Our Weekend Getaway

Is it just me, or does it seem like everyone around town is having babies?!  (I really think it is just the age I am, because a few years ago everyone got engaged which leads to lots of weddings, and now babies).  Whatever the case is, I am thrilled for all those who are expecting or enjoying their brand new little ones, but just in case anyone's wondering (which no one is, I'm sure), our plans are to wait a few more years!  We love our little family:  me, Tyler, and Daisy the dog.  And if we had little ones right now, how could we have gone on our awesome weekend vacation last week?!

Seriously, Chicago may be one of my favorite cities to visit.  I mean, I've only been twice now, but I haven't been disappointed!  We took the train from Hammond to Chicago, which was a lovely and stress-free trip (unlike flying and having to deal with security, lay overs, baggage claim, etc.).  We arrived 15 min. before departure, walked on the train, picked our seats, placed our luggage in the overhead compartment, pulled out the leg rest, and enjoyed the ride.  We ate dinner in the dining car (Tyler got a steak, of course; I got baked chicken with veggies) which was delicious, and then enjoyed our audio books and roomy seats' leg rests for the rest of the evening.  We arrived around 10 the next morning in the Windy City, and walked into Union Station with our bags in hand straight to the McDonald's to eat hot cakes and sausage.  Yum!

We were fortunate enough to check in to our hotel early (we were so glad for showers!), and then headed off to see the city.  We were in walking distance to downtown, and decided that we'd take advantage of the mid-70 degree temperatures (that the Chicago natives were complaining about) and walk to Willis Tower.  The wait at Willis tower was over an hour and a half, and I didn't want to waste my day waiting for the elevator (I mean, literally).  So, we caught a bus (with our nifty and affordable unlimited CTA passes) and headed over to Navy Pier.  We enjoyed the ferris wheel, the views of Lake Michigan, fudge, and the souvenir shops there.  It's just a fun place to go, and did I mention how nice the weather was?!  Didn't get to go on a cruise around the city like we'd planned, but we'll save it for our next trip.  After a nice nap at the hotel, we went to eat at Cafe Ciao a few blocks from our hotel.  It was cute, quaint, and DELICIOUS.  I will go back next time I'm in town.  We were running a little late for our NKOTBSB concert, and we opted to walk the "approximately 8 blocks" from Cafe Ciao to the United Center instead of catching the bus.  Looking back, I don't know why we chose option A...it was a long way.  We made it inside and found our seats just before Jordin Sparks took the stage.  Then the squealing began and New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys made their grand entrance and put on a great and entertaining concert.  We finally made it back to the hotel after midnight after some public transportation fiasco:  day 1 complete.  Needless to say, we crashed and decided to sleep in the next day.

We woke up Sunday morning and packed up our things to head out for our last day.  We were thrilled to discover how easy it was to rent a storage locker at the train station, and we stored our bags there for the day.  We spent the entire day at the Museum of Science and Industry, and could have spent another day there if we had more time.  It was phenomenal.  It was a mixture of untouchable exhibits as well as hands-on discovery activities pertaining to the exhibits.  We did the Omnimax thing and went inside of a tornado, wandered through the space exhibits with actual capsules that had housed astronauts in space, looked down at a capture U-Boat and saw inside one of the torpedoes, and the list goes on and on.  It was three stories of great science and history exhibits, and I don't think we saw but half of them.  We can't wait to bring our niece and nephew with us when they're a little older and can enjoy it with us!  :)

We got back downtown that evening and went back to Union Station to get our bags and eat before leaving at 8PM.  It was a smooth and easy ride, and we arrived back in Hammond just after lunch the next day.  The first thing I wanted was a Coke from Sonic (no Sonic + no Coke= Chicago) :(  Can't wait to go back and enjoy more of the city sights!  It was definitely a wonderful weekend getaway!

Our "need" for idols

Don't you just love starting off the day soaking up some truth from God's word?  This morning I was reading about Sarah and Hagar and Abraham in Genesis 16 and in Genesis 21.  The current study that I'm using is entitled "No Other Gods" by Kelly Minter and it's about confronting our modern-day idols and acknowledging God as the one true god.  It's been fantastic so far.  The chapter I'm currently reading  is all about why we have idols.  Today I read that many of us run to idols (defined in this book as "anything functioning as "God" in our lives") because we believe that they will bring us what we need.  Sarah "needed" a child, which back then was pretty important.  Sarah's desire to build her family was so great that she took things into her own hands when she perceived that God wasn't coming through for her.  So, she gave her servant Hagar to her husband so that she would bear a child for him.  Sarah decided to depend on Hagar (her functioning idol here) to fulfill her need.  This was Sarah's way, not God's way...Ugly things happened (Hagar does have a son, Ishmael), and Sarah ends of hating Hagar.  Lots of people were hurt, and it was just an all-around nasty situation.

Now, God's way...God fulfilled his promise to give Sarah and Abraham a child.  God's plan didn't involve a servant girl, and it didn't involve heartbreak and hurt.  "At the very time God had promised them" (21:2) Isaac was born, and Sarah and Abraham finally became parents.  God hadn't forgotten Sarah's need, and God didn't neglect to keep his promise.  But when we are waiting on God, it requires a little faith.  Sometimes it requires a lot of faith, the longer we wait.  However, God's plans for us are not to harm us.  God keeps his promises because God loves us.  

So instead of depending on ourselves, our friends, our jobs, our money, or whatever else is functioning as our idol in our time of waiting, let's just depend on God.  He's got the answers, and He will always come through- at the exact moment that is best.  I love that song by Jesus Culture that says "when the oceans rage, I don't have to be afraid, because Your love never fails."

Just coming out of a time of waiting, I can see now how God's plan and God's timing really are better than my own.  I hope that season of my life will always be a reminder of God's faithfulness even when the wait is hard.  Praying for some friends this morning who are waiting on their adoption from overseas.  I have a friend who is waiting for a job, just like I was.  My husband is waiting for classes to be offered so that he can finally graduate and be done with college.  Most of us are probably in some sort of waiting room.  I hope that we can be patient and faithful as we wait on the One who is faithful.

Ready for vacation!

Our Chicago vacation itinerary is complete!  I am so ready to get away and enjoy a fun trip with Tyler.  Here are some of the highlights of our trip: 

-Travel via Amtrak train
-Museum of Science and Industry
-Skydeck at Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower)
-Backstreet Boys/New Kids on the Block concert
-Navy Pier
-Sightseeing cruise on Lake Michigan
-Moosejaw (for Tyler)
-Magnificent Mile Shopping/Sightseeing
-Millennium Park

Don't you wish you could come with us?!  It's going to be so much fun...plus the highs (temp.) are supposed to be in the 70's (a nice break from our 95+ degree weather).  Praying that the predicted rain holds off, though!  Windy City, here we come!

New status: EMPLOYED!

Well, the day is finally here...I can say with a smile as wide as the sky that I am employed!  I go tomorrow to sign my contract , and I am thrilled!  I can't put my emotions into words!  So far, I've cried, I've jumped, I've laughed, and I've hugged my dog so hard that her eyes could have popped out!  I was leaving the cooking school this morning wondering when I'd ever hear back about a job and my phone rang and I knew I'd better pull over so that I could have this conversation while in park and not on I-12.  So, there I am sitting at Las Palmas hoping to hear good news, and I did!  I was offered the job (grade still unknown, but will be either 1st grade or upper elem (3rd, 4th, 5th) team teaching).  I'm okay with either!  I was trying not to sound too eager when she offered it to me, but I hope she could hear the excitement in my voice.  I got in touch with Tyler first and was so glad to share my good news with him, and then I reached a series of voicemails that did not make me happy.  But pretty much everyone knows now, so it's made it to my blog.  Tyler and I are celebrating tonight at Olive Garden- woohoo!  Nothing like Italian food for a good celebration!  Praise the Lord for this blessing and thank you all for your faithful prayers.  God is so good and only He can take the credit for this miracle!

For the love of "no money"

So, it's normal to be a broke college student, but once you graduate and get a real job, you're not supposed to have to worry about that anymore.  I wouldn't call myself broke, but I'd consider myself one who is on a very tight budget but very thankful not to actually be in debt.  You see, Tyler and I both have summer jobs, but mine is currently unpredictable (thank you lousy economy for keeping parents for signing their kids up for summer cooking camp) and Tyler's is too (due to lack of rain, grass isn't growing all that much).  So we decided that we really need to take a close look at our finances and budget wisely for the summer.  I visited the Dave Ramsey website this afternoon to print off a monthly cash flow/budget planning sheet to see the reality of the numbers we're dealing with for the summer or until I get a job (which I'm still awaiting a phone call from CDS).  I'll just say that I had a slightly sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I actually looked at our "worst -case-scenario-the-grass-stops-growing and kids-stop-cooking" numbers.  WAY MORE leaving the bank account than coming in, and that's all I'll say.  So I took a look at our current checking/savings balances which lifted my spirits a little bit, and then I started planning our summer budget.  We're setting aside some money that I made from teaching last year to pay the bills for the summer, and we're going to try out the cash envelope system that Dave Ramsey suggests for groceries and stuff.  So, warning to anyone who wants to invite us out for dinner or entertainment that costs us over $20 a month.  We'll have to decline, haha.  Money's not so tight that we can't have a little fun, but we're trying to be wise in such an uncertain economy.  We have a few unexpected expenses to take care of right now, and Tyler's tuition will be due before we know it.  I'd really like to keep a good cushion in savings so that maybe one day in FAR, DISTANT future (that emphasis was added mostly in case Tyler reads this), I can get a newer car or something.  Maybe even be able to pay cash for it.  I am comforted to know, however, that we can pay our bills, and God is providing us with enough to meet all our needs.  I have to remind myself too that the money we claim as our own isn't really ours'...God's entrusted it to us to live and to bless others.  What a huge responsibility, but what a great blessing that is.  So, coupons and sales papers are going to be a part of "normal life" around our house, and leftovers will happen a little more frequently.  But no matter how cautious we have to be, I'm so thankful to have a God who takes care of me and a husband who's willing to pinch pennies as needed.  This will be one of those stories that we'll tell our kids one day:  "Well, you see, back we first got married, we were pinching pennies to make ends meet...but we were young and in love, and none of that really mattered anyway..."

Snail mail, and other things that I love

Just finishing up a cup of hot tea after a warm bath (two of my favorite things), and I started thinking of all the simple things that just make me smile.  Let me share some with you, and then you can share some with me!

1.  Snail mail, specifically cute cards:  I love sending them and getting them.  Since graduating and moving back home, my roommate Rebecca and I have exchanged several, and it makes me so happy to stamp one and wait for the mail lady to pick it up or find one waiting for me when I check the mail.  (I found the absolute cutest collection of cards at Hobby Lobby.  They are from DaySpring and are called "Little Inspirations."  Cute little size, a Bible verse with each cute message, AND only 99 cents a piece!  I stocked up recently and only have one left!)
 2.  Coffee or hot tea in the morning:  Since I've been enjoying lots of mornings at home recently, I've started sitting outside on my back or front porch with my cup of coffee or tea and spending time with the Lord.  It's such a great way to start the day- Bible and journal in one hand, and a delicious hot beverage in the other!
3.  Cute clip art:  This one is a little weird, but since I've been "teaching," I'm always looking for kid-friendly clip art for newsletters and calendars, etc.  I hit the jackpot when I found this website: http://www.scrappindoodles.com/
4.  Clean rooms/clean house:  I don't necessarily enjoy the cleaning process, but the finished product is great!
5.  Organization:  Baskets, labels, binders with dividers, etc.  Anything that keeps things in their places is fun to me.  (But especially labels...I don't know why, but it makes organization even greater).
6.  Birds:  Not living birds, but bird figurines and patterns and fabric and stuff.  This "love" is fairly new.
7.  Gardening:  I'm not really a gardener, but I have what I'd like to call a small container garden that I began this spring.  Next year I'm hoping to have a small flower bed (Tyler agreed to help me with this) and plant some flowers that I can cut and display inside.
8.  Sewing:  Once again, this is new, but teaching myself to sew has saved me TONS on home decorating.  I bought fabric on sale, found tutorials online, and I've made most of my curtains, pillows, seat covers for my kitchen chairs, and recently an obi-inspired hot/cold pack holder!  I'll post a picture once I finish sewing the actual hot/cold pack.  My next project is recovering an old chair to put in my sewing room.
9.  Puppies:  No explanation needed.  My dog, Daisy, is no longer a puppy, but I love her still the same!
10.  Office supplies:  Colored pens, binder clips, post-it notes, cup holders, desk organizers...the list could go on and on.  It was nice when Tyler worked at Office Depot because he had an employee discount. 

10 is a good number to stop at, even though I could go on to 20 or so.  But I know you don't want to read a novel, just a blog entry. 

I have an official blog follower now!  Woohoo!  You can follow me and get notifications of when I update and post things and stuff.  Feel free to comment and share some things that make your heart smile!  :)