Finally catching up!

I realize that I'm a bit behind in my picture challenge and with updates in general.  Things have been pretty busy around here lately.  On Monday, we had a terrible storm in Nashville.  Tornado warnings, lots of rain, lightning and hail, and LOTS of wind!!  Around 1:50pm we got the signal to evacuate the building and get the students to the basement.  Luckily, all of them complied and went willingly so that was good.  It was interesting because I did have to console a few students who were really nervous about the storm.  And I had to maintain my cool.  I wasn't ever really scared, but I did get nervous at one point because the sky outside the building was literally greenish/black.  And the wind was a little crazy.  The kids were in the basement for about 30 minutes or so before we were able to give the "all clear" for them to go back to their rooms. 

Tuesday was a day of rest for me. I took the day off from work.  Tim and I had lots of wedding things we needed to get done and it worked out really well since most of the people we met with can really only meet during the day. So between my work schedule and his class schedule it just worked out for the best.  We went to another rental vendor company and we had a MUCH BETTER experience this go around.  I really enjoyed the girl we worked with and she really knew her stuff.  Everything at this place was much nicer and I felt really good about our choices.  It made me excited to plan the wedding even more!  I was able to see exactly what the linens would look like on the tables w/ the decor and china and it really helped me SEE what I had been thinking all along.  I should pat myself on the back--it looks pretty darn good if I do say so myself! :)  Although, with that came the need for us to create a massive to-do list and get all sorts of details sorted out.  And you can tell that it's going to be a process, but we have a really good idea of what direction we're heading!

Wednesday proved to be a busy day at work.  Lots of finishing up paperwork, preparing for a Strengths breakfast presentation, and organizing/cleaning off my desk.  That was by far the highlight of the afternoon--seeing the top of my desk for the first time since like January!!!!  Its a great feeling. I had several judicial meetings with students as well and a couple of 1:1 meetings with my RAs.  Yay!  Wednesday night, we went over to Tim's Mom's place for dinner and to see her for a bit.  And then it was off to Starbucks to do some serious wedding talk/planning without interruptions. Now we just have to get through April and the start of May and we'll be sittin' pretty! :)

Today (Thursday) has been a pretty decent day. I had a presentation for the Strengths Team this morning at a breakfast.  I got to talk about executing strengths and how we utilize them in our daily lives and how to balance your work load.  I do feel that there has been some tension and stress this week, but that's to be expected with seasons of change.  But it's nothing that we can't handle!  God doesn't give us more than we can handle, although sometimes we wonder if God understands how much is on our plate.  But it's really his reminder to TRUST him and to SEEK him in order to get through the hard stuff.  Patience is a very hard thing to learn and its a lot easier said than done.  If we could all learn a little more patience and seek God on a more individual/ daily basis, instead of "just when we need him" then you do gain a sense of control on things because God is in control. 

Day 5: A picture of your favorite memory
Wow--this was hard for me to choose. I have several favorite memories.  But, I'll choose to go with my graduation day for my Masters Degree in Educational Leadership in Higher Education from VSU.  I was pretty dang proud of myself for making it through grad school with a 4.0 GPA and just proving to myself that I could do it.  It was 2 years of hard work that definitely paid off in the end! I'm so glad that I did that. And college in general just brings back a lot of good memories--so it encompasses my entire college career :)

Day 6: A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day.
This was tough.. but as I thought about it, I decided that trading places w/ Brian McCann from the Atlanta Braves would be what I would do.  I always wanted to be a catcher, but my knees weren't built for catching--only pitching.  And I'm a big baseball fan, so who wouldn't want to be a part of a Major League baseball team?!  :)  Love me some Braves baseball!!!!! (BUT.... I'm learning to like the Boston Red Sox too!...slowly).  My fiance and his family are from the New England area and they are big Red Sox fans, so I'm trying to do my best and support them too :)  Oh the things we do for love!!!

And finally.. today... Day 7:  picture of your most treasured item.

This is my engagement ring that Timmy gave me.  I absolutely LOVE it!!!  It's exactly what I wanted and I didn't have to coach him too much with it.  It's very simple--yet classic and elegant.  Timeless.  January 29, 2011 was the most perfect day in our lives and the day our lives would start to mesh into one.  I can't imagine my life without Tim in it and I'm very blessed that God brought us together.  God does amazing things for you when you least expect it!  Now we're just waiting 205 days until the big I DO day!!! :)