With this Ring, I Thee Wed . . .

A lady came through my register at Menards, screaming into her cell phone. She grumbled, "I'm at the register paying now, goodbye." She slammed her phone shut and said to me, "Never get married." 

This broke my heart...it was just a small picture of the shallow view of marriage that so many people have. Divorce rates have become ridiculously high. Children are growing up in broken homes, not having any good examples of committed, loving marriages. America's diminutive number of successful marriages is a very depressing thing to think about. Cheating has become a very common occurrence. It's now normal to just get "fed up" and walk out the door, leaving your spouse and family behind because that promise you made on your wedding day is no longer important. 

What is marriage to me? Marriage is a man and a woman who have joined together to love and cherish each other through the good and the bad; who have made a promise that will last an entire lifetime to be committed and loyal to one another, whether times are easy, pleasurable, and fun, or difficult, unpleasant, and frustrating. I am not yet married, so I obviously don't know what marriage is like, or how hard it is. But I have spoken with many married couples and have learned very much from them. Someone recently told Aaron and me that the way to have a happy marriage is to not make "a happy marriage" your goal as a couple. The goal should be God's will. The goal should be to glorify God with your marriage by seeking to accomplish His will together. That will make your marriage fun, pleasurable, and awesome. God didn't bring you together just because you love each other or just because "you make each other happy." It was also because He has a specific plan in mind and certain path for the two of you to take together. 


      It's like at Christmas, when people say "Remember the real Reason for the Season!"
People have to remember the real reason and meaning of marriage: to glorify GOD, to love and cherish each other through the good and the bad; who have made a promise that will last an entire lifetime to be committed and loyal to one another, whether times are easy, pleasurable, and fun, or difficult, unpleasant, and frustrating. 

Weed 'um and reap!

   (Please excuse the corny title...it's probably not really that funny but it just cracks me up..lol)

    One of the many, many things that I'm excited about for this summer is my garden! I have never had a garden before . . . I actually had never thought of having one until this year. But some things I absolutely love to eat are peppers, onions, and green beans, so why not grow them myself?! That said, I will be growing peppers, onions, green beans, okra (which I've never had . . . that was Aaron's idea! Excited to try it though!), little pumpkins, broccoli, and spaghetti squash! I'm going to have my hands full, yeah?! The plants that have to be started inside are peppers, broccoli, okra and onions, so they are currently sitting in my window sill! It doesn't take much to make me excited, and let me tell you, I'm stoked for this garden! Any gardening tips are very welcome since I am a garden newbie! 

 Little seeds starting to grow!

 Mmm . . . I am very excited about the peppers!!

The onions seems to have grown the most so far!

Lastly, I'd like to leave you with a song that I love listening to! The String Quartet is amazing! 

Why So Serious?

“Don’t take life so seriously!  

Learn to laugh at the little things and this whole “existence” thing will be a whole lot easier. Be amused by your mistakes and failures and be thankful that you learned your lesson and won’t mess up like that again. And most importantly do things that you enjoy! Life is not strictly business, it can be mixed with pleasure.”

                               

     Don't you love those moments when you just can't contain your laughter? When   tears stream down your face and your abs start to ache? It's one of the best feelings in the world! (And a great way to burn calories!) One great laugh can  just brighten my day. 

So, cheer up! Yes, I know . . . class was so boring this morning and work is going to be so tiring and  stressful tomorrow. Maybe today is just not your day.  But have you thought about how many reasons you have to be happy?! I know that I am incredibly blessed . . . I have millions of reasons to be smiling, and so do you! Let yourself be amused or humored by things that would normally annoy or  frustrate you! If you're having a bad day, go watch a funny movie or call that one  friend who always makes you laugh. Here are a couple Youtube videos that always crack me up . . . 

And lastly, I had to recognize Heath Ledger as the Joker for providing the title of my post! 

I hope you all have a lot of good laughs today! :)

Think "Wedding"

   

            So, I happen to be marrying the most wonderful man in the world. While the date is still about a year away, we have (of course) been starting to plan! Our wedding day will be the best day of my life . . . so it has to be perfect! We have both been very busy with school and work, so we have not done much official planning yet. In the meantime, I've been browsing a few things to get some ideas! Here is what I've liked so far:

 I love how this reception is decorated--They lights make it look gorgeous!

 No, yellow won't be one of my wedding colors, (although I love it) but this cake is so pretty!

 I love this idea for a runner--we might just have to have this :)

This is one of the most adorable wedding pictures I've ever seen--I love the colors, her hair and the groom's outfit!

If you have any good ideas you'd like to share, I'd love to hear them! 

Have a Wonderful Wednesday, everyone!

Namaste!

       "RELAX! This one is for you work-o-holics out there. Yes, work is very important and productive, but you need to take some time to chill out everyday or you are going to burn out faster than a candle with no oxygen. Additionally, you need to reward yourself for a job well done. What's the use of doing all that work if you can't have a little fun from time to time?"


     I have to tell myself to relax quite a few times a day (ask my fiance . . . he has to tell me that all the time, too). It's so easy to worry and stress out about things in life, but just remember--those problems are not as important as the damage the stress is doing to your body! "Repeated activation of the stress response takes a toll on the body, contributing to high blood pressure, the development of artery-clogging plaque, and brain changes that may contribute to anxiety, depression, and addiction." Who wants that?!
      There's no better way to relax and exercise at the same time than to practice yoga. Yoga has been a passion of mine for the past few years of my life. It is a calming, strengthening, amazing practice that I'm so glad I started! It's not only relaxing; it tones your muscles, too! If you have never practiced yoga before, I really encourage you to try it! I promise, it's life changing!

           Some of my favorite poses:

Vrksasana

(aka: tree pose)

Natarajasana

(aka: Dancer pose)

Virabhadrasana II

(aka: Warrior II Pose)

Have a happy, RELAXED week, friends!

To live would be an awfully big adventure...

http://www.highexistence.com/life-secrets-and-tips/comment-page-1/


My wonderful man sent me this link a few days ago and said, "Read this..it's kind of long but it's totally worth your time."  So, I did! (You should, too) I loved it. Here is one of the "life secrets and tips" that I loved:


 Develop an endless curiosity about this world.
"Become an explorer and view the world as your jungle. Stop and observe all of the little things as completely unique events. Try new things. Get out of your comfort zone and try to experience as many different environments and sensations as possible. This world has so much to offer, so why not take advantage of it?"       I love adventure. Take me hiking, rock climbing, roller coaster-ing, motorcycling, rafting,  or anything of the like, and I'll be happy! Ecstatic, I'm sure. I'm waiting for my opportunity to go sailing, skydiving, bungee jumping, para sailing, and to go on an African safari! These are just a few! (I have a very huge bucket list).         Something I am so VERY interested in is travel. One of my very best memories is my senior trip to Europe. Going from country to country in Europe was simply amazing. We went to England, France, Switzerland, and Germany. I could go on and on about this trip . . . But! Not only did I love traveling out of the country,  I love traveling anywhere! I have been houseboating in Kentucky with my grandparents my entire life. This trip was what I looked forward to every summer. As a kid, I always dreamed of taking the love of my life with me, and it finally happened last summer. It was wonderful. :) This love of my life, Aaron Evans, was who took me to the Michigan Sand Dunes for the first time! THAT was an awesome trip! I had never seen a sand dune before. In my mind, I had pictured little sand hills. I was quite wrong . . . 

 This, my friends, is a sand dune. The picture actually makes it look small! 

    PAUSE!  I had to sneak in a picture of my latest trip to Venice, FL, where Aaron Evans asked me to marry him! It was incredible :)Okay, okay, back to the story.... 

Here I am with Aaron in Kentucky--jetskiing on Lake Cumberland!

And last but not least--This picture was taken halfway up Mt. Pilatus! (Switzerland was my favorite country)
Don't be afraid to try new things. Whether it's trying a new activity, or driving somewhere exciting with your best friend . . . start planning your next adventure!