I wish I would have known then what I know now...

Ok for those of you who dont know I teach high school Sunday school at church and have lately been trying to push the point that their elders really do have some good advice to give. I promised each week I would give them a little nugget of life wisdom...and this is where you come in. I have some of my own to share but I am wondering....

What do you wish someone would have told you back then that would have helped you out in life?
Or maybe what is something that someone did tell you that you wish you would have listened to?

Please, these girls need good advice and I would love to hear what you have to say :)!! Thanks.

Fun Food...

Ok, so I have seen Natalie post quite a few cute little baking ideas and decided to give one a try. However, I believe in the picture she posted it used muffin tops for the buns, but i decided to go with simple sugar cookies due to the time and convenience factors.

I have included a picture below...they were a huge hit at the bar-b-cue!

I also took with me ice cream sandwiches. I got this idea out of Cosmo, and it was such an excellent idea. This dessert is super simple and oh so Delicious!! I simply took vanilla ice cream, let it cool for about 20 minutes till I could spread it on a cookie, topped it with another cookie, and rolled the sides in chocolate sprinkles. Just make sure you give them about 2 hours to freeze before serving.

Down Range

My wonderful husband gave me a gun for my wedding present back in October, but since he has had such a busy schedule I've been unable to shoot the gun since. However, this weekend was all "us" time and we spent this morning out in the wash shooting at targets. Lets just say hes got an up on me with all his training, but I didnt do too shabby either. He had me doing tactical drills and all in case Im ever somewhere and encounter a threat! Hes the best husband ever, and I know he cares more about my safety than most other things, so it was really fun that he spent his Saturday equipping me with the necessary skills. This blog is more representative of my life than anyone could possibly realize...and well that makes me laugh.

Here we are in our ear protection ready to fight :)!!

Manfax

Why is it that when we buy a car we require that the dealer show us the carfax, but when we get married we don’t ask for the manfax up front?
Again, don’t get me wrong, I love my husband more than anything, but the more I get to know him, the more I realize how many little things I didn’t realize I was signing up for when I said I do. I wouldn’t change a thing, in fact he makes me laugh constantly and is the person that provides the majority of the material for my blog.
However, this morning we were sleeping in and all the sudden I heard the strangest sound. Aaron was sitting up and facing the other wall, and though it looked like he was rubbing his face, it sounded like he was messing with his watch. Oh yeah, eye squeak. If I ever test drove a car that sounded like that, you know I would be leaving it right there on the lot. Apparently the sound is due to an accident that happened when he belonged to his previous owners (my inlaws). Now maybe this particular revelation is not a non negotiable, but it got me to thinking….what else are married people faced with post “I do” that they were never privileged to information about prior?
I mean…Im just askin…

9 years....

For those of you who have known me for any time at all you know that my husband has been in my life for quite a long time....9 years to be exact.

Unfortunately I am a week late in posting this, but on May 29th we celebrated our nine years by spending the day together up on Mt. Lemmon here in Tucson.

Meeting him could be the reason that I have such an amazing heart for camp ministry, because it is continually where I find my Lord, as well as where I found the man of my dreams. We did a little reminiscing about our past and found a number of humorous keep sakes. Lets say I was more than a bit obsessed. I pretty much kept everything he ever touched! haha! Glad we finally got married because that would be really awkward to have otherwise :)!!

I still cant believe it has been this long since I so naively flirted with the basketball ref at church camp. Thankfully he was far more tuned into Gods will at that point and was certain from that moment on that we would be married one day. It may have taken us a long time to get to the alter, but it was all in Gods plan and timing.

I am so blessed to have a man who prays over our marriage daily, and continually tells me how blessed he feels to have me as a wife. It doesnt matter if he puts in 80 hours a week at work, he never even has to be asked to take out the trash or help with the dishes. And Lord bless his soul that he never makes me clean the bathroom, because he know just how much I hate to do so. He also never misses an opportunity to serve anyone even if that means moving 3000 lbs. of drinks from one place to another...thats right 3000 lbs.

He is the most intelligent man that I have ever known, and although he gives me a hard time when it comes to my vocabulary, he has never once made me feel inferior to him. He also never seeks out any credit, although he more than deserves to get recognized for all that he does for his family, church, and country.

He pays attention to every word spoken, and never misses a chance to key in on the small details that make me feel so special. Not to mention he always lets me choose what radio station to listen to or what to watch, he takes me on suprise dates to Chilis...which I LOVE!! and the poor man has been working on my painting project for the last 8 months. There is so much more to say about him...but for now...He is far more than I deserve, and more than I could have dreamed.

I have included some pics from our trip to the mountain...I know you may get confused because there is so much green...but we really are still in Tucson!!

Things I am currently OBSESSED with...

1. Gilmore Girls, I literally plan my day around this show, pathetic I know, but thats what happens when you dont have DVR and you're too cheap to buy!

2. Cook Yourself Thin, this is another TV show which sadly is on at the same time as Gilmore Girls, but it is worth the flip between, they show you how to cut every day meal calories by like half....it is amazing. If anyone has read the book, let me know if its worth buying!

3. Otter Pops, I know Natalie already mentioned Popsicles on her page, but seriously, they really are the best dessert for a summer day with the smallest amount of calories. These are those ones you used to have as a kid! Oh and they only have 20 calories!!

4. Free to Be Me, by Francesca Battistelli

5. Whatever It Is, by the Zac Brown Band

(Please invest some money and download these two songs, AMAZING)

6. Running as fast as my husband...which is like a mile and a half in 10 min. HOLY MOLY!! I ran like .4 of a mile at his speed the other day and thought I was going to pass out! But I am not giving up....Im going to out run him one day, even if its literally the last thing I do. (which it might be at this speed, my poor heart!! )

Check out these 6 things, and I promise your day will improve :)!! Well the first 5 anyway, maybe not the running thing :)!!

Life News

I have a huge praise report!! We have been visiting a church in Tucson since we got married, and finally joined this past weekend! The whole church family was so receptive to us, and have been so great to include us in everything! I met a couple of girls near my age too, I think we're going to hang out this weekend! I know that is such a small thing, but it would be huge to have friends here. I miss girl time.
I have been helping teach high school girls Sunday School, and will soon be leading out in that area, as the other girls graduate and move on. They have even asked me to attend three camps with them this summer...and well we know I LOVE CAMP :)!! In fact the church actually own their own camp up on a mountain here in Tucson. I havent been up there to visit, but am anxious to see it and suggest ways on how to grow it ;)!!
Aaron, who tends to be someone who stays out of the spot light is quickly becoming a huge favorite of everyone at church. He offered up his services to take the youth repelling on the mountain and even began talks about starting a small group with the music minister for those of us married couples who live way out here in the boonies :)!!
He is such an amazing husband who continues to surprise me daily at how selfless he is!