Still Alive!

Hi everybody! I am so sorry for the delay between my posts. I have been a horrible blogger this month! I am going to attempt to be much better about blogging because there is much to share and I don't want to lose all of my loyal readers.

One reason I haven't written all that much lately is because not a lot has changed. I still don't have a job - ACK! - and am searching everyday for one. Your prayers that something would develop soon would be much appreciated. I have enjoyed the time off though. It's been a time for relaxation, reading, going to the pool, going to Disney, and just giving my body a chance to chill. I'm thankful for this time, although I do need to find a job soon so that I can continue to eat and pay my bills.

Another good thing that has come from this down time is that God is really working in my life, doing some deep healing, and it's been cool - although difficult at times. I'm still processing so many things, but expect a post soon where I try to put some of these last weeks into words.

For now, I thought I'd show a cute picture of Ellie. She is settling in really well and enjoying her new home. She's running all over the apartment and enjoying the space. She loves to go outside on the balcony, and the other day, I caught her sitting in the window on the balcony enjoying the view.

Isn't she cute? :)

Keep checking in - more to come soon, I promise! Love you all!

We Live Here!!

Greetings to you all from the land of sun, heat, smiles, and Disney World!! Nikki and I were trying to be super responsible and not get our Disney season passes when we first moved down here because neither of us has a job yet, and well....they're not exactly cheap. Well, we made it three weeks before we finally broke down yesterday and got our passes. Nikki had her first Disney audition and it didn't go as well as she would have liked, so we decided that we needed some "theme park therapy". So we purchased our passes online and headed to the Magic Kingdom around 6:30!

Here are some pictures from our first of many trips to Disney....I am putting 2 of me in even though they are similar because we took these pictures in front of my favorite ride at the Magic Kingdom - Splash Mountain. I thought it was cool you could see the boat in one of them. And Nikki was really happy to finally have a coke! :)



We only stayed a couple of hours and rode four rides, but as we walked around, we kept saying, "Oh my gosh, we live here! We can come to Disney World whenever we want!" It was awesome! And to any of you who wish to come visit - we'd love to take you to Disney and share our favorite things! :)

I didn't visit Disney World for the first time until I was a senior in high school and our band came down. Since that time, I have always loved this place. I love the creativity and imagination, the rides, and the way that it helps encourage you to stay young at heart. When I was married, Jeff brought me to Disney for our first anniversary, and as he left a month later, I was always worried that Disney would hold negative memories or be a place I wouldn't want to return to. But over time and several visits, God has totally redeemed this place for me, and now....not only do I still love it, I get to go whenever I want! I am very thankful for that gift.

Nikki and still don't have jobs, and there are more unanswered questions than there are certainties. But as we left Magic Kingdom last night, we stopped for a moment and took in this sight, smiling at the realization.... We live here!

Relaxation

Greetings from the land of blue hairs and q-tips! (Q-tips are what my brothers and I call those people in the world with white hair. Ahem.) Hope you are all doing well and enjoying summer so far. I can't believe it is almost mid-July. Where has the time gone??

Anyway, here in the great state of Florida, I am still searching for a job. We've been here for 2 weeks and 2 days, and I know that it takes some time to find a new job, but it's still a little stressful. Hopefully something will be found very soon! In the meantime, along with job searching, I am trying to enjoy this time off while I have it and just relax and rest. Easier said than done at times, but I'm trying to remember that God knows exactly what I need and He's always provided before.

So in trying to relax, I have spent some time at our pool. Notice the storm clouds in the sky. Yes, we stayed at the pool. The clouds blew over. Sometimes they do, most times they don't. It pretty much rains at least once a day here. I've seen some amazing rain and lightening since I've been here. It gives me hope for the hurricane season. I'm already searching out a sturdy tree or post I can tie myself to when the hurricane winds come! Imagine the nature pictures you could get in the middle of a hurricane! :)

Ellie is getting much more comfortable with her new home. She's out and about a lot now, she has adopted Nikki as her new favorite person, and she is claiming various places in the apartment as her own. Here's proof...


Nikki and I got a rug thingy for in front of our kitchen sink. We thought it was appropriate and a good reminder as we begin this new chapter in Orlando.

No matter what circumstances are happening in life, I hope all of us learn how to embrace fully all of what God allows. If there are rainbows, enjoy them. And if there aren't, make sure you jump in some puddles when you dance in the rain. And on that note, I think I'll go read a book. It's tough being unemployed, but someone's gotta do it! :)

Promise

Greetings to you from Orlando! It's been a little crazy around here as we have been trying to find jobs, get things settled, and figure out what to do next. Reality has also been hitting a little bit that we actually live in Florida now. We're not here on vacation, we're actually staying here... and on top of all of that, deeper continued healing keeps taking place.

I read this quote from a book written by Robin Jones Gunn, one of my favorite authors.... "So, if I love God, and I mean really love God with abandon, then I must come to love myself, my life. I need to love my story at the heart level. That's what I believe life is for all of us. A story being written by God. He is the Author and Finisher of our faith. When I start to love my story, with all its messed up twists and turns, then I can love other people who are living out their own stories with all their messed up twists and turns."

This quote really hit me because I realized that while healing has occurred and continues, I don't really love the story God has written in my life in the last few years. At times I'm embarrassed by it, worried how it makes me look, sometimes filled with regret and shame over what has happened. Obviously I believe that God has used this all for my good and His glory, and I ultimately wouldn't change any of it, but I haven't embraced it - I haven't loved the story God has written for me, with the twists and turns He has allowed.

And now I find myself in a new place, with the only certainty being that I have a place to live, a Florida license, and the opportunity to live with one sister and near another. Today was a discouraging day because Nikki and I ran into some deadends in the job search. Not really deadends, but just not much that was encouraging. We were feeling really sorry for ourselves, sitting on the couch having a pity party and trying to figure out what to do. To top it off, it was raining and nasty outside.

So we were sitting on the couch, eating dinner, and I happened to look up and out the window and saw the most glorious rainbow. It was SO bright and vivid. I scared my cat because I yelled, "Oh my gosh, look it's a sign!!!! Go get your camera!" We both jumped off the couch and got our cameras and went out to our balcony. The rainbow was a full rainbow - and was so big that we couldn't capture the whole thing in one photo from our balcony. As soon as we got out there and started taking pictures, the rainbow started fading.

In the Bible, rainbows are always a symbol of God's promise, and Nikki and I needed a reminder of how much He loves us and that we can trust Him more than I can say. I might not always understand God's plans, His ways, and I may still be learning to love the story He's writing in my life, but tonight He reminded me that He loves me, He does have a plan, and He created me for a purpose. I got my very own rainbow to prove it!

Welcome To The Sunshine State

Hello friends and family from sunny (although not so much the last two days) Florida! I am so sorry for just now getting a post up about my new home, but I have been in the madness of unpacking AND we finally got wireless internet today! Yay for modern technology!! So now I am sitting on my bed IN MY OWN ROOM THAT HAS A DOOR typing this post. There is much to tell you about, so here goes!

First of all, we have safely made it to Florida, all trucks are unpacked, most boxes are unpacked, and we are slowly getting settled into our new home. Here are a couple of pictures from the last day of our journey down here. We were all very ready to get here by this point!



My mom drove down with us and was so helpful in getting us unpacked and set up. Thanks, Mum - you're the best! She left today to drive back to GA and then to Baltimore, and she will be missed very much. But I do want to show you pictures of our apartment so you can see some of what she helped with. For starters, here is our very cute welcome mat!

When you enter our apartment, there is a little foyer. The door you see on the left is a door into my bathroom, which is what our guests will use. And by the way, please ignore all of the crap all over the place - we're still trying to get everything organized and put away, but I wanted to go ahead and post pictures!

When you walk into the apartment, our living room/dining area is in front of you. The dining area may or may not end up with a table, and it will eventually have a piano there. We also have a really nice sized balcony off the living room, where we will be able to spend much time!

We have a very nice sized kitchen, with my favorite feature highlighted in the second photo.


We also have a laundry room, and I am still getting used to the fact that I can just walk down the hall and use the washer and dryer and don't have to put on my puffy and snow boots to do laundry!

Here are pictures of my bedroom. The first one is looking into my bathroom - I have my own entrance, which is cool. The lamp you see will not be there as soon as my ceiling fan/light gets put up tomorrow!





A few really cool things to pass on....first of all, I got my e-pass yesterday, which lets me drive on any toll road without having to stop and go through tolls. I feel so official! Now I just have to get my license so that I can get a season pass to Disney, and that will be awesome!

Speaking of Disney, we are only 10 minutes away. Each night from our apartment, we are able to see the Magic Kingdom fireworks show! Not gonna lie - it is really really cool!!!! We watched it last night and I have a feeling we'll be watching it often! This is a view from our balcony. The fireworks go off to the right of the buildings, and we have a perfect view of them.

I will post more pictures soon. I need to take some of our general complex. There are a couple of cool features that I want to share with you. I love our area and where we are. We are so close to everything we need - Publix about 3 minutes away and everything else you could want or need about 10 minutes away. But we're out in the middle of nowhere - there are fields with cows in them right before our complex, and everything is very peaceful. I have no idea what is in store in this new adventure, but I am excited to find out! Many more posts and pictures to come very soon. Have a great day!