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! 

Thanksgiving Week.

It doesn't seem like Thanksgiving week to me. I'm not sure if it is just because I have been so busy, but the time has seriously flown by. I feel like it was just summer time. Anyways, whether I believe it or not, it's already Thanksgiving. I wanted to take a minute to talk about things that I am thankful for, because there are so many.

Jesus. He gave me life, gives me everything I could ever need, and truly loves me.

My husband. My other half. The one who hold me when I cry, tickles me when I need a laugh, supports me in everything, and loves me unconditionally.

My best friend. The one I can count on for anything and everything.

My job. Teaching is so much more than a job, its a passion. My kids fill my heart every day and without a doubt they have changed my life and continue to  each day. My job also provides me with an income that allows me to have enough money for anything that I need and most things that I want. I also have the best coworkers, so blessed.

My family. I have two parents who love me, siblings who I have great relationships with, and extended family who all care about me. We may not all get along, but we come together when we need to and all love each other.

My apartment. As much as I am eager to get into a house, I love our little home together. It's clean, warm, and comfortable.

My friends. I have such a strong group of friends who I know will always have my back and are only a phone call away. We might not see each other often, but there is a depth to our friendships that will always remain.

My church. My husband and I have both been getting more involved in our church and it really is starting to feel like home. I am leading a group of high school girls now and he serves in the worship band. We are meeting more people and I am loving it even more.

I hope all of you are feeling as blessed and thankful as I am this week. Sometimes even when it's hard, it helps to focus on the good, because there is so much good in our lives even through the difficulties. 

Weekending: Solo & Sick

My husband was out of town this weekend so that meant time for me to rest and try to sick this sickness I have had all week. After school on Friday I had to move the piglets from our school barn to the student farm and get them all settled there. 

I was home by 5pm and I showered and curled up on the couch which is where I spent the evening. I watched Hunger Games and was planning future vacations. I check prices and plan our vacations in my head way too often. Our next trip will be Vegas for 4 days over spring break and I can't wait. I'm ready to book it so that I can stop obsessing over hotels and plane tickets. Then I'll just focus on the fun stuff, like what we should do when we get there. 

Saturday morning I woke up, still sick, but not sick enough to stop me from shopping. My best friend and I hit the mall and I got some great Christmas presents. I mostly bought things for my hubby, but also got a sweater for my aunt and a photo album for my in-laws. Then I came home and wrapped all of the Christmas presents we have so far. There's actually quite a few! I still have a list of things I want to buy, but I am very happy with my progress so far. 

Sunday morning I went to church and then I went to my mom's house. We were off for some more Christmas shopping! I love hanging out with my mom and shopping is our favorite thing to do together. I got a few more gifts and we got our Christmas PJ's. 

I came home and relaxed the rest of the evening. Did my husband's laundry and cleaned up a little bit. It's a short week (thank goodness), but we are going out of town for Thanksgiving so I want everything to be put together so we don't have to come home to a mess. Here's to hoping this is an easier week. 

Linking up with Meghan!

Wedding Wednesday: Wedding Party Pictures

After our first look and pictures with the two of us we felt like we got plenty of pictures and our friends joined us for Wedding Party pictures. It was a lot of fun to see the guys and they were all gushing about how pretty I looked. It was super sweet. 

We started with the typical girls and boys. I didn't have a very good shot with just the girls. I guess getting 6 of us to all look perfect is a struggle. But this one from the side was kinda cool and shows some of their great hairstyles. 

This silly picture is one of my favorites. I love my girls, I love my husband, so much greatness in one silly shot. 

These handsome boys are the best. I am so lucky that he has such great friends and I also consider each one of them my friends as well. 

Me and my best friend/matron of honor. She's the closest thing I have to a sister, best friends since 5th grade. 

 It's all fun and games for the guys. 

We had a blast the whole time we were taking pictures. Our photographers kept us moving and on track with time and we got all of the shots that we needed. Next up was family. I was a little more stressed about this, but those went well too. That meant it was time to go and get hidden, then prepare for the ceremony! 

I'll be back next week for more fun. Linking up with Macy!

Weekending: Homecoming

This weekend we went back to my my college, Washington State University, for homecoming. I love WSU, a lot. The spirit there is something special and we truly are a Cougar Family. It was an absolutely perfect weekend. We left right after school on Friday and made the trip there (about 5 hours) with one of my college roommates and her boyfriend. I haven't seen her since my wedding so it was great to catch up.

When we got there we went to my brother's apartment (he's getting his phD right now) and dropped off our stuff and then headed to the bar. It was crazy crowded, but wonderful. There was a pretty big group of us, we were dancing, singing, and having a great time. 

Me && my brother 

Saturday was GAMEDAY! :) We went to the store to get some things for breakfast and then started getting ready for the game. We headed to campus about 3 hours before kickoff and watched the band for a little bit and walked around to enjoy the festivities. It was the most beautiful day, sunny and 70 degress. Absolutely perfect. 

 We found our mascot, Butch! 

The game was a blast! We had a group of about 15 of us all in one section so we had a great time. Our team did amazing (which doesn't happen often) and we ended up winning! 

After the game we had dinner, took a nap, and then headed back to the bar. We were there until it closed at 2am. I would call that a success. :) 

When they turn the lights back on...you know it's time to go.

My roommate wanted to leave early so we were on the road at 7am. I wasn't feeling very good and slept most of the way back. I was so glad I wasn't driving. It was such a blast, the perfect weekend reliving our college days. I'm so thankful that even three years later I still have such a solid core of friends from college to go and have fun with. I think next year we are going to rent an RV and tailgate, regardless as long as we are back and can enjoy a game together, that's all I care about. 

Two down...one to go! Maybe by next year she'll have a ring too. :) Love my roommates. 

Linking up with Meghan!

Wedding Wednesday: Getting Ready!

Here we go, finally getting to my wedding day! 

Getting ready was a really fun part of my day. One of my goals from the beginning of wedding planning was to make sure that I had plenty of time so that I could enjoy the entire morning and not be rushed or late for pictures. I had pictures scheduled starting at 1:30 at the venue (me getting dressed) so I wanted to go to the venue around 12:30 to double check all of the decor before I had to get dressed. 

So...my bridesmaids and I stayed in a hotel the night before my wedding. I slept with my maid of honor in one room and the other girls were across the hall. My best friend and I had some snuggles and chatted when we woke up before we started getting ready. 

We went to Starbucks to get the traditional 'Bride' and bridesmaids drinks and grabbed a light breakfast from our hotel. 

 When we got back, it wasn't long before the hair stylists arrived. I had a lot of drama with having a stylist, her moving unexpectedly and having another lady at the salon do my hair. Neither of my trials were exactly perfect for it gave me some anxiety. She also brought an assistant who worked on my bridesmaids. 

My hair took way longer than it was supposed to and when I got up and looked at it in the mirror, I hated it. Literally I wanted to cry. My mom and bridesmaids were all like, you look so pretty, its okay...but it was bad. There was no poof like there was supposed to be and it was so matted down with hairspray. It was nasty. I had to just hold it together and get my make up done because my make up artist was there waiting.

Finally, 4 hours later we were all ready. Thankfully my make up was amazing, I felt like a supermodel. That made up for me hating my hair and I tried to not let it get me down. We packed up our stuff and headed to the venue in our robes. We took this teaser picture for me to put on facebook, I'm a little obsessed with it. :) 

After I checked out everything in the venue, it was time to get dressed! My mom officially zipped me into my dress put it took all of my bridesmaids to get it all on right. There's a lot of poof! My bridesmaids were the best and kept the morning so fun and light hearted. They were constantly reassuring me, checking in on me, and making sure I was doing okay. I love them. 

Adding those finishing touches! We had a nice 'locker room' to get ready in at the country club. There was nobody else in there and plenty of space. We could also peek out of the windows as they set up the ceremony decor so that was fun. I also got to watch my future husband walk out to his spot for the first look before I went out. 

Next you'll get to see the first look! Writing this was so much fun, I love re-living the memories and all of the feelings I had on that day. 

Linking up! 

Wedding Wednesday: Rehearsal Dinner

Happy Wednesday!  Today we are taking a look at our rehearsal dinner. Since my fiance's family doesn't live anywhere near where we were getting married, my mom graciously hosted our rehearsal dinner. It was quite the large affair because I wanted to invite all of my family who traveled from the west coast. We also invited all of his family who traveled for the wedding. Add to that the bridal party and we had about 50 people at our rehearsal dinner, good thing my mom has a big backyard! 

I made this big sign to make sure everyone knew where they were going. 

Me && my beautiful bridesmaids. <3

We had italian food since that is easy for a large group. My mom and I prepped it all the day before so all we had to do on the day of the rehearsal was put it in the oven. Our menu included lasagna, chicken alfredo, meatballs, bowties, caesar salad, and rolls. There was so much food and it was all delicious. 

Some of my friends, plus yard games in the back. We played ladder ball and bocce ball. 

My cousins from New Jersey! There is one missing, hence the space, but it meant the world to me that almost my entire family flew across the country to be at my wedding. 

This is a re-creation of a picture that we took 16 years ago. 

It was such a special evening and the perfect start to my wedding weekend. Next week, we'll start getting to wedding pictures! :) 

Linking up! 

Weekending: Lack of Sleep

This weekend was crazy and I have very little pictures to prove it.

Friday night we had an auction for FFA to raise money for our students going to Nationals. We are taking 13 students this year and this year's auction was a hueg success. We raised enough money to cover the rest of the trip (flights, hotel, registration, rental car) for all of them! We made over double what we did last year. As I was counting the money I could not stop smiling. The parents and booster group have worked so hard to put this auction together and all of that work was totally worth it.

After the auction ended, we got in the car and drove 3 hours to Eastern Washington to where my husband is from. We arrived around 2am. Thankfully one of his friends came with us and they stayed up and chatted while I crashed in the backseat. I didn't sleep much, but I didn't have to feel guilty after not walking to talk the whole way. I was drained.

We spend Saturday at a marching band competition. There were a ton of great groups, saw a lot of C's friends, it was a fun time. We were in the stadium or walking around with groups warming up from 10am - 10:30pm. It was a marathon day.

We drove home pretty early on Sunday which was great so then I could clean up the apartment, do laundry, and relax on the couch. I needed a restful afternoon after the busy weekend.

I don't have too many meetings this week so I am really excited, we also don't have school on friday. Woo!

Linking up with Meghan! && Bianca!

Five on Friday: October Favorites!

I am so excited about this month! There are so many fun things going on that I have to look forward to. 

1. Halloween fun with friends! 

One of my friends asked if we can go to the corn maze and have a Halloween-y party and of course I agreed! I am not a huge fan of scary things, but as long as we go to the corn maze during the day time I am totally down. Plus, who doesn't like a reason to get together with friends?

2. WSU Homecoming!

My husband and I are heading back to our college town for the homecoming football game in the middle of the month. Both of my roomates are also going with their respective significant others, as well as a few other friends. Even though we graduated 3 years ago it feels like no time has passed and I am looking forward to the hitting our favorite places in town and cheering on out team. 

3. FFA National Convention

As part of my job I am an advisor for our school's FFA chapter and I have the privilege of taking 13 students to Louisville for the National Convention. They are all competing while we are there so that is stressful, but also so rewarding. 

4. Growing in Faith

I am in a bible study group and we just had our third meeting and I am really enjoying it. I was in a small group before through my church, but this is a little more challenging and I like being with a new group of women. I also am meeting with my Pastor next week to talk about being a leader for a teen group which is both intimidating and exciting. I'm just praying for guidance and that if it is meant to be, I will be a good fit for those girls. 

5. Wedding Planning.

If you've been reading my blog you know that my wedding has already passed, but I am a bridesmaid in 3 weddings over the next year so there is still plenty of planning to be done. One of my friends has her first dress shopping appointment this month and I can't wait for that and all of the other fun things that will be coming up.

Linking up with Amanda!

Wedding Wednesday: Bridesmaid Gifts

Happy Wednesday! I am so excited to be talking about my wedding which truly was the best day of my life. I am blessed for have five wonderful bridesmaids who were by my side throughout the entire process. I gave them their gifts at the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding and I was rather proud of them. :) Here's a look at what they got!

I ordered them personalized bags on black friday and saved them all of these months! They are the perfect size for an overnight trip. 

I saw this on pintrest and loved the idea. I bought these hair ties for $1 at walmart and printed out this cute saying on cardstock at home. 

Bath and Body Works is my fav! I picked a fun summer scent that matched my colors. If you watch for sales and use coupons you can get a great deal. 

Old Navy Flip Flops! Watch out for the $1 day, that's when I bought mine. 

Tissues, these came in handy. 

EOS! I got the Costco pack and split it up, one per girl. Perfect since I had five! 

The robes were my favorite. I got them for each of the girls so we could get ready in them && take an adorable teaser picture. :)  

It was a lot, but since I spread it out over several months it was totally affordable. I recommend just picking up little things here and there, before you know it you have a great gift! 

Linking up!