Thankful during Thanksgiving!!

Last night some of my best friends and I had our 7th annual Friend Thanksgiving. We started this tradition when we were roomates in college and I am so glad we have continued it every year since. For me it usually signifies the start of the Holiday season and I start to think about the many things I have in my life that I am thankful for. My pastor preached a sermon yesterday morning about Thanksgiving and reminded people to be thankful for the big and small things in your life. He said to make of list of things you are thankful for and you can see the many ways that God has blessed your life. Below is my list (I restricted it to 20 things so it wouldnt get too overwhelming) of some things in my life that I am thankful for. Each blessing is from God and we must remember to first and foremost give thanks to Him for His abundant grace.

Pslam 107:1 "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever."

I am thankful for...(in no particular order, except for the first 8 haha)

1. The fact that I have been saved by the grace of God
2. Jesus dying on the cross for my sins
3. My wonderful and amazing husband
4. My dad and the fact that we have breakfast together every sat morning
5. My mom, I only hope to one day be like her
6. For my sister, she is my BEST friend and for her husband Jimmy and his sacrifice protecting the City of Greenville
7. My soon to be born niece Alexis Lynn (I cannot wait till she gets here)
8. That I have THE GREATEST friends in the world (some since elementary school and recent ones too). I would do anything for them, and I know they will always be there for me too even if we can see each other as much as we would like too.
9. That I have a job during these hard times
10. My co-workers, they make the job so much better
11. That I was born in the United States, I am definitely proud to be an American
12. For all the men and women (especially Adam's brother) of the armed forces and their families who sacrifice their lives for our freedom
13. For our house (and the $8000 tax credit)
14. My cat Roxie, she is the best bed snuggle buddy
15. My puppy Rambo, I now understand the special bond between a dog and owner
16. That my husband, Adam makes me laugh every single day and we can have the best time just doing nothing
17. That I have a church that feels like home - Temple Baptist in Simpsonville, and for my pastor, Brad Whitt who preaches God's word and challenges me to be a better Christain
18. For Christmas, my favorite time of the year
19. A fun one…for M&M’s haha : )
20. That I have been blessed by having so much to be thankful for

I love this time of the year!!

Fall definitely gets me into a good mood. I love this time of the year...college football, great weather, leaves changing, the Holidays are getting closer...I mean it doesnt get much better than this. This time of year reminds me to be thankful for the small and big things in life. God creates such beauty with the leaves changing and it is hard not to think about how awesome He is. Also with the Holidays quickly approaching I get thankful for my wonderful family and friends and also for the small things.
Fall also gets me into a decorating mood. I love getting to decorate the house with fall things and then that gets me thinking about the Christmas season and I LOVE decorating for Christmas. This year we have our own house, which makes me even more excited. Below are some pics of my fall decor.

Go Vols!

Adam and I bought tickets to the Tenn vs UCLA game in Sept. I always love going to Knoxville and watching the Vols play. Since marrying Adam I have become a Tenn Volunteer fan (at least when they dont play Clemson). He is trying to convert me 100% but my blood does run Tiger orange. My dedication lies with Clemson, but I have become a Tenn fan as well. We had a blast at the game even though they lost. We had awesome seats and it was good to get to spend some quality time together.

New York with my sister.

On Labor Day weekend my sister and I took a trip to New York City. It was great to get to spend some good quality time with her on a cool trip. I know things will get hectic once little Alexis is born in Jan., so it was nice to spend time with her. We went sightseeing, shopping, and just hung out. We also went to M&M world : ). I have now been to 2 out of the 3 locations. Only one more to go, Vegas here I come, haha. For anybody that knows me you know I love M&M's. Below are only a few pics from the trip, I uploaded more on facebook so check those out too.

St Patricks Cathedral

Times Square

Our hotel, which was very nice

Empire State Building

From the top of the Rockefeller Center

New Puppy!

We finally got a new puppy, Adam is so happy. I wanted to wait until we had a house with a backyard, so once we got settled in, we found our pup. His name is Rambo, and he is a Mini Schnauzer and Dachsund mix. He is the cutest puppy ever, at least I think so. We have had him now for about a month and half and he has been the best. Rambo already knows to go to the door to go outside and him and Roxie are starting to get along much better. He is definitely part of the family and we love him so much : )

Blog Title

This is where the title of my blog came from...I love this song by Rascall Flats. It just reminds you about the simple things about marriage and your spouse. I always love spending time with Adam no matter what we are doing. We can just be sitting in the same room doing two completely different things. I never knew how much I would enjoy marriage and how much he really is my soulmate. God made him just for me and I love him so much. : ) I am very blessed to have such a great guy as my husband. Always remeber to appreciate the small things and just being able to spend time with one another.

"This Everyday Love"

Can't get enough of this everyday love

Can't get enough of this everyday love

Each morning the sun shines through my window

Lands on the face of a dream come true

I shuffle to the kitchen for my coffee

And catch up on the front page morning news

Then she walks up behind me and throws her arms around my neck

Just another normal thing I've come to expect

[Chorus]

It's ordinary plain and simple

Typical, this everyday love

Same ol', same ol' keeping it new

(Same ol'/This everyday love)

Emotional, so familiar

Nothing about it too peculiar

Oh, but I can't get enough

Of this everyday love

Every afternoon I make a phone call

Listen to the voice that warms my heart

I drag myself through a few more hours

Then head on home to try and beat the dark

Her smile will be right there when I step through that door

And it will be that way tomorrow, just like everyday before

[Repeat Chorus]

Wouldn't change one single thing about it

No, it's run-of-the-mill, still I can't live without it

[Repeat Chorus]

I am going to New York!!

I am going to New York for my birthday, woohoo!! My parents are treating my sister and I to a trip to New York for our birthdays. We mentioned it to them thinking that they would not say yes, but since we were able to find a great deal online for hotel and plane tickets they were willing. Now Kelly's birthday isnt until March, but we figured we better go now before the baby arrives. We are so excited about the trip. We will only be there for 2 nights but it will be great to getaway and spend time together. I am definitley looking forward to visiting the M&M world up there too (now I only need to go to the one in Las Vegas and I will have been to all three). Anyway, I will definitely take lots of pics to post when we go...it will be in the beginning of Sept, so keep checking back and pray for a safe flight and what not. : )

Tokyo Joe at Wild Wings

Last thursday night, Tokyo Joe came to play at Wild Wings again. I definitely enjoy this band and try to go and see them when they are in Greenville. Yet again they put on another great show. This time we actually got to meet the lead singer, Greg, and take a few pics with him. We also learned that he is OCD about necklace clasps because he fixed both mine and Kris's while talking to us, haha. Here are a couple pics from the night!! Can't wait till they come back again.

Dan stopped by for a visit before going to work

Niece or Nephew on the way!!

This is a picture of my niece or nephew : ). I am getting so excited about my sister Kelly having a baby. She went for her first ultrasound yesterday and her and baby are healthy. Another 7 weeks and we will know if it is a girl or boy. My last post was about trying to save money, but once this baby comes I know I am going to spoil it rotten, haha.

Saving money!!!

So I have been trying to save money on groceries for the past few weeks. I keep hearing about how all these people save so much money with coupons on double & triple coupon days. So I decided to give it a try myself. This morning I got up early, yes early, to go grocery shopping. Bloom started there triple coupon days today and they are doing it for a whole week (usually they do it for one weekend out of the month). So I have been saving up my coupons that I clip from the Sunday paper and print online and I went shopping. Bloom will only triple coupons under a dollar and they will only take up to 20 coupons per day. I grabbed only the stuff I needed that I had coupons for...and the result....$50.00 worth of groceries for only...$13.00. Pretty good for my first time triple couponing. I was quite proud of myself. My bags included: 4 things of BBQ sauce for grilling that I ended up getting for FREE after my coupon, shaving gel, dish soap, yogurt, breakfast bars, tinfoil, ziploc bags, italian ice (ended up being FREE), pop-tarts, plates, and a few other things. The key is to get things that you will actually use and eat. Some people get wrapped up in the thrill and end up buying things that they will never use. It was definitely quite an experience to get there early on the first day. These coupon people can be intense...I hope that doesnt end up being me, haha. Some even had there kids there to shop too so they could use more than 20 coupons in one trip. I wonder if they would consider Roxie to be a grocery shopper...haha. Anyway, just thought I would share what great savings you can find out there when you save up and use your coupons : )

All in a day's work!!

I got to spend most of Saturday working in my new yard! Adam had to work all day at the Deli, so my parents came over to help me get a few things accomplished. After a nice breakfast with my dad at the Waffle House (our Saturday morning tradition), my mom and I headed to Home Depot and the flower nursery to stock up some flowers to plant. My dad trimmed some trees and branches that were hanging near the house. Once we got back we dug up a few azalia (dont know if that is how to spell it or not) bushes and started on the bed in front of the living room window. The finished product is the first picture below. I was quite proud of my selections and placement. Maybe I should be a landscape designer, haha. We also bought flowers to put around the mailbox as well. My mom was nice enough to buy me a hanging basket plant and a bird bath to go in the yard. My dad also helped me fix the tomato plants by staking them and putting the cages around them. Hopefully Adam and I will soon have fresh tomatoes to enjoy. Still have a lot to do in the backyard, so more pictures will come.

A trip to Anderson that was well overdue!!

This past Friday night I finally got to see Dorothy's condo. She had all of us over for some shrimp and grits and to spend some time with Matt before he had to go back to Iraq. Her condo was very nice, and I have to admit that I am jealous of her hardwood floors. It had been awhile since we all got to hang out like that, and it made me really miss college. Good times, good times!! Well here are a few pics that I stole from Dorothy of the evening.

No Doubt Concert!!

This was definitely one of the best concerts I have been too!! Gwen sure knows how to put on a show. If you ever get the chance to go and see No Doubt live, do it!! : )

Sunday School Picnic

This past Saturday night we had a Sunday School get together. We had a picnic in Falls Park and then went to play putt-putt. It was great weather and a great time with some good friends. Adam and I are so blessed to have a great Sunday School class with strong Christian leaders. I love spending time with the group.

The House

Here are some pictures of our house!!! We finally got everything moved in on Memorial Day and have been unpacking and putting stuff away since then. I think we finally have everything organized, at least for now. I wish I had some before pictures, but here are all the rooms with the new paint and everything put away.

Living room

Dining room

Roxie's napping spot

Living room

Kitchen

Entry Way

Man room/Computer room

Half is painted UNC blue and half Tenn orange

Bedroom

Guest room

Adams Birthday!!

Adam turned 27 this year on May 21. The Saturday after his birthday we got together with our friends Brian and Kris and went downtown to play putt-putt at the new Falls Park golf. It is a cool family owned place that has putt-putt and video games. We also went and had ice cream at the blueberry frog. My creation was chocolate yogurt with fruity pebbles, quite tasty.