“All This Time”

So, the title for this blog is also the title of a song I am currently hooked on, sung by Britt Nicole. The song talks about how God is with us through every single things we go through and how we are never alone. I have not blogged in a while, I chose to fast from facebook and twitter for the 28 days leading up to Easter, but have been neglecting “Starry Eye” for no good reason at all! I realize that I was about to explode with joy and must blog it!!

So, It all began back in August when I decided to change my major from Early Childhood Education to Multidisciplinary Studies. Being that I knew I’d probably be getting engaged soon, I didn’t want to have 3 years left at OU when I could be done in 1! So, I decided I would get my education degree back home after I got married. Well, God started to tell me that I am not supposed to be in a classroom. All through high school, I wanted to be a counselor, but the day I enrolled as a freshman at OU, I changed my mind to education… who knows why. Anyways… So being that I was planning on going to school to be a teacher when I move back, I knew I was going to have to get a job that would allow me to do this. In November, I went to see Twilight:Breaking Dawn with my mom, fiance, and a few other friends, including our youth pastor, Chad. I interned at the church last summer, working with the youth. I admire Pastor Chad and his awesome wife, Jill. I am SOOOOOO blessed to have them, Jules, and in less than a week, Tinley, in my life! So, Pastor Chads dad, Randy, has a clinic for counseling, therapy, testing, all sorts of fun stuff. While we were in line at the movie, Randy got to talking to my mom and I about how he hires people to be Rehab Specialists and they are assigned to one school where they see the same kiddos each week. Immediately, this job sounded like something I would LOVE to do! And, the best part is that I would be able to continue getting my education degree while working for him.

Fast forward to sometime around February, I was having a very hard time at work with the large group of kiddos. I would leave work feeling stressed out and exhausted. I just felt worn out, and I wasn’t even teaching. And, this program is only from 3:00-6:00. I felt that God was starting to reveal his plan for my life, which was very different than what I had imagined. So, I decided that I was just going to try to work for Dr. Randleman and not go to school for a little while. I thought maybe if I liked that job, and it would benefit me to continue my education in that area, then I could always do that. So, at this point, my plan was: Work for Randy and not go to school.

Fast forward to March…. Not even a few weeks after I decided not to go to school, I found out that there is a Masters program through East Central University that offers a degree in School Counseling… the kicker, it is offered at the EOSC campus in McAlester!!!! So… I decided that I KNOW I will LOVE my job that I (might) have with Randy, and that it would be worth going to school for, and it is only 32 hours for the masters, and then another 28 for my LPC. So… Plan… Work for Randy (maybe)… Get Masters in Counseling!

That next Sunday after church, I stopped Randy and mentioned that he had told me about a job and asked if he would be hiring this summer. I didn’t even get to finish talking before he stopped me and told me that he was shaking because he and his wife, Jennifer, had been praying for someone to be a rehab specialist at a school named Cottonwood, and that he thought I would be great there, and that this was like an answered prayer. He said that he would take me to Jennifer to talk to her, being that she is in charge of the program at Cottonwood. We walked over to talk to her and she had this amazing smile on her face once Randy told her that he may have found a rehab specialist for Cottonwood. Me, being the crybaby that I am, knowing that this was all orchestrated by God, started crying right then and there. They asked when I could start, needless to say, I felt pretty secure that I had a job…. PRAISE GOD!! I told him about my plans to get my masters and he said that he could walk me through the program so that it would be most beneficial. He also said I could go visit the clinic and observe some testing during spring break.

So, last week, spring break, exactly a week ago from today, I drove out to the clinic and observed all morning. I was SO intrigued by everything and interested in all of the different things that they do! While I was there, I filled out my application, my W-2, my direct deposit form, and even went over a little bit of orientation! Jennifer said she would work on making plans for me to be able to go and meet the girl that I would be replacing. When I drove away from the clinic, I’m pretty sure I didn’t breathe until I hit Highway 9 (a good 3-4 minutes) I was just so amazed!!!

So, yesterday, I went out to Cottonwood, which is approximately a 45 minute drive from McAlester. I got to meet two amazing women, Lana and Jozey. I was with Jozey the whole day, being that she will soon be leaving, I was anxious to get to learn the most I could from her about what I will be doing! The kiddos that I got to meet are so great! All of the teachers that I met were phenomenal! This school is so blessed!!! They have so many amazing things for these kids to do! The most amazing part of the day was just getting to be around Jozey and meet her and get to know about her! Although I am thrilled that I get to take her place, I am rather sad that she will be moving to India for an unknown length of time! She is such an amazing person! I feel so blessed that God has placed her in my life, and I already know that it is not just for a short time! I get to go back to Cottonwood again next Monday and I CANNOT wait!!!

Now that I have gotten to see where I will be working, including my very own office that I get to decorate (yay!!) I am even more looking forward to moving home! I just have to get through the last few weeks of this semester! I feel so incredibly blessed to have these opportunities!! God is so good!!

-A

Fasting

On Sunday, Pastor Keith taught on fasting and how we are to walk with “swagger” and have confidence that God will provide. He encouraged people to fast in different areas of their lives for however many days they felt lead, but the idea was to fast until Easter. So, I began my fast yesterday. I decided to give up Facebook, twitter, and CAFFEINE. The twitter one isn’t that hard, but I figured if I was going to give up Facebook, I might as well do without twitter too. Both of these are things that could potentially impact my daily life in a negative way. I always try to keep my posts on the positive side, but not all of my “friends” have that same idea. So, by giving up these to social networks, I am eliminating the that many chances to put me in a bad mood.
The other thing I chose to fast, caffeine, not so easy. I am not a huge soda junkie, but I love me a vanilla dr. Pepper from sonic, or a coke zero from the ceding machine at work. It makes it harder to give this up, because I get headaches for a few days anytime I try to give up pop. And, anytime I feel faint, I drink something cornonated. So, that is why I only chose caffeine. That way I am not depending on soda to get rid of my headache. But, if I want something fizzy, I can have it. I also will have to buy decaf tea, that is another thing that I drink a lot of.
I am fasting with the prayer that God wi prepare Barrett and I to be a strong couple and still be able to do what we do in the church once we are married, rather than worrying about worldly things. I have already seen amazing things happen in jut this first day. I can’t wait to see what else God has for us. Catch ya later!

-A

Playing Catch-Up

So, the last time I blogged, I was pulling in to Harvest time Church in Ft. Smith, Arkansas for the 2012 Geneses Conference. That was such an amazing weekend. God truly showed me so many amazing things!

The enxt weekend, I went on a ski trip with Realife to Red River, New Mexico. I had never skied before, so I took ski school. I really liked it and seemed to pick up on it pretty quickly, but after ski school, I only ever went up the little green behind the lodge once. I was with my brother, he wanted to go all the way to the top of the mountain and take the easiest green all the way down (because I told him that is all I would do). So, we get on the first ski lift, I start crying. It was just different than anything I had ever experienced before. I got used to it after about 45 seconds, and spent the second half of the ride drying tears and preparing to put my “tips up” to exit the lift. After exiting, jake had to buckle up (he was snow boarding) and then we were heading down the slope. About half-way down, I lost control of my speed. I couldn’t turn or slow down, so I bailed. I thought I bailed back towards the uphill, but I must have bailed straight down, because I rolled and flipped down a little ways. Once I had stopped, I gave Jake the thumbs up, letting him know I was okay. I could see him boarding to where I was, then, all of a sudden, there was a big cloud of snow around him as he tumbled down and landed about 6 feet from me. I took off my skis and walked over to where he was. He said he was fine and asked if I could make it down the rest of the way. I told him I didn’t care if I had to slide on my booty, I would make it down. So, I made it down, ON MY SKIS! WITHOUT FALLING!… then I was done. We had one girl break her wrist, and another was taken 30 minutes to the hospital, they thought she might have had a concussion, but she was okay. We also had a few people get Altitude Sickness. Overall, even though I didn’t ski a lot, I had so much fun on the trip!

Okay, so Genesis, Ski Trip, oh, then I got to spend a weekend at home! I got to meet up with miss Hailey Bearden for coffee at arbor Mountain. We sat there for 3 hours talking about life and exchanging music! Then, I headed to Wilburton with my family, we went to watch Tyler’s baseball game! Sunday, we went to church, we had our C4 meeting and Rendezvous in the “chill room” in phase 2! It was so awesome! I am so happy that God has blessed our church/youth/community with such an amazing new facility. Sunday night, after small group, I went over to Skate’s house with Hailey and my new friend/brother Holt. He was so silly. Hailey and Holt got into a cupcake was and I have a bruise on my arm from it. (Hailey was trying to use me as a shield) lol She doesn’t know that I have a bruise… I didn’t want to make her feel bad! haha

Monday morning, it was back to Norman, but only until Tuesday night! That was when I got to go BACK to McAlester. I had a dr’s appointment on Wednesday morning. Barrett and I went to watch “Act of Valor” on Tuesday night, it was pretty great! Wednesday, I went to my dr’s appointment, visited with Hailey at the Leapord Cupcake, had lunch with my parents and the wonderful Brenda Malone, made an appointment for cake tasting with my MOH’s, visited with my future MIL, went to watch my brothers baseball scrimmage with Barrett and my parents, then headed to church where I got to speak to the Realife students on being a Godly Woman/Person. I think I will post my message to them on here shortly. I will have to add in the answers to my discussion questions. Maybe I can get that done this afternoon.

For now, I am going to get on David’s Bridal website and order my Veil, Sash, Headpiece, and other wedding day accessories, then fold my laundry!

Have a happy Friday!

Love,
A

Genesis Conference (more to come)

Last night, around 7:00, we rolled into Ft. Smith, Arkansas for the 2012 Genesis Conference. I have never been before, so I didn’t really know what to expect. Here I am with Journey and Reagan.

Once we got checked in, we were exported into the auditorium to our seats where other groups were already worshiping. I was immediately amazed! There were SO many teenagers at the front of the auditorium raising their hands in praise for our wonderful Lord! I have never seen so many teens in one place with such bold worship! (yes, I cried) there was a multimedia drama, it taught about how as Christians, we should be real with people and not someone different by ourselves. They asked us what it would look like if our life was out up on the big screen. This was such an interesting approach to “keeping it real”. On the break, we took a picture in front of the VIP board! (below)

There was an awesome illusionist for Late Night Genesis!
Jake (little brother) and myself took some fun pictures in the hotel this morning! We are so excited to see what God has planned for us and the rest of the conference today!!

More to come!!!
-A

Round 2

So, I went to Hob Lob to get some more wire. They do not have any thicker than 16 gauge, so I just got 6 yards, 3 pink and 3 turquoise. Also, I found these handy dandy pliers there! They were $12.99, but I think yet will be a blessing.

Off to finish some homework so I can he’s home in the a.m.
More wire words to come!
-A

Trial & Error

In my post this morning, I mentioned that I would be working in a special project for the wedding. Well, here it is.

Okay… My last name is going to be “Fadler”… But this is a picture of what I am going for, found on Pinterest.
I got a few different sizes/colors of wire to try out. This is what I did first, including the scraps….

Both of the full ones I finished were actually not one continuous piece or wire. I would guess at how much I thought I would use, then had to twist more wire in to complete it.
The silver one was first, because it is a thinner wire (18gauge). I wanted to use it first to see how to make the letters. I learned that it was harder with the thinner wire. Each letter was easy, but when you would move to the next one, moving the entire piece around would bend what I had already done. So I moved on to the pink (16gauge).
Side note: I bought both of these at hobby lobby for $1.99 each. The silver was 4 yards and the link had 3 yards. Here is a pic of the package.

So, once I figured out that the thicker wire was easier, I started on another “mrs. fadler”. I also learned that using a lap desk or big book to hold the wore down on and bend it using my needle nose pliers did not hurt my fingers as much. (they are hurting right now) But, I had to be careful with the pliers, because it was leaving dents in the wire, I am going to see if there is some kid of cover or the pliers that will protect the wire from the ridges. This third try, I also messed with a few of the letters using the silver wire. The “m” and the “f” were a but tricky, I am still not crazy about the “m”, but I finally got the “f” to where it would stay together. After I finished mine, I had a little bit of silver wire left, so I decided to try another name. I did one of my MOH’s, Whitney.

As you can see, I have a lot of practicing to do, but this will save me a lot of money. On etsy, these sell for anywhere between $15-$45 a piece. With 3 yards of pink, which was $1.99, I made my name twice. So that’s $1.00 for that plus a sodden hanger from Walmart, which come in a 24 pack for $19.47, which comes out to around $0.81. So, by the time I add craft glue to insert the site into the hanger (which I already have), and maybe some ribbon or a fabric flower, these cost no more than $5 to make. As for the effort, I made these while I caught up on my shows (Revenge, Once Upon a Time, and Glee), so it don’t really phase me. However, my fingers do hurt a little bit. I am going to Hobby Lobby today after work to get some more wire. Between the homework that I have to get done before I head home in the morning, and my new obsession with wire words… I’ll probly never go to sleep tonight! but I get to see Barrett tomorrow! Woo hoo!

-A

Let the Good Times Roll

Back in November, my best friend, Whitney, gave me a copy of her new Ben Rector CD. I had been listening to it in my car pretty much constantly. I figured out I could play burnt C.D.s on my tine TV (usually doesn’t work), so I brought it inside and listened to it on the loud speakers! haha Then, I remembered how good the Ben Rector Radio station is on Pandora… so now I’ve been listening to that pretty much constantly. It just puts me in such a good mood.

Last night, I met one of my dearest friends from high school and bridesmaid, Sarah, for some shopping and dinner in Moore.

Here is a picture of us from Pom State our senior year! (Boomer Sooner)

  She is now living in OKC and working for Mardel. Sarah graduated in May, one of my few friends from home to accomplish such a goal in such a short time. I am so proud of her! She is working for Mardel. She tells me about all of the signs that she gets to make and I can’t wait to go shopping during Easter time so I can see them! She must be great at what she does, because she got moved from her cubical into an actual office! It is nice that she still lives close by! She is the only close friend that I graduated with that came to OU! 

  After going to Dustee’s and Hob Lob, we had dinner at Chick-Fil-A. We left Hob Lob as they were closing… went straight to Chick-Fil-A, and stayed there until they were closing! lol We just sat there and talked and talked. It’s little nights like that that I will miss when I no longer live in Norman. But I know I have SO MUCH to look forward to! Although I have gotten to hang out with Sarah for the past 5 years while we have been in school, or the 4 years she was in school and 1 working, while I took 5 years to graduate, I have missed my family and the other two members of our ACES group… Emilee and Chantel. Here are the 4 of us from just before senior year!

Sarah got to go home last weekend and had dinner with the two of them. It made me sad that we couldn’t all meet at the same time. Chantel is back in McAlester for a little while and I hope I can take advantage of that and visit with her as much as possible. While Sarah talked about their dinner date, I text Emilee and Chantel and asked if they would like to have lunch on Friday. So, now we just have to decide where we will go. Considering that I will (hopefully) get to see Whitney tonight at bible study, and that I met with Sarah last night, by the weekend, I just might have been able to catch up with a few close friends! Now, if I could only get my sorority twin, Crystal, to take time out of her busy Nurse schedule to come back to Norman for a visit, or even meet me in McAlester for the weekend! Maybe it will happen soon!

Now, I am going to work on a special wedding DIY project, then go to work, and Bible Study! Hopefully this project isn’t as hard as it looks! I’m up for the challenge!

-A

One of those days…

Living by myself since August has been both a blessing and a curse. Last year, I knew I wanted to finish school with a place of my own. I was lucky enough to find a place that was decent, with a decent price. I have really enjoyed living here. my neighbors are all nice, the ones I have met anyway, and it is quiet and peaceful. Sometimes… it’s a little bit too quiet. Like, right now, for example. Barrett decided on Thursday that he would come up to visit me this weekend. I was really excited, considering that I really wasn’t sure if I would see him at all until March 10th. Last Semester, there were only 2 weekends that we didn’t get to see each other. It was hard not seeing him last weekend, but at least my mom was here and that kept me busy. Barrett had already made plans to watch the Super Bowl with some friends, so I knew that he wouldn’t be staying here until Sunday evening. Around 2:00, we got back from lunch and sat on the couch for a while, then he said he was probably about to leave. I could feel the lump in my throat growing bigger and bigger, and the area around my eyes started to feel wetter. These are both perfectly normal things, they happen every time I have to say goodbye to him. Sometimes, It isn’t until I actually hit the highway on my way back to Norman, and sometimes, it’s not until I walk back in my apartment by myself after spending a weekend with him here. Walking into such a lonely silence is the worst. I think that is why the tears started before he even got off of the couch to finish packing. I knew what was going to happen as soon as I sat up and let go of his neck and wiped my eyes, he would stand up, walk around and make sure he got everything, zip his bag, pick it up, and tell me he was leaving. This all did happen, eventually. I think he felt bad about me crying. Of course he knows by now that I cry ALL the time… but he asked me if I always cried when he left. Inside, I sort of laughed a little bit. Of course I cry every time he leaves. I told him that and he asked why. I really hadn’t thought too hard about that one before. But it is obvious you will miss someone you love so much when they leave, not knowing when you will get to see them again. Okay, I know I will get to see him when I go home the second weekend in March, but that is a REALLY long time for us to go without seeing each other. He said he is going to try and come visit again, but it might be in the middle of the week. That is fine by me. I would love for him to come up on a Tuesday so he could go to Lifestream with me. Also, I only work 3 hours a day, and have one class each day, so I really wouldn’t be too busy to spend time with him. I am hoping that these next two weeks go by quickly, next weekend, I will be going to a conference with my youth group, it is in Arkansas, and the next weekend, I will be traveling with them to New Mexico for the Ski Trip. (should make for some interesting posts, as I have NEVER been skiing before). So, I have things to look forward to, also our wedding countdown is at 139 days.

So, now I have to try and find something to do with the rest of my day.

• I really dislike cleaning on the weekend, considering I have ample time to do it during the week.
• I don’t have cable, so I won’t be watching the Super Bowl Commercials. I say that, because even if I did watch it, I would only be paying attention to the commercials, alone with 50% of Americans. Oh… and the half-time show.
• I have a tiny bit of homework, that should take 30 minutes.
• All of my DVD’s are at my parents house… except Fools Rush In and That Thing You Do, which I have seen about 20 times each.

So… it looks as though I will have to venture out into the cold in search of a Redbox. Maybe I can find one that has “The Help” and “Soul Surfer”.

I will be having a Super Bowl Lame Sunday.

-A

Sometimes, It’s the BIG things

So, my mom came up to Norman this weekend to visit and do some wedding stuff. The main reason for her trip was so she could go to the Oklahoma Bridal Show with me. The show was today, Sunday, but she decided she would come up on Friday so we could go check out a few stores and do some running around on Saturday. Well, it was a good thing she did that, because we got a TON of stuff done. Yes, we were taking care of little things, but I wasn’t getting dramatic or in a tizzy. I was just enjoying shopping with my mom. So, today, we woke up, attended an AMAZING service at Journey Church here in Norman, ten headed up I-35 to the bridal show. The line was extremely long to get in, and we were there about 20 minutes early. That could have been expected, but we kept thinking, “This must be a great bridal show for all of these people to be here!” So, after about 40 minutes of waiting in line, we finally walked through the doors into the exhibition room. We weaved in and out of the aisles and tried to patient with the people that had no manners. I started to realize that this bridal show, while put together very nicely, and which probably took a lot of effort, didn’t really have anything I was looking for. Maybe it is because I will be getting married in my hometown and have the venue reserved. Maybe it is because I already have my dress and Barrett has already picked out his tuxes. Maybe it was because so many of the booths there were advertising things that I already had taken care of, or things that I really did not need. We stopped for a few minutes to watch the fashion show, all of the girls around me would make sure that their party knew how they felt about each models outfit. It all seemed so petty and dramatic. That’s when it hit me, maybe this bridal show did not have a booth that offered ideas for a candy table, and maybe there were not any vendors selling invitations, or water bottle labels, the important thing is that God gave me the most wonderful man that I will soon be able to call my husband. You may be thinking, “Duh!!”, but it’s not just that. What I mean is that in 146 days, I will get to START calling Barrett my husband. Our wedding day is just one day, which seems minuscule compared to the rest of our lives that we have to spend with each other! Yes, I am really excited that I get to have a wedding, but that’s not what it is all about. It is about the fact that God graciously hand-picked us for one another, THAT is something to celebrate about!!