Friday, December 31, 2010

Busting at the Seams

Christmas was a little crazy for us this year. We moved out of the apartment and then managed to spend time with both of our families. We really did have a good time but things just flew by. We first spent four days before Christmas moving and it felt like it took us FOOREEVVER to get all of our things moved. I will say that when moving and realizing all the "things" we have I realized and could not help but think about how we are abundantly blessed. But I will admit when we started I got a little overwhelmed but as the days progressed we finally got it all taken care of and when I say got it all taken care of that means we got to the point where we became completely apathetic and all organization flew out the window so by the last load we just began throwing any and everything big or small in the bed of Zach's truck. Yep that's right, like loose books, jewelry, towels, etc. But like I said we got it all taken care of and maybe the phrase taken care should really be it was just finally over. Our parent's came and helped with the moving process and now our things are seriously everywhere. Furniture is at his parents, all boxes are at my parents and now all of our clothes and everything else is at my sisters house and hence the title of this blog post we are busting at the seams in this bedroom. But we are super thankful for the Martin Family allowing us to shake up their world for a little while. Here are some pictures of our cozy little bedroom:


Don't let the cleanliness fool you there are things literally stuffed under every piece of furniture that you can see in this pic!



Out of control!!!!       


Okay now moving on to Christmas. For Christmas Eve we went to Zach's house and hung out with his family. This was different from last year. Last year we spent Christmas just me and Zach and went to a candlelight service. This was my first year in my 25 years that I did not go to a Candlelight service on Christmas eve... yea I know poor poor pitiful me but it was different for me. We did have a really great time with Zach's family and I always laugh a lot when we are with them. We then woke up Christmas morning around 6:45 yes you heard me right (well early for me at least) and hit the ground running. We went around to all the cousins houses and watched their children open gifts. This was really fun and they got some awesome things even though they are boys ages 3 to 10 they got some things even I was a little jealous of :). We opened gifts at Mawmaws' and then had lunch. After this we went straight to my grandmothers and spent time with my family and opened more gifts and ate even more ahhhh!!! My stomach hurts just thinking about it all! Then we headed to my parents with my oldest sister, her husband, and our two roomies (reminder: niece and nephew) to stay the night and do our Christmas with my immediate side of the family. That next morning we rested for a while and then opened gifts. Technology is awesome because we got to open gifts with my pregs middle sister that lives all the way out in the big AZ with her hubs by using SKYPE! Later we ate lunch then went to see my other grandmother who is in a nursing home and we showered her with gifts and spent some good family time with her. So not that you all were just dying to know but that is how our crazy Christmas went.
Zach and I did not get much for each other on actual Christmas because this was our early Christmas gift to one another:

Yep Merry Christmas to us!   






 We really feel like "grown-ups" now because we were pumped about purchasing a washer and dryer...Lame we know but aren't they fabulous!

However even though we did not really get each other gifts I received these as my Christmas gift the day before Christmas:

I was so excited and absolutely loved them!!! (They are little worn now b/c I just took this picture on the 31st!)  


Well I guess this post is long enough (SIKE) it's so long but I hope you enjoy. I hope that everyone had a blessed Christmas and had time to slow down and remember what this amazing season is really all about!
Thanks be to God for sending his Son to be the Savior of me and this relentless and pitiful world!

Stay tuned there is more to come!

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Photogenic? We think Not!

Christmas Cards have been ordered! I realize I am bit late with this but..whatev... we will get them out ASAP. We know that each of you are watching your mailboxes anxiously awaiting the arrival of our fabulous Christmas cards.... but here is a little preview of our photo shoot and will let you know that you can just settle down about Christmas card arrival. Zach and I have had several photo sessions together from engagement pics to now Christmas cards pics and we have come up with the unmistakeable truth and that is.... we are absolutely, positively not a photogenic couple. You know you have those couples that are completely flawless and it doesn't matter whether they have snot coming out of their noses, they still look good...well we are not them. But we are what we are and I guess you can say that outside of pictures, we are good with that! So don't think this is Aimee and Zach bash fest... we are just speaking the truth to ourselves in love. :) So here are the not so great pics that we took. ENJOY! Feel free to laugh out loud!


Just wait they get better!







Hope you enjoyed! There were plenty more to put up but I will spare you and hopefully the Christmas card pictures will be a little more pleasing to the eye!
 
Aimee



Thursday, December 9, 2010

Shutterfly Christmas Cards

It's that time of year again!! It's time to pick our Christmas Cards for family and friends! As I was thinking about what Zach and I would do this year for our cards I immediately went to Shutterfly.com. They have such great options for cards that are cute and classy. Not only do they have things that are cute and classy but Shutterfly is extremely user friendly. I had the opportunity to watch my sister put together scrapbooks for my niece and nephew made by Shutterfly and they turned out fantastic. Also, at a few of my friend's weddings they have used Shutterfly to create a book full of photos that share the story of their relationship and used it as their sign in book! I thought this was a great idea and a wonderful keepsake for the couple for years to come. If you already got your Christmas cards, Shutterfly has cute cards for birthdays, moving announcements, etc. Check them out here. Also, if you are a fellow blogger and want to see more information on this amazing offer, click here! Shutterfly's products are a great way to keep track of memories and make wonderful gifts for friends and family. This is why there is no doubt that we will be using Shutterfly this year as we send out Holiday cheer to our loved ones. Maybe you should think about using Shutterfly this year for your family Christmas card. There are so many options to choose from! Good luck trying to pick just one!

Here are some links that I enjoy: Happy Shopping!
http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards

http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars (Great Christmas Gifts!)

http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards

Hope you are as happy with Shutterfly has I have been! Merry Christmas Everyone.....A Post with our Christmas Card in it is soon to come.....

Monday, December 6, 2010

Can We Build It? Yes We Can!

There are quite a few things to go in this post. But this is the first thing...... We are going to build a home!!!! We are so excited about this and excited about finally having a place of our own. For those of you who don't know I am currently working at Mississippi College as a Resident Director and in Student Counseling Services and Z and I have lived in dorm apartment for the first year and a half of our marriage but I was recently called by First Baptist Jackson Madison campus to be their full time children's minister and with a lot of prayer and quite a process we said yes!! We fully trust that this is where God has led us and couldn't be more excited! After this we had to begin the process of looking for a home. While looking we came across this great little neigborhood called Oakwood Glen and discovered that we knew the builder of the homes in this little neighborhood (the connection we had was that I taught his son for the one year that I taught preschool). We began talking with him and he started leading us in this building process. What he does in this little neighborhood is he builds homes that you can afford and they are directed at younger couples and families. He builds the home for you to grow into and have a bigger home for later down the road. So we took him up on it and now we have started the process. It has taken me a while to get used to the idea that we are building a home but now I can say it and be super excited!! The design of the homes in this neighborhood are Craftsman style Bungalows and I love older homes and older looking homes, so needless to say I am kinda pumped about this aspect of the house too!

(This is our Lot with the nice sold sign!)



Hopefully they will start building by January and the house will be completed in May. My start date at the church is January 1st so now you are thinking and asking, "Where are you guys going to live for 5 months?" Well, I am glad you asked or thought that.... We will be living with my sister and brother in law that live here in Clinton. They have graciously opened their home up to us and we are pretty excited because Z and I will get to be roomies with our niece and nephew. During this whole process Z will continue to teach, coach, and get his masters. So I guess we are going to be busy bees this next semester and your thoughts and prayers would be very much coveted! I will try to keep you all informed as this continues.











These are roomies!! We will all live on the same hall! :)

(They are super cute, We know!! )


Aimee