Around the House

One of my best friends, Rynn, asked me to take pictures and show her where we live. I kept thinking we were about to move, so I wanted to wait until we got a new place to show off. Well, I still think we'll move before too long, but this is where I live now, so I decided to go ahead and show you all our 1st home together...just be prepared for a mess :)

We've got all of Kory's stuff in boxes except some clothes, and then there are wedding gifts and other random items in the middle of packing all over the apartment. However, it's still home, so here is your tour, Rynn and the rest of blogland.

I'll start with a few things that really excite me! Mainly this strawberry plant :)

I have never planted any fruits or vegetables so that is why I'm particularly excited by this! A co-worker gave me the plant but it was in pretty sad shape when I got it in dirt, so I was afraid it might not live very long. It was all still green when I left for the wedding but I came back to some RED strawberries! I have been waiting to pick them until I could take this picture for you, but now I hope to start eating them regularly.

This bird feeder was a wedding gift and it was going to be perfect because we have SO many birds flying around outside our apartments.

However, no birds would ever eat from the feeder. We had no idea why but weeks went on with no birds in sight. Finally, Kory was home one day and saw some birds fly near the feeder and immediately THIS happened...

And we realized why no birds are at our feeder. The cats are on the attack up in the window as soon as one gets near, so we do not get to feed any birds. Hopefully we can find a better place to hang it wherever we live next.

I contemplated cleaning the apt before taking these pictures, but I'm all about being honest and real, so here is what it looks like when "lived in".

We thought we would move before the wedding so we took almost everything off the walls and have almost no decorations left. We also moved in Kory's couch and recliner and entertainment center from his apt, so that's why so much furniture is squeezed into the living room. And yes, that entertainment center is now functioning as a coffee table for now.

The cats pretty much have their own bathroom downstairs. Their food, water and litter box are in these bottom cabinets.

Our kitchen does not have a dishwasher which is the #1 thing I dislike about the apt. Our next place will definitely have that! We also don't have near enough cabinet space, which is why food is on top of the cabinets and even spills over into the dining room.

We really need a better system for our recycling. For now, it's all piled up here against this wall. We don't actually use our table very much these days either, because it's usually covered in stuff and we don't want to clean it off. So instead we eat on the couch in front of the TV usually.

These stairs have almost killed me multiple times. The carpet comes away from the stair block and I've tripped and fallen down these stairs quite a few times. The stairs are also very narrow and it's easy to miss a step, so I'll be grateful to leave these behind.

This bathroom was perfect for me when I lived here alone but now trying to share the same space is a little bit more of a challenge.

I guess that's just true of everywhere in my apt to be honest. I had it totally filled with just my stuff so adding another person and their stuff means we have to get rid of a LOT. And we have given away SO much...but I think we need to keep going.

This spare bedroom has become the dumping grounds for everything we have packed and ready to move. At least with all of this boxed up already, it should make packing a little bit easier next time.

Our bedroom (MY bedroom for 2 years is suddenly OURS...weird) is a wreck from coming home from the cruise and trying to pack some stuff and not having room for Kory's stuff in the closet yet. Our new bedding is not what either of us remember registering for, but we like it and it has really brightened up the room. Kory hated the red curtains I had hanging up so he took them down and we have none for now.

It's our home. It's nothing fancy but it's OURS and it's HOME so that makes me happy :)

Story of Redeemer's

There has been a chain of events over the past two years that have all played out to put us in a position where Kory has been offered and accepted this new position. It all started right after we moved to Oregon.

We had only been here a couple weeks and we didn't have internet at our apartments yet, so we drove to Roseburg and were using the internet at Starbucks one afternoon. Over the next hour or two, we heard a couple next to us who was talking to another man about some issues he was struggling with at that time. It was very obvious to us that the couple were ministers and as they got up to leave, Kory did something very out of character for him.

He got their attention and let them know he overheard part of their conversation and he assumed they were ministers. We explained we just moved to the area and Kory was a youth minister in the area and he just wanted to meet them and tell them they encouraged him. Well, it just so happens that they were youth ministers who were in the process of transitioning into different ministry roles at their church. However, they were in the process of creating a Youth Minister Alliance for all the youth ministers in the county. So Kory gave them his contact information and we parted ways.

A couple months later, Kory received an e-mail about the first meeting of this new Youth Minister group. They met on Saturday mornings so Kory & I began going to meetings and loved it! Sadly, they have since started meeting during the week, so I can no longer attend, but Kory goes every month and we've built some great relationships as a result of that. In fact, one of my closest friends here is a gal who I met through that group.

So last Fall, the group (DCEF 2.0) was hosting a county-wide youth rally to coincide with See You at the Pole. Kory & 2 other youth ministers spoke at the event and fun was had by all. Unbeknownst to us (that's a fun word!), the middle school minister from Redeemer's was at that event and heard Kory speak. So when their winter middle school retreat rolled around and they needed a speaker, Redeemer's contacted Kory to ask him to be the guest speaker for that weekend.

Kory had to be gone my birthday weekend to speak at that retreat, but we both agreed it was a great opportunity and so he did it. He had a wonderful time at the retreat and came back singing the praises of Redeemer's and even said he would love to work for a church like that!

A couple days later, Kory received an e-mail from the Middle School Youth Minister saying, "Hey, we're looking for a High School Youth Minister. Know anyone who might be interested?" Kory wasn't looking for a different job, but this one seemed to kind of fall in his lap. Again, we decided this was a great opportunity and he should at least look into it. He applied for the position and several interviews and meetings later, here we are, about to move so he can work as the High School Youth Minister at Redeemer's Fellowship.

It's amazing to look back and see how that one simple conversation in Starbucks led to all this! Now, I certainly believe God could have worked this out in a different way if He wanted to, but I love knowing that simply following God's prompting can lead you to very exciting opportunities in the future!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Change is a great word to describe my life right now. Marriage itself brings a lot of big changes: living together, sharing money, different last name, etc. However, we have quite a few more changes happening in the next couple weeks.

Kory just accepted a new job with a different church. The great part is that the job is in Roseburg, Oregon...which is the city I already work in! That is wonderful news because I can keep my current job AND I don't have to commute anymore. It wasn't terrible-about 25 minutes-but I will be very happy to be able to run home for lunch or to live in a town with a movie theater and Sonic! We are moving to the big city, y'all. From a town of 3,000 to one with 22,000. That is a big deal, mainly because it puts us half an hour closer to Chili's :)

Kory will be the high school youth minister at Redeemer's Fellowship and we are both SO excited about it! I will have to post about the incredible way God brought this opportunity into our lives soon. It is awesome to see how He's been working. The plan is to start that job after the wedding and honeymoon.

So we got Kory's stuff all moved into my apartment yesterday and he is staying with a friend for the month of May to save a month of paying rent. This means we get to move again right when we get back from the honeymoon. We have got a lot of my apt packed up now also so we need to start looking at housing options in Roseburg pretty soon.

Redeemer's is a church of 1,000 people and we currently worship in a church of 130 people...so that will be an adjustment. All of these changes are positive, though, and we're very excited about all of it! It's just sometimes a lot to take all at once.

However, I'm so thankful I don't have to quit my job and look for another one. That makes a huge difference in lowering my stress level. In fact, I really don't feel too stressed out by all of this...I just feel excited and ready for it to all start happening!

The next few weeks are pretty crazy for us. Last Monday night (May 2), we met with the youth ministry volunteers and let them know about this new job and made plans for Kory's transition. Then, Kory was preaching Sunday morning (May 8) and announced it to the church body, so it's officially "out" and we can tell everyone we're moving now. This Wednesday (May 11), we'll talk to the youth group kids about it, so I'm sure that will be kind of hard. We have two more Sundays to attend church at Tri City and then we'll be gone for the wedding. When we return from the honeymoon (June 5), Kory will have one week off and then start his job at Redeemer's and we'll make the move to Roseburg.

We got Kory completely moved out of his apartment because I wanted to come home from the honeymoon to a clean apartment where we were all moved in and settled...silly me. I should have known it wouldn't be that easy! However, God is dumping blessing after blessing on us, so we will not complain. We will just be excited about the changes that are coming our way! :)

Labels

I just went through my old blog posts and added labels to every post-153 of them! That took a really long time, but I'm glad to have it done. I've added the labels on the side if you want to see posts on a particular topic. Hopefully this will make it easier to go back and find old posts I like and want to read again.

Resolution Follow-Up

So I was looking through old blog posts today and found this one that describes my 2010 New Years Resolution to make friends here in Oregon.

Well, I am happy to report that I did it! There are 3-4 girls that I hang out with on a semi-regular occasion and I would consider all of them to be my close friends. It certainly took work, but I am excited that I followed through on last year's resolution and made it happen!

Cats and Home

Mr. Sir has been extra playful lately. It's so much fun to come home and have him waiting right in front of the door for me! Kory was at my apt the other day when I got off work and he said that when I got out of my car and locked the doors, (when I use the clicker, it honks the horn as the doors lock) Mr. Sir heard the horn and jumped up and went to the front door to sit. Precious! :)

Sir has also apparently decided he is a dog now. He wants to play fetch ALL the time, he loves having his belly scratched and will roll over so you can scratch it and just the other day I promise he was wagging his tail as he waited for me to throw his fetch toy.

He and Kabie still wrestle and fight all the time, but thankfully it's playful now and isn't mean/aggressive like it used to be. There used to be hissing and clawing, but now it just looks like a brother and sister wrestling/pouncing and having a good time. Unfortunately, this means a LOT of cat hair left on my carpet. It does force me to vacuum more often though, so I guess that's a positive thing.

We're in the process of moving Kory's stuff into my apt right now...and have been for the past couple months. It's been great that we've been able to do it a little at a time, since he's only a few apt's away from me. The problem is that we each filled up our 2 bedroom apartments, and now we're trying to combine into just one. We've each been getting rid of a TON of stuff...but it's not enough yet. Of course, it doesn't help that every day we're getting more wedding presents, which is GREAT, but that is just more stuff to try to fit in our limited space. Kory's apartment is our storage shed right now. His living room is full of all the stuff we're getting rid of and most of it will be donated to our youth group rummage sale next month.

I think we should be able to raise a good amount of money for the youth group because we had two of almost everything and now we've got a nicer, newer version of most things so we are getting rid of 2 dining room tables, 2 coffee tables, 1 entertainment center, 1 desk, 3 side-tables, 4 dining room chairs, 1 microwave, 2 toasters and a billion clothes and other small items. We've considered having our own garage sale, but ultimately we decided the money isn't worth the work. Plus, if the youth group doesn't have money for events, we'd end up donating anyhow, so it all works out the same.

The plan is to be completely moved into my apt (and out of Kory's) by the time we leave for the wedding, so we'll come back home to one, clean apartment. Oh, I can't wait to only pay rent for one place! That will be so great!!

On Being Honest

I've been thinking a lot about honesty lately. I do not consider myself to be a REALLY honest person. I wouldn't say I'm a Big Fat Liar either. I think I just keep quiet or don't tell the full truth or skirt around issues...all of which can be dishonest.

Obviously I don't need to say every thought that pops in my head, because sometimes I'm being respectful or loving by keeping quiet. However, I know my heart and I know that I often keep quiet because I want the other person to believe I agree with them.

I think one of the main reasons I (and many females) aren't honest is because we're afraid if we're honest, then we'll be vulnerable and maybe even judged. I really do value other people's honesty, even if they disagree with me, so I wonder why I assume other people will hate me for being honest if I disagree with them. That's a pretty messed up view of the world, right?

I vow to begin appreciating other people's honesty more in the future. I would hate to think other people felt they couldn't be honest with me because of how I might react. Truth: I sometimes have a short fuse and do get upset when other people don't see things the same way I do. "Quick to listen, Mandy. Slow to become angry."

So it's time to fess up to some dishonesty in my life. It's a start. One step at a time. Confession is good for the soul...or so I hear. I don't do it a lot.

When my boss told me she could tell I'd been losing weight and working out, I didn't tell her I haven't worked out in well over 2 months. I didn't tell her I've been eating more junk food than ever. I didn't tell her it was just the dark wash jeans (this was on a Casual Friday) that were sucking me in and making it hard for me to breathe. I thanked her and acted honored that someone would *finally* notice all my hard work.

My co-worker asked me when my wedding date was and as I told her, a customer overheard the conversation. She asked where we were getting married and when I responded, "New Mexico", she said, "Oh I'd love for my daughter to do a destination wedding in Mexico. Though I do hear it's a bit dangerous these days. You be careful." I just said nodded and smiled. I walked away without correcting her because I didn't want to get into explaining it was in NEW Mexico and yes, I know that's very far from here and seems random, but that is where I was raised, etc. Believe me, I have had that conversation A LOT and I just didn't have the energy for it.

Kory asked me if I had ever been to a certain type of event before. I told him I had. He asked when and as I started to explain, I quickly realized I had never been to one, only heard of it. Instead of saying that to him, I tried to make up this story about one time when I was younger and we went to this event and it turned out to be almost just like what he asked me about...and like 4 minutes into the story, he said, "So you've never been. Right?" I couldn't just admit that I was wrong, I tried to cover up for it and even started making up a story to do so. Why? I have no need to impress Kory. He wasn't going to look down on me for never attending said event. It was just silly.

So, there you have it. I can't explain exactly why I acted that way in those situations, but for the most part, it's because I've got in the habit of not being fully honest. I think laziness and the need to impress are part of it, but it's also just a habit. So I'll begin today working hard to be more honest with other people. I just hope no one asks if I like what they're wearing today because I've been known to flat out lie about that :)