Happy Father's Day.

Happy Father's Day to the man who loved me first.

Who taught me to dance but to keep my feet on the ground.

 

Who let me move in any direction I wanted, and still managed to lead. 

Love,

Your Baby Girl

Cheers! To 4 years!

Today we celebrate our 4 year anniversary!

We will continue the celebration in Thailand with our annual picture but today, just a little bit about my love and how he loves me.

Neil makes being a wife so easy! 

 I figured out why...His love is not conditional.

 He does not love me any less if I don't do laundry,

forget to buy dog food,

buy takeout for four days in a row,

 don't workout,

if there are crafts everywhere,

when I overspend, etc.

I never feel less loved.

Ever.

What a sense of freedom in a marriage!

Don't get me wrong, I try to stay on top of things, but you know...

And so, I will spend the rest of my days trying to be the best wife for him.

AND!!! try to make being a husband easier for him :)

Cheers to 4 years!

10 days. 16 outfits. 1 carry-on.

Mission accomplished!!

I spent Sunday morning packing for Thailand.

As per Neil's suggestion, we are sharing a carry-on. 

To maximize my options, I choose items of clothing that would be versitile. I am taking 4 shorts, 4 tops, 2 dresses, 2 hats, 2 pairs of shoes, and lots of earrings, necklaces, etc.

 Here are my 14 options (plus the two dresses so thats really 16).

I may have to wash some pieces while we are there but our hotel offers that service so I'm confident I will be okay. With a few jewelry pieces and accessories, I think I will be satisfied with my options.

These items along with Neil's clothes will go in the carry-on. That adventure will be posted soon.

Happy Birthday Little Sister!

June 4th is her birthday but we celebrated at the lake this weekend. 

We went to a new place called Arkansas Bend on Lake Travis and it was beautiful!

It is also very fitting. Megan love the water and we were glad some of her friends were able to make it.

 I also brought dad his father's day gift since I may not see him. Doesn't he look adorable/

 

Happy Birthday, Mija!

Love you.

Countdown.

Let the countdown begin!

Today it is actually 18 days!

This countdown also consists of lots of planning, packing, prepping, and closing.

You see we have to pack for 10 days in Thailand and 5 weeks in D.C. each in seperate suitcases.

We will only have time to swap luggage because the day after we return from Thailand, we also leave to D.C! Also, Neil suggested we only take carryon size luggage. In theory its a great idea! No check in time, no waiting for luggage, no hauling it around on trains, buses, hotels, etc. But how is a girl to prepare for 5 weeks of clothes?! in a carry-on?! I guess I'll have to get creative! Stay tuned for more on that.

They Do.

We got to spend Memorial Day weekend celebrating with Matt and Megan on their wedding day.

 It was a BEAUTIFUL wedding! Pinterest worthy even! I may ask if I can post these pictures.

 Table numbers were wrapped around wine bottles with pictures of each of them at that age.

 Customized caricatures of them for the topper.

 Even the food was awesome. There were crawfish and shrimp tamales! and, an AVOCADO BAR!!!

Avocados cut in half with sea salt and all the toppings. Pineapple salsa, ceviche, bacon bits, sour crean, cilantro sauce, and corn relish! We had too many and that was just appitizers!

We were also glad to see them the day after for dinner in Waco! They are Officers in the Navy and we rarely get to see them but we can't wait for the next time. Seeing Neil with Matt (and his brothers) is so hilarious. Hopefully we can meet with them this summer while in D.C.

Congrats Matt and Megan!

Healthy Meals on a Budget.

Health is my business but I'm not as interested in gyms and diet plans as I am in reducing health disparities. With enough time and money, I think anyone can live a healthy life. At that point, it becomes a matter of will power.

Where living healthy gets hard is when money and time are tight. Living paycheck to paycheck. working multiple jobs. That kind of tough. In my current job, I mostly advise people how to eat healthy while they are sitting in the waiting room at the food bank, in the WIC office, and GED classes. This population requires completely different advise. Every now and again, I challenge myself to "test" my advise.

One of these ways is my $30 per week challenge. This requires me to feed 2 adults breakfast, lunch, and dinner for 7 days. I also has to include healthier alternative foods, fresh fruit, and vegetables. There will be some "snack foods" that may not be healthy but are better than cookies and cakes. I also allow myself to utilize coupons ONLY if they are something that I was going to get anyways.

Here is this weeks shopping list;
- Orange Juice (free with coupon)
- Frozen broccoli and cheese packet - $2.50
- fat free turkey lunch meat (free with coupon)
- Bagged Salad (free with coupon)
- Fat Free Yogurt (free with coupon)
- 4 Bananas ($0.33 ea)
- 3 Apples ($1.00
- 4 Oranges ($2.00)
- Granola bars (2.50)
- Canned 95% fat free chicken ($2.00)
- Whole Wheat Bread ($1.50)
- 1 frozen pizza (not healthy) - ($3.33)
- Garlic Bread (1.60)

- 2 baked potatoes ($1.50)
- sherbert (free with coupon)
- milk ($2.57)

- cereal ($2.75)
- Tortillini ($4.00)
- 4 avocado (4/$1.00!!)
- 6 eggs ($1.00)
- bag of prezels ($1.00)

 
Breakfast Options:
Yogurt and banana
Cereal with milk
toast

Snack Options:
Granola Bar
Apples with Peanut Butter
dry cereal
prezels



Lunch Options:
Turkey Sandwiches
salad
boiled eggs
tuna sandwiches

Dinner:
Tortellini w/ salad
Pizza w/ pasta salad w/ garlic bread
Broccoli and cheese baked potatoes
Buffalo Chicken Salad
Avocado Chicken Salad Sandwiches w/ prezels w/ sherbert
Lasagna w/ spinach salad w/ garlic bread

Puppy Postage.

Spring is here and that means more color in the house!

We brought out the oversized letter that I DIYed to the living room for over the piano. The portion was not right so I wanted to add art to each side. I already had extra frames but what to put in....

Puppies, of course. Our children.

I decided to make art that matches the postage stamp on the letter. I created puppy postage stamps!

The first step is to take a good picture.

 

Then, photoshop the background color to match the original and add "Forever USA" in Photoshop.

Hang it up. 

Oooo and Ahhh...

We love adding a little character to the house. 

The pictures really show their personalities, too.

Summer Reading List.

Growing up, I always had a summer reading list. First because of school. But as I got older, I wanted to. I got all excited! I would go to the library to research book I wanted to read in early May so that I could check them out as soon as school let out. Well, when I got a real world job, summer days were the same as fall and spring and winter days so I didn't get to have a "summer" reading list. BUT, this year, I do!

This is what I am thinking: 

My Beloved - Sonia Sotomayor

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith

The Storyteller - Jodi Picoult

Wicked

Pride and Prejudice

and

Northanger Abbey

Between airports, airplanes, and exploring D.C. I think I can manage these. 

Any other suggestions?

 

 

Timing.

Timing is everything, right?

I mentioned timing in an earlier post because it has been on my mind.

To have faith is to trust in God's timing. 

Our lives right now are a testament to this truth and I want to share it. 

In prayer, I have asked God for many things. 

Security. 

A less stressful job for Neil. 

Time to see the world. 

New relationships. 

Renewed relationships.

A community of faith. 

A time of rejuvenation.

Little did I know that all these prayers would be answered in one month.

God's timing is in everything! I love the human body cause I am in awe every time I study it. 

Every second, the body creates new cells, new blood, and new breath. Millions of interactions occur simultaneously to ensure life. 

Why then am I always surprised at the perfection of God's timing in my life?

With huge changes on the horizon, it is easy to get overwhelmed but WAITING FOR HIS ANSWERS, will allow me to REJOICE IN HIS GOODNESS.

The beginning of new jobs, start and end dates of travel plans, fellowship funding, the first and last paychecks, long term house guests, and random gifts are only some of the tangibles that are making these changes possible. 

There is nothing like the freedom of Trust in His timing.

An opportunity to see D.C.

My husband is an awesome teacher. 

I know everyone says that about their spouses so I guess that my not be saying much. 

But he is passionate in ways that you hope your kid's teachers are. He works late, goes the extra mile, cares about the future of kids that may not believe they even have one. He is dedicated to social justice and never points fingers.

He is intelligent and innovative in the in classroom. 

He was asked to participate in a fellowship in Washington D.C last summer. The timing didn't seem right so he turned it down. Well, he was asked again this year and this time, the timing is perfect!

He will spend 5 weeks working with the iCivics program with Sandra Day O'Connor and I get to go with him! I don't know what I will be doing, but I'm sure it will be fun :)

Looks like this is going to be a fun summer!

My new J-O-B.

Since all the most important and necessary people in my life know, I am glad to finally make public that I have accepted a new position as a full time lecturer at Baylor University! As you might know, I love Baylor, so this is like a dream come true.

 I will be teaching various health classes. The first semester is Stress Management and Death and Dying, both of which I am so excited to be teaching! I am looking forward to being on campus again. The department I will be in is the same one that I spent doing by Masters Degree in. I now get to work with the same professors that mentored me as a student.

The interview was long (2 full days) and interesting but it gives me confidence that the University is grounded in its mission and provides full support to its faculty. I start in August but will stop my current job in the middle of June (more on that later).