Relaxing Weekend

This weekend was a welcome relief of rest and recuperation. I have been going non-stop for 2 weeks, as I faced several deadlines at work. When you work 60-70 hour work weeks (and especially 2 in a row), you realize just how much you need sleep and rest. But thankfully I survived the craziness and was able to get some rest this weekend.

Friday night I built a fire and enjoyed snuggling with my puppy; definitely a nice end to a busy week! Lately I have been frustrated with my apartment and have even contemplated moving. I think there is something wrong with my heater, because my bedroom doesn't actually get heat, and my electricity bills have quadrupled since November. Unfortunately, my concerns over a high electricity bill do not put me at the top of the maintenance priority list, so I will have to wait to find out what is going on. And Thursday night I came home to a leaking window. I do have to say though, my fireplace is one of the best features of my apartment! I know I can get a fireplace in a different apartment, but probably not for the same rent/good location. Who knows. We'll wait out the electricity investigation and then make some decisions...

Saturday I was able to catch up on cleaning, laundry, and errands. With my crazy schedule, several things had been neglected, so it was nice to get things back in order. And I finally have food in my fridge! Haha. I was also able to have coffee with my sweet friend Sami. She is such a sweet blessing in my life, and I always enjoy our conversations. We can talk about pretty much anything, and I have never had a friend who challenged me as much as she does in my walk with the Lord. She's the friend who asks the tough questions...and I LOVE that! We are a lot alike in personality (although I would say she is much more patient and loving than I am), so it's so great to have someone who understands my struggles and weaknesses. I am so grateful God brought her into my life!

And today I enjoyed a great morning at church, then a fun lunch at Sambuca with some sweet girls in my 20s group. I have spent the afternoon reading the Word and preparing for the rest of the week. I feel so refreshed and ready for a new week! I just have to say though...can anybody tell me where the heck January went?!?!

Muscles, and Hammers, and Drills...Oh My!

Yesterday, Laura and I decided to take an excursion to IKEA. If you have never been to this store, you are seriously missing out on one of the finer things in life. It is row after row after row of home decoration wonder. And really, when you go...it has to be an excursion. You can't just get in and get out. You have to make a trip of it. So Laura and I did just that. Sadly, we did not take any pictures at IKEA...we were too focused. LOL.


Laura got a new coffee table, and I got some fun shelves and picture frames for my dining room. We decided to try our hand at assembly. So we pulled out the tools...hammers, screwdrivers, anchors, measuring tapes, levels, and power drills. If we do say so ourselves...we are quite the handy women ;)




Who needs a boy when you have a power drill of your own? Haha- jk ;)

Home Sweet Home

At last! I have finished most of my unpacking, and most things are in their place. It's still a work in progress, but the bulk is done for now and the rest will just be finishing touches for another time. So here it is: my new place!

Living Room

With one of my favorite features- the fireplace! My windows overlook the golf course, which is fun. Sasha definitely enjoys watching the golfers.

Kitchen

Tons of cabinet and counter space, which is so nice.





My Room

The largest room I have had ever in my life...and I don't have to share with Sasha's kennel anymore! Haha.

Ummm...and check out the massive closet! Oh, and then there's my bathroom (middle) and the guest bathroom (right)- I know you are fascinated at this point- lol.

Unfinished Dining Room

Design Dilemma #1: There are 2 massive blank walls (can't really tell in this picture) that I am struggling to know what to do with. The large space is nice, but I don't know what to do with all that blank wall...any thoughts?

Sasha's Room/Office/Scrapbook&Craft Room/Guest Bedroom

Design Dilemma #2: This is a multi-functional room (as indicated by the title- lol). This will probably be the last thing I tackle and probably won't be the prettiest room, but I am determined to make it functional :)

Garage

Oh yeah! How could I forget where Peabody lives? (Peabody is the name of my car...long story). This is another favorite feature.

Come visit me...you are welcome anytime! :)

Moving In and Getting Settled

This past weekend, I moved into my new apartment! I had such amazing help- my parents came into town to lend a hand, and my brother and his friends lent their muscles and servant's hearts to help get me moved in. Everything went so smoothly- God held off the rain, it didn't take as long as we had expected, and I even got the comment that I "really didn't have that much stuff." Haha. That's definitely a first. Maybe they were just trying to be nice...


I wish I was writing a post to show you my new place....but alas, I am not. Sigh. This whole unpacking business is for the birds, and frankly, too much like work! But I am working away just as quickly as I can and promise to post pics once everything is in its place :)



When I was in the process of finding a new apartment, I had promised Sasha that I would buy her a new bed for our new place. And as promised (as though my dog knows the difference), I bought her one. However, she didn't seem to know what it was, and didn't seem very interested in it. I was really disappointed, because I had all these fun thoughts of her lounging by the fireplace on her nice new bed. Haha. Even when I tried to lure her onto the bed, she didn't seem to take to it. But today, after several days of ignoring it, she finally made herself comfortable!




On a random note, my dog fights me every time it's time to go into her kennel whenever I leave. I usually have to lure her in with a treat, mostly to just save me time and from running around my apartment chasing her in my work clothes. Yet lately, she has been going into her kennel on her own, when I am not leaving, but just hanging out in the apartment. I was busy unpacking today and walked into the room to find this:





How is this in any way normal??? Lol! Oh Sasha...gotta love her.

My sweet friend Laura came over last night to help me with some unpacking. Actually, it was more like I walked back and forth moving things here and there, and she was sweet enough to follow me and keep me company. I was super excited, because she had brought me housewarming presents! Check out the fun gifts she gave me:




Laura said that I needed serving dishes for all of the fun parties I am going to have in my new apartment! I LOVE my new 3-tier serving dish!

She also brought me these fun little glass serving cups. We talked about putting fun desserts in them, and I decided to make Jell-O...LOL. I had a craving, don't judge. And Laura- yes, I did wash these before I used them :) Thanks for my fun (and thoughtful) gifts! Tonya came over today to see my new apartment, and it was a good time catching up with her.

I am so grateful for this weekend, and am really enjoying the rain outside! Whenever we have huge thunderstorms like we are having now, it reminds me of how awesome our God is! How cool is He to put on such a wonderful display of power and strength. I spent some time today watching the light show, resting in the awesome presence of my God. And the rain always make me feel peaceful. One of my most favorite things is to fall asleep to the rain...so I am off to do just that. Good night everyone!

Whirlwind Week

Wow. I just caught my breath after such a whirlwind week! As crazy as it was, and despite the fact I am utterly exhausted…part of me is strangely energized by the fact that I had one of the busiest weeks I have had in a really long time. And that’s a really good thing, something I am very grateful for, considering how long I have been without activity. But boy was it insane!

I started things off well, by heading to Pine Cove for the Woodcreek Women’s Retreat. This was such an awesome weekend! I know I have mentioned how much I love my church before, but I was so grateful for the opportunity to spend a restful weekend with such beautiful women of God. The theme of the weekend was “Praising God in Every Season,” so it was such a blessing for me at this time in my life. From car-ride sing-alongs with Lindsey, to playing catch phrase in the cabin, to having a dance party in our pajamas with all of the women of the church, to standing by the lake in awe of His wonder…it was an awesome weekend! I got to spend the weekend praising God, relaxing, enjoying His beautiful creation, and just hanging out with the sweet girls in the 20s group. It was most definitely a “retreat” for me, and the perfect way to start all the new things in my life.

Here is a picture of the 20s group of girls who were at the retreat:



As soon as I got back into town, I dove right into preparing for my licensing exam. I spent pretty much every waking moment preparing. I spent 3 days in a prep course, trying to learn the ins and outs of the insurance business. Let me just say that I had awful flashbacks to my college days lol. It was a massive amount of information in a short period of time. I was definitely nervous to take my exam this morning, to say the least. But God was SO GOOD, and I passed my exam!!! Just barely (I made it by the skin of my nose!), but I passed the first time. I have never been so happy to make a C in my life! So I am now official. I am a licensed General Lines Property & Casualty Insurance Agent in the state of Texas. I do have to say that it was a complete miracle from God, considering my lack of preparation time, and lack of knowledge on the subject. But I was able to walk into my new office with my head held high, because I passed! And I can now sell you personal or commercial lines of insurance- haha. (Well, I actually have to send my test scores and fingerprints to TDI, and then they will issue me a license. Details).



Since I have been in a classroom all week, or holed away studying, I haven’t had a chance to set up my new office. So I will spend the rest of the week doing that. Well, perhaps I should be fair and say that I have a new cube. LOL. It’s actually a nice little cube…a corner cube in fact- hehe. But it’s mine, and I couldn’t be more excited! I am trying to brainstorm on ways to personalize my new space…if you have any suggestions, let me know. I will spend a lot of time in the cube, and my boss wants me to personalize it. I will try to grab a picture when I have time…because you care so much.

And as if things weren’t crazy enough, in the midst of all retreat, my exam, starting a new job…I am in the midst of packing because I move this weekend! My new lease officially started yesterday, and I actually went by to see my new apartment during lunch today. It was a fun feeling to walk in the door and know that I live there now. My parents are coming into town and I have recruited some of my brother's friends to help. It will be a busy weekend, but I am excited to finally move!

Movin on Up...To a Deluxe Apartment in the Sky

Today I signed a lease for my new apartment! I can't tell you how absolutely EXCITED I am about this. I have been "moving" for 4 months- lol. No really, I have. I gave my 60 day notice with a plan to move out at the end of December. But when I lost my job and found myself without another to replace it, I was forced to go month to month on my lease. Each month I would give my apartment a new move-out date...each month thinking that within the next 30 days I would be moving. Sigh. And the commute the past 10 weeks with the temp job has been murder. I never want to live more than 20 minutes away from anything again- lol. This morning my usual 50 minute commute took me 1 1/2 hours because of a bad accident. I am more than ready to move closer to work. I will still face traffic, but I won't have to go as far! It's closer to work, BSF, (and Laura!) and it's not any farther from my church.

And now I get to move for real! I have to say that I absolutely LOVE my new apartment. It is much larger than my current apartment. It's in a great location, close to major shopping and restaurants, yet tucked away next to a golf course. I just have to dote a little on my apartment because I am super excited...it has a direct-access garage (which means no neighbor below me), it is on an outside wall (which means one less neighbor beside me), it has a fireplace, and I even got to splurge for a second bedroom! I no longer have to share my room with Sasha...she gets her own room- lol. Her massive kennel will no longer crowd my personal space. I plan to make "Sasha's Room" a multi-function study/scrapbook and craft room/guest bedroom. And since there is a second bathroom, no one has to go into my bedroom to get to one...which is a really nice bonus.

Here are a few pictures of my new home. As soon as I get my keys and move in, I will make sure to show you inside:

Ok. Enough doting. I am just so grateful for how God has provided for such a fun place to live. Because it is only from His hand that I was even able to sign a lease today. My parents will come up next weekend, and my brother has recruited some of his friends to help make the move across town. I am SO excited and can't wait! Thank you, Lord, for sweet blessings!

A Battle of Epic Proportions

Today was such a beautiful day outside! The weather was perfect, so I decided to open up my windows to let the sunshine and cool breeze in. I opened up the back door to my patio so Sasha could enjoy the nice day too. I was enjoying the day, studying a little bit of Exodus, basically minding my own business. I was unaware of the battle that was brewing...[enter Jaws theme music for dramatic effect]

Sasha had already come inside and was taking a nap at my feet, when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the first one. A wasp flew into my living room and started buzzing around. Of course, Sasha was up and on the prowl. While I was keeping an eye on where it was heading (and making sure Sasha wasn't getting stung), I started willing it to fly back outside, figuring it would eventually. And then I noticed the next one. Another wasp had flown into my living room. Now I had a situation on my hands. For those of you who don't know me, I confess I have a terrible fear of pretty much any and all insects. Large flying insects with stingers are at the top of the list. Sasha was going crazy because now she had 2 flying toys to play with! It offered a little more of a challenge for her since they weren't exactly flying in unison. And my heart started beating a little bit faster as I honestly just started praying that God would suck them back outside.

I was trying to get Sasha to leave them alone (because the last thing I needed was for her to eat one, get stung, and have some awful allergic reaction), when all of a sudden my heart stopped. I now had 3 wasps flying around my apartment. They were on the attack! I grabbed the nearest blanket to offer some sort of shield for myself, grabbed Sasha by the collar and ran to the bedroom. (And just so you know...the situation was far from funny at the time. Remember- major fear of large flying insects with stingers...now multiplied by 3). While I was hiding in my bedroom, I realized that my back door was still open. For anyone else who wouldn't have been so bothered by this situation, the wasps probably would have made their way back to the outside world and gone about their merry way. Not so in Erin-world. I peeked my head out of the bedroom door just to make sure...and you guessed it. There were now 4. I slammed the door and decided I needed to get a grip before the entire wasp population took up residence in my apartment. And so the battle began...

The first obstacle I had to overcome was the fact that I had to make it across the apartment to the kitchen, where the wasp/hornet spray resided. I grabbed my blanket/shield and ran for my life. All the time by brain is thinking a million things at once. I can't believe I have 4 wasps flying in my apartment. I really hope I am not allergic. Oh my gosh, I really hope I don't get stung. The odds don't seem to be in my favor. I really hope I have wasp/hornet spray. Remember when we had that invasion of killer bees? I wonder if killer wasps exist...Those are wasps right? Maybe the ant/roach spray will work. They're all toxic to bugs right? I can't believe I am doing this. I really wish I had a boy right now. Will I ever grow out of this fear? If people could see me now, oh my gosh. If people could know what is running through my mind, they would think I am nuts. I am officially crazy. Ok. Seriously. Suck it up. Spray the wasps. If I spray one, will the others attack? What if they don't die right away? Please just fly outside so I don't have to do this. I really feel like a sissy girl right now. I really just want to run out of the door and never come back. The wasps can have the apartment. I wasn't really attached to it anyway. Am I screaming? Ok. Seriously for real this time. I can do this. I can't do this. Grow up. Just spray the darn things.

The battle waged until there were 4 casualties, the back door was secure, and my heart stopped racing. I have to say that I happen to have excellent aim! And I highly recommend Raid Wasp and Hornet Killer Spray. It sprays up to 22 feet (which is probably the only thing that gave me courage to face the vicious beasts...the fact that I could attack from a distance), and it only takes one hit to make those suckers drop to their death. I won the battle. And lived to tell the tale...

Mess...or Masterpiece?

Every year, for the past 23 years, my mom has made a special birthday cake for my dad. A made-from-scratch, double-layer German Chocolate Cake. Every year. And for the majority of those years, I have asked my mom to make me this very same cake for my birthday. And every year, she has refused to make it more than once a year. Because it's made from scratch, it is an all-day baking process that she will only commit to once a year. And for some reason, my dad takes precidence over mine. I have pulled out all the arguments...I'm her daughter and she loves me and says she will make whatever cake I want (unless I ask for German Chocolate cake), my birthday is 6 months after my dad's...all to no avail.  So I only get this blessed cake once a year on my dad's birthday.

This year was the first year I did not get to enjoy my most favorite cake. Growing up and moving away from home stinks sometimes. So I have had an intense craving for this glorious cake. And today, I woke up in a baking mood and decided today was going to be the day I baked German Chocolate Cake for myself. From scratch. All by myself. Now, to those of you who know me, you have to be laughing at this point. Me? Bake? Ha. I definitely fair better when I get in that rare baking mood, but let's be honest...I have a lot of work before I come close to resembling Susie Homemaker. I usually end up making more of a mess than anything else. Haha. It's very sad. But at least I am honest with myself. Baking is just not my gift. And for that reason, I decided to document this "first." Details and pictures follow. You can determine whether I ended up with a mess...or a masterpiece.

First, I gathered all the necessary ingredients. Good start. And then I commenced to create this sucker...lots of mixing, pouring, melting, folding, etc. It's like a science project.

And no baking adventure would be complete without the necessary outfit! (Lady bug ruffled apron courtesy of a former roommate...it's from Spain!) You know you're jealous you can't bake in such style...

Remember when I said I usually end up making more of a mess than anything else? Poor Sasha was my first victim. The coffeemaker, toaster, floor, and blender followed.

"Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form." ?!?!? Eggs are not supposed to form peaks. That's unnatural. And it's a ridiculously long process.

My mess :)  Don't they say that messy cooks/bakers are the best?

My masterpiece!

It turned out to be a fun process. What else was I going to do on a Saturday? Haha. It looks good...it tastes good. And I get to enjoy my most favorite cake. Now I am off to go clean my mess....