looking at my future husband. What a special moment. 

Our pastor said some great words and one part that stands out was him talking about how from this moment forward we have to always put each other first in our lives...that our partner will come before any job, activity, or other friend. I laughed, thinking of my best friend who I am extremely close with (she jokes I am the third person in her marriage), and turned to look at her and our photographer caught this picture, priceless. 

We wrote our own vows and when C said his he cried the whole time. He could not keep it together. It made me tear up seeing him cry, basically everyone was crying their eyes out...talk about water works. I made it through mine without crying. I think it was just full on 'teacher mode' with public speaking.

We did a memory box that we placed letters in from our family members and each other. We are going to display it in our house and open it in 10 years. I wanted something different and unique so that's when I found this idea. 

I remember feeling so relieved when we finally got to have our first kiss and walk back down the aisle as husband and wife. It was official, we were married! 

Linking up!