I'm horrible at blogging!

When was the last time I posted here?  Maybe September. 

 Let me take note that this blog was Reuben's idea.  

Well, here's a quick update on our lives!

1. In October we went on vacation to Ohio and Pennsylvania.

We went to Cedar Point, Amish Country, and Indiana, PA. 

OH/PA were absolutely beautiful with the colors changing and the unusual bright blue sky.  Getting back into GA was kinda disappointing because fall hadn't really hit yet.  Come to think of it, it hardly feels like fall here right now (and it's Dec 09!).  

It actually feels like September here still...

R with our pumpkin we got in Amish Country

2. While so many of our friends are having babies we got a puppy.  

His name is Flynn and we love him!

We got him from animal control and he's a real good puppy!  We've had him for a month today and he's growing very quickly - already doubled in weight.  I think he's a fast learner and has added so much happiness and joy into our home!

I love having Flynn in the home with me.  I get lonely with Reuben gone so much and it's nice to have a friend around.  :)

The day I met Flynn at Animal Control .
It sure was hard to not bring him home that day!

3. My family came for Thanksgiving!  Everyone's visit didn't last very long, but I'm so glad they all made the trip!  I don't know when we'll all be together next.  Maybe Christmas 2014 :)

4. I'm the new Young Women President, as of today.

I'm nervous, but I have faith that I was extended this calling for a reason.  I know that the YW we have here in Rome are great girls, and they truly are an example to me.  And I trust that my counselors are great women and will be a help to me!

So life is exciting!  I feel blessed and happy.  

I don't see how people with kids can update their blogs so often!  They're usually much more clever than me - maybe that's how.

I recently saw a post on Facebook that listed the top 5 most stressful jobs.  I was surprised to see that 'resident' wasn't listed on it (therefore, I couldn't take it seriously and assumed it was created by an unofficial source :-p).  Reuben worked basically 4 weeks straight.  That's 28, 14 hour (minimum) workdays without even one break.

Our 1st anniversary was August 6th, and of course, Reuben worked.  I stayed home (sick), and finished his gift.  I spent a month or so making a coupon book for him, and I had a lot of fun with it!  I'm happy with how it turned out.

Reuben came home with flowers, and plans for the night.  But knowing I wasn't feeling well, he altered his plans and we had a really nice evening at home.  He was so sweet.  I hadn't eaten all day, and all that sounded good to me was breakfast for dinner.  So he made that for me.  Very romantic, for a 1st anniversary, right?  I'm one lucky lady!

On August 18th, we got to really celebrate our anniversary.  Our day started out by going to the Atlanta Temple.  I love that temple.  Did you know it's the oldest temple in the south? :)  I had visited shortly after moving to Rome, but was alone that time.  I was glad to finally go with my sweetheart!

Reuben then took me to the Georgia Aquarium, in Atlanta.  What an experience!  I'm amazed by all the creations the Lord has for us to enjoy.  At the aquarium they have 3 whale sharks, beluga whales, dolphins, a bunch of tropical fish... I could go on and on.  As usual I took too many pictures, so I'll try to only post some of the best.  Our night ended by us watching a movie at home and relaxing. 

I can't believe it's already been over 1 year since Reuben and I have been married.  I LOVE HIM!

I recently got a job - I'm a cashier at Sam's Club.  It's not what I wanted, but I see Heavenly Father blessing me, and I am very thankful for my job!  I'm making friends there, and I enjoy interacting with (nice) customers.  It's not where I wanted to be at 24, but I'm happy to be where I am.

Anyway, our home is coming together nicely!  On Labor Day Reuben went out and got us a sofa and loveseat (I had to work), and a few days later we got a coffee table, end tables, and a sofa table.  With those in the room, and pictures on the wall, our house finally looks like a home.  I'm very happy here.  I love my home.  

Yesterday Reuben and I went yard saling, looking for a kitchen table and chairs.  We went home without that, but with a piano!  I can't believe it.  I've never had a piano in the home.  Reuben and I have talked about what a nice piece of furniture they make.  Neither of us play, but today we started learning.  I must admit, Reuben knows more than me (I can't really read music), but I have much more time than him to practice!  My 1st piece to learn is "I Believe in Christ."  Wish me luck!

Did I mention I finally finished the kitchen?? :D

Last night, I got a text from my Aunt Nancy and she said "God is 'opening the windows of Heaven and pouring out His blessings on you.' "  It's easy to get so caught up in our own lives and not see how Heavenly Father is blessing us.  I know He is, and I know if it weren't for Him I'd be lost.  

Update of our house

Reuben has asked me a couple of times if I've posted pics of the house on our blog yet.  Now, I can tell him that I have. :)

So this house has been a LOT of work!  It was a foreclosure, and it seems like the previous owners didn't really take care of the place... plus we must've had different tastes in paint colors.  From the minute we moved into the house we got to work cleaning - sweeping, vacuuming, wiping down walls.  There were multiple big holes and cracks (from shifting foundation) in just about every wall, and Reuben worked very hard patching those, and making our walls look good as new. :)  I hated doing that, so I'm very thankful Reuben did it for me. Lucky me!  

This isn't originally how I wanted the pictures presented, but it'll have to do!  Also, I can't figure out why my pictures won't be centered (I know, click it, push 'center' - that deletes them...).  I think I need a basic Blogging for Dummies class. :-p

1st, our entry way.  Reuben patched holes, I scraped and removed wallpaper (I deleted the pics of the removal process, oops!).  We primed, repainted the trim, and Reuben did the rest.  The colors were an accident.  We didn't buy samples, and figured it'd turn out just fine.  I'm happy with it now, but it was surprise.  From then on out, we bought samples - better safe than sorry! 

Next, Reuben painted the small hallway by the guest bedrooms and bathrooms.  Again, we bought the paint without getting a sample (we bought it the same day we got the entry way colors).  We intended on using it in the living room, but the yellow turned out to be way too bright!  I then tried to use it in the dining room, and don't like it there either.  We are still looking for the perfect color for the dining room/kitchen.  As soon we get it done, I'll have pics of that :)  I don't have any before pics of this hallway, but once you see the living room pictures, imagine it being that same unattractive color.  

The living room.  This was a monstrosity! I'm glad we settled on a neutral, tan color instead of that yellow (which I don't love either, but I'm almost done painting, and not ready to repaint that already!)  This room had 2 big cracks, and too many big holes to count.  Again, Reuben did all the behind-the-scenes work and I painted while he worked his 12+ hour days.

(my proof that I did it! :-p)

The den/media room.  We are excited about this room!  We really don't like the idea of having our TV in our living room, and this room came with built in shelving that fits our TV perfectly :) And when we want a bigger TV we can just remove that lower shelf, so it still works perfect.  This room was a disaster.  I believe there were 3 cracks, a ton of holes (I couldn't expect less...), and a big stain on the floor.

So it looks like I still need to do some touch up paint here,
but you can't even tell there was a huge, deep
crack there.

So that's it.  Like I said, we're still working on the dining room/kitchen, and are putting off painting the bedrooms and bathrooms until another date (I hope at least a year!).  Saturday we spent the day shampooing the carpets.  It's amazing how dirty the carpets were.  That may have convinced me that I never want an indoor dog ever again (I  never want a cat).  Oh, I also mowed the lawn for the first time ever!  Reuben had to get the mower started for me, but I took over from there, basically. :)  Team work, making the dream work!

We're still furniture hunting, and once we get all that and decorated, we'll have more pictures to share.  Tonight we should have the last of our appliances (washer and dryer; we recently got a stove/over!), then we can really focus on furniture!  I'm still looking for a job, and if I don't find one soon, I don't know what I'll do with my time.  So wish me luck!  

Our house is work, and I hated it when we 1st looked through it.  But I love it now, now that it's becoming ours (and is CLEAN!)

I feel like all my blog posts begin the same way - life is busy!  But it really is, and I guess that's good.  I find free time, but I'd rather spend that time with Reuben, and not blogging.

But like I said, life has been crazy busy!  We've traveled, vacationed, visited with friends and family, packed up our 2 bedroom apartment, and moved to Georgia.  

In May we flew to Des Moines for Reuben's medical school graduation.  We stayed with a family Reuben grew close to while he lived there, so I was happy to finally meet the Thomas Family.  We had a great time with them, they are a wonderful family!  While Reuben was away doing last minute graduation things (attending lectures), I made a pen out of wood, and shot guns.  Reuben showed me around Des Moines, and  I liked the city a low.  It was a great change from what I was used to -Cleveland and Youngstown.  It's clean, and pretty.  That'd be a nice place to settle down someday.  But for now, we'll just focus on where we are now. :)

The night before graduation we had a banquet dinner to attend.  Of his class of over 200, a few awards were presented. As the description of the Service and Achievement award winner was given, and some comments given by physicians were read, I thought to myself how much it sounded like they were talking about my husband, but as his name was read, my jaw still dropped.  It seems as if every other day I'm reminded of what an amazing man I married.

Reuben's graduation ceremony was nice (long, but nice).  My mind drifted to thoughts of Reuben in Des Moines for 2 years.  Unlike some other medical school students, Reuben was dedicated to more than his studies.  He went to church, taught, and attended institute weekly.  He also found time to serve, date, and develop relationships.  He is the best man I have ever met, and I am in awe that he is my husband.  

The day after graduation we traveled with Reuben's parents visiting some historic church sites, such as the new Kansas City temple, Liberty Jail, and some visitor's centers.  We were also able to visit with Fred and Penny, who are someone distantly related to Reuben.  Our flight left early the next morning to Salt Lake City.

We had a very nice visit in Utah!  We got to see Reuben's sister Liz and her family, went 4 wheeling, canoeing, and camping - where we also got to catch up with Katie and Justin a bit too!  We also visited with friends, went to Music and the Spoken Word, and went to the Jordan River Temple again.  Our visit lasted over a week, but it went by too quickly, and it seemed like before we knew it, we were back on our way to Ohio again.  

Back in Niles things happened FAST!  We picked up the moving truck, packed (with the help of my parents), and were on the road to Georgia in less than a week.  We sold most of our furniture (which I greatly regret now), but still needed the 16 foot moving truck, just so Reuben could tow his car.  We definitely did not fill that truck, but it's still kind of amazing to me how much stuff we have!  Well, it took us about a day and a half to get to Georgia, and I followed close behind Reuben the whole way.  Along the way, we found a place to stay once we arrived (until then we were expecting to stay at an on-call room in the hospital) since our home would not be ready for us.  

We were grateful to have somewhere to stay, but were anxious to get into our house.  We drove by our soon-to-be home at least once a day, but usually more.  We checked daily to see if the necessary repairs had been made, and once they had been, we had to wait longer.  About 10 days after arriving in Rome, we closed on our house (June 22nd).  We are home owners!!  I don't think it's registered with me yet.  I'm 24, we've been married almost 11 months, and we have a house!  

So far we have been patching holes, sanding, re-patching, fixing cracks, vacuuming, cleaning, removing wallpaper, and priming the walls.  It doesn't feel like home yet.  Right now, to me, it feels like one big mess that needs to get cleaned up.  I know our home will be beautiful when we are done, and I am excited for it.  This work is good for me.  Though I am nervous to start the painting by myself.  I'm thankful for our home, and that I get to share it with my sweetheart.

I need to end this now.  We are experiencing our 1st southern storm together, and our power is flickering on and off.

An update!

Life has been exciting!  At the end of April we celebrated Reuben's 30th birthday.  We both had the day off and we were grateful we were able to spend his day together (last year I skipped his b-day to go on a cruise with my sisters :-p). 

Last year with my beautiful sisters - how could I resist? :)

 We had a nice, relaxing day.  It was beautiful outside so we found a park and played bocce ball, which we hadn't played since the day Reuben proposed to me.  We had taco's for dinner, R opened his gifts, and we enjoyed ice cream sundae birthday cake. 

playing tough

I won!

I spent a while planning a friend's baby shower.  I know I couldn't have done without so many people willing and offering to help. While I had fun with it, I was relieved when it was over, though I think I'd enjoy doing it again.  Rachel wanted a spring/flower theme, and I hope she was pleased with what she got. 

Reuben and I were able to spend a few days visiting our soon-to-be new home in Rome, GA.  It was a busy couple of days of house hunting.  We did fine time to explore the city, which I hadn't ever been to before, and Reuben had only spent one day there.  We really like it!  It's a cute, beautiful town on 7 green hills.  Reuben also showed me around the hospital he'll be doing his residency.  It looks really nice, and I like seeing where Reuben will be spending all of his time.  :-p We don't have a home there yet, but we are keeping our hopes up!  Also, we were able to visit my Uncle Jack and Aunt 'Scottie' in Knoxville, TN.  That was a great treat for us - I hadn't seen them in probably over 10 years!  They will be our closest family, so we are excited to get to know them.  

Uncle Jack, Aunt Scottie, Me, Reuben

Rome, GA

Reuben and the Clock Tower