Sunday, February 17, 2013

True or False?

Let's play a game...

Which of the following are true since my last blog post?


Nick and I decided living for free in a three story house on the lake in Horseshoe Bay was not the answer for us. We moved back to Austin, live in a little one bedroom apartment, pay rent, and could not be happier with the change. 

Before moving back, I accepted a job working in Cedar Park, commuted back and forth everyday until mid-October when our apartment came available, was given the chance to return to my old job that I left for the potentially better new job in Cedar Park, quit new job, returned to old job, and old job is now better than ever, including a pay raise. 

My wonderful husband, Nick, shut down his personal training business of three years, quit his personal training job at UT, and now works in commercial real estate, a business that he had absolutely zero prior knowledge of or work experience in.


As shocking as it may be, all of the above are TRUE.

I could not have planned or predicted the last six months of my life, even if I had tried. And believe me, I tried.

Planning is what I do. My planner is one of my most valuable possessions. I take it everywhere with me. Literally. I'm that person that reads every word on agendas, and takes scheduling very seriously. If I have any sort of appointment (work, personal, medical, religious, romantic, educational, musical, familial, etc.), it goes in my planner.

As much as I love to be in control of my schedule and know way in advance what is expected of me, where we will be, what we will do, who will be there, what we need to wear, and when we need to be there...

I am so grateful for the things that have happened, to have a loving Heavenly Father who is truly in control, and to know that His plans are exactly what I need. Though I may try to lay a plan for my life, I know that in the end, Heavenly Father is in control, and if I will just let go and have faith, all will be well.

Friday, August 31, 2012

Life at the Lake, Part 2

We have an awesome dog. We've known this since we first met her back in April 2011. Kona is a German Shorthaired Pointer: a hunting dog. However, not only is she a hunting dog, but apparently...

She is also a fishing dog!

Nick was throwing a tennis ball for her to fetch in the lake, and instead of bringing back the ball, she brought back a giant fish. 


"Look what I did!"

Yes, the fish was still alive. German Shorthaired Pointers are known for having "soft mouths" when hunting, meaning they don't puncture or tear the animal, just bring it back to their owners. 

"Whoops! I forgot to bring back the tennis ball..."


My dog is cool.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Life at the Lake, Part 1

After graduation, and right before I returned for Second Term at Waldemar, Nick and I moved to "The Lake". More specifically, Lake LBJ: a beautiful, constant level lake where my family owns a house. Technically, we live in a city called Horseshoe Bay (filled mostly with retirees, or empty vacation houses), but we tell people we live in Marble Falls, since that's where the closest Wal-Mart is.

Life on the lake has been interesting. There are some major perks to our current situation. Limited expenses, beautiful view, great callings in our new ward, tons more space, the lake where both we and Kona (especially Kona) love to swim, etc. Life here is pretty good. Kona in particular is much happier with plenty of space to run and swim. A small one bedroom apartment doesn't really compare to a legitimate house on the lake. 

Or does it?

While I'm very grateful for this opportunity, and really have no room to complain, part of me desperately misses the life we left behind in Austin. Having lived in big cities all my life (Houston and Austin), the transition to living in a small town where Wal-Mart is the economic and social center of the town has been a little rough. I've pretty much made up my mind that wherever Nick and I finally end up, it needs to be a big city. I never expected that to be what I would want, but it really is.

In addition to the challenges of adjusting to small town life, I also feel a little starved for friendships. Nick and I left a large network of friends in Austin. A group we love and had grown very close to over the years. Making friends here has been tough, not because people aren't friendly, but simply because there aren't very many people. And certainly not people at a similar stage of life. Like I said earlier, most of the houses out here are filled with retirees or are empty. We both have gained a new appreciation for what a blessing it is to have not only good friends, but good friends who live near by.

Last weekend, Nick and I met a few friends from Austin in San Antonio to attend the Temple and grab some lunch. That hour long lunch at a randomly chosen restaurant provided such an emotional boost for both of us. Thanks to Tamara and Becky for helping us stay sane!

I learn more and more every day, that life has very little to do with the stuff that is in your life, and much more to do with the relationships you build and the friendships you form. I am thankful for several close friendships I have had over the years, and I ponder the experiences and memories we have made frequently. There are days when I wish I could return to certain periods in my life, surrounded by joyous friendships and happy memories. For now though, I cultivate those friendships from afar, and hopefully, will continue to grow new friendships and make new memories.

I invite anyone reading this to reach out to a friend you haven't talked to in awhile, and just let them know that you are thinking about them. It will make their day. Trust me.

So, does it compare? Small one bedroom apartment with a family of friends all around versus a beautiful, spacious, and too-good-to-be-true lake house? Both places have great blessings to offer, and I am grateful to have had the chance to experience both. I change my mind often, but as I sit here tonight, my heart longs for that one bedroom apartment in the city that I fell in love with four years ago.

Tonight, I will dream of Austin.


Sunday, April 29, 2012

Real Adults

Over the next two months, my life will dramatically change from anything I've ever known. This eminent shifting has really started to become real to me this past week. For so long, just getting through school has consumed my time and my thought. My "future" has always seemed far away, somewhere much farther down the road.As I prepare to enter my last week of Undergrad classes however, that ever distant "future" seems incredibly close. 

Thus far, most of my life has been relatively predictable and planned (perhaps with the exception of getting married at age 20, but even that wasn't entirely unexpected). I was graduated from high school, got into college, got married, and now, I prepare to be graduated from college. What makes this approaching time so thrilling, yet daunting, is the ability to now CHOOSE what I want to do, and there really isn't only one correct answer. 

I've joked a lot lately that after graduation, my husband, Nick, and I will finally be "real adults". While I said it in jest, in many ways, this statement in true. I'm gaining a greater understanding and appreciation for this powerful blessing. Life is all about choices. Sometimes these choices are really hard, sometimes really exciting, and sometimes they are both hard and exciting. As we prepare to enter our "real adulthood", I feel both the excitement and the difficulty, but I also feel gratitude that I even have the opportunity to make such choices. 

I am incredibly eager to see what the next year has in store for our family. While I don't know most of the details, I'm starting to see shapes and hints of what is to come. 

And it is going to be good...

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

This is My Creed

"This is My Creed--

To live each day as though I may never see the morrow come; to be strict with myself, but patient and lenient with others; to give the advantage, but never ask for it; to be kind to all, but kinder to the less fortunate; to respect all honest employment; to remember that my life is made easier and better by the service of others and to be grateful.

To be tolerant and never arrogant; to treat all men with equal courtesy; to be true to my own in all things; to make as much as I can of my strength and the day's oppourtunity; and to meet disappointment without resentment.

To be friendly and helpful whenever possible; to do without display of temper of bitterness, all that fair conduct demands, and to keep my money free from the cunning or the shame of a hard bargain; to govern my actions so that I may fear neither reproach nor misunderstanding, nor words of malice or envy, and to maintain at whatever temporary cost, my own self respect.

This is my creed and my philosophy. I have failed it often and shall fail it many times again; but by these teachings I have lived to the best of my ability; laughed often, loved, suffered, grieved, found consolation, and have prospered. By friendships I have been enriched, and the home I have built has been happy."


I have heard "My Creed" read at the end of every summer at Waldemar since 1999. In 2008, I had the absolute honor of being the counselor chosen to recite "My Creed" at the Ideal Waldemar Girl ceremony. Even as a young girl, the words resonated with me in a way that I didn't really understand. Something about them rang true in my soul.

As the years have gone on, my understanding of "My Creed" has grown and deepened in ways that I brings such words as, "gratitude", "purpose", and "truth" to my mind. I have often said that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and my time spent at Waldemar have shaped me into the woman I am today. I feel amazingly blessed to have had the chance to grow up with both of these influences in my life. The only thing I can think of to do to try and repay such blessings is to do my absolute best to be the most well rounded, loving, and faithful daughter of God that I can be.

This is my creed.