Hardwood Complete!

Remember this:

Before

And this:

Well now it looks like THIS:

After!!!

Our make-shift "entertainment center" is strugglin'.
That is one of Ty's future project to-dos!

Ty's Throne (a.k.a. The Recliner)

I have to admit, even though I am not a huge fan of hardwood and how "un-cozy" it may be, it does look pretty good and I know that it is a lot better in the long run, especially compared to carpet. However, I am on the lookout for a nice, big, cozy area rug!! (I am thinking something in the brown family, since our walls and furniture is all pretty light-colored.) But for now, I will admire the handy work of my hubs, father-in-law, and mother-in-law!

I also had to post a picture of my new mantel decorations. Until recently, I still had my Easter decorations on the mantel... A little late in the season, huh?! FYI - I actually had my mom convinced that I drew that chalkboard... Nope! ;) Thank you, artists of Hobby Lobby!! I love it. It says, "Because when you stop & look around, this life is pretty amazing." What a true statement.

I'm calling this our "Back to School" Mantel

Learning to Become a Godly Wife

Several months ago while I was perusing Pinterest, I came across this blog post. It is titled, "Being a Godly Wife." I really liked the article and I found the writer's advice to be very timely for the stage of life that I am currently in. That article was published last July.

Then, a few days ago I was on Bloglovin' (my app that updates me on all of the blogs that I follow) and I saw that she had another post about being a submissive wife and is called, "The Submissive Wife: Guest Post Response to 'Being a Godly Wife.'" You can find it here.

As a young Christian woman and wife, I need to be constantly reminded of what my relationship with Ty is to look like, how I am instructed in God's Word to treat him and the many ways in which I need to put my own wants and desires aside and be the wife that God wants me to be. After only 13 months of marriage I can try to conclude a couple of things about the subject of marriage:

1. It is easy to let the world's definition of "marriage" and "husband" creep into your heart and mind, making it an easy task for Satan to erase God's definitions of those things from your memory. As the second article that I linked above says, the act of "submission" is sneered at in today's society - even among Christians. Pardon my personal interjection, but I do sometimes notice the lack of submissiveness as a critical issue in many marriages, homes, and even churches today. At times, it seems that when it is convenient for us, we deem it acceptable to change and re-define topics that are clearly laid out in His Holy Word. Doing what feels right to us or what makes natural sense to our mind isn't always God's Truth. Have you ever experienced that in your life? Our first instincts and "gut reactions" to issues are many times not His thoughts but are, instead, our own.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55: 8-9

Today, I am grateful that God's ways are higher than my own. I am thankful that the all-knowing and all-powerful Creator of the Universe has a plan for me. He has desires for my life. He has set forth criteria in His Word for what makes me a good wife in his eyes. (Many of which are laid out in those articles I linked above.) I am so thankful that He is a personal and loving God!

2. It is difficult to put into practice the things that I know in my heart that God desires of me. Even if I know what He desires, it is not always easy to do those things. However, I believe that it was difficult for Christ to come to earth and willingly lay down his sinless life. It was difficult for him to take on the role of a servant instead of becoming the earthly King of Kings that we know He was and is today. Philippians 2:1-8 tells us a few things that I believe apply directly to marriage (pardon my paraphrasing): Be likeminded, love the same things, be of one accord. Don't let things be handled in anger or through pride. Don't be selfish; think of others (in this case, your husband) above yourself. Be humble and obedient. "Why?" I may wonder at times (like when my husband has done something to annoy/frustrate/infuriate/anger upset me)... Because Christ, "being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (vs. 8)"

My prayer is that I would be willing to put on the mind of Christ (vs. 5), seeing as the role of the wife is paralleled with the role of His body. I pray that I would be willing to stop each day and think as He thinks, do what He would do, react like He would react. As wives, may we strive to love our husbands in the ways that He has demonstrated His love toward us.

There is no magic formula, no "quick-fix" book that you can buy. It's all trial and error, but through His grace He shows us what He desires and helps us get there. And the good news is: He wants to help you. He wants you to be the best wife, mother, friend, sister, and person that you can possibly be, through Him. What an awesome Friend and Father!

Foodie Friday: "Mile-High Bars!"

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a cook in training. {Some of you may even be laughing at the fact that I am posting a recipe on my blog... Just make these and you can thank me later! Ha!} I am still learning, and everything that I attempt to make doesn't always come out perfect; like I said, cook in training. Ty still loves to quote one of his favorite Kenny Chesney lyrics when I make a meal that is less than perfect: "Eatin' burnt suppers the whole first year, and askin' for seconds to keep her from tearin' up..." - The Good Stuff, KC

Despite my shortcomings, there are a few dishes, desserts, and dips that I can make that turn out to be really yummy! When I get an opportunity to, I'll try and share some of my favorites with you. Here is a super easy and scrumptious little dessert that is always a fam favorite. {This weekend we have a youth fellowship at our church and this is a really good dessert to make for a large crowd!}

Ingredients:

     - 1 pkg (12 oz.) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
     - 1 pkg (11 oz.) Butterscotch Chips
     - 1/2 cup Peanut Butter
     - approx. 16 oz. Marshmallows (I use Aldi's brand which are 10.5 oz/ea., so I just go ahead and use two bags)
     - 1 cup Dry Roasted Peanuts (salted)


1. Place foil in a 9" x 13" pan:

2. Mix your chocolate chips, butterscotch chips and peanut butter in a large bowl (you'll be adding the marshmallows and peanuts to this bowl later).

3. Microwave for about 2 minutes, or until melted enough to stir.

4. Stir until your bowl looks like mine on the right.

5. Add peanuts and marshmallows.

6. Put mixture into 9" x 13" pan and refrigerate for at least an hour, or until the mixture becomes solid.

7. Remove bars (in the foil) from the pan and cut into squares.

TIP: Be careful not to cut the bars too big! Remember: they are a mile high and are very rich. {Plus, this will justify you eating two if they are "smaller."} Ha! ;) Enjoy!!

Momma-Daughter Cruise

"Wow!!!" That's one of the words that I can use to describe the cruise and vacation that I recently went on with my mom. "Relaxing, tropical, and fun" would be some other words I would use. Oh yes, and I must add "FOOD." Lots and lots and more lots of f-o-o-d. I will take this opportunity to say, (for those of you who have seen me since our cruise and noticed the 10 lbs slight weight gain I experienced while on vacation), that it was slightly reassuring upon our return home, when my only option was my stretchiest pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt, to find out that my mom was in the same boat! (No pun intended...) For the first time in her life, she was having trouble finding something to fit comfortably. PTL!! Like I said, slightly reassuring.

*Disclaimer: Remember that it was only my mom and me on the trip. I admit, I was having such a grand time that I neglected to properly document the trip. Also, it was kind of a chore to get someone to snap pictures of the 2 of us together. Below are the pictures that I did manage to capture... Enjoy!

^^ We made it! And actually we were still docked in Galveston, TX when I took this picture.

But it already felt like we had embarked on our fabulous vacation. :)

^^ Our tiny cabin! Soooo cozy. {I'm wondering as I write this what it would be like to share this 9 square feet of space with my tiny mother vs. what it would be like with a 6'9" giant of a man. I'm thinking I like sharing the room with the tiny mother! Ha!}

 

^^ First dinner! YUM! At this point, I knew it was going to be a long (and fattening) week!

 ^^ Our second day was an "on the sea" day. It rained in the morning but luckily cleared

up by the afternoon!

^^ Towel animal!!!!! We weren't quite sure what this one was? What's your best guess? 

I'm thinking a durilla (duck/gorilla)?

^^ First port: Progresso, Yucatan, Mexico. It was a neat place! It was more of a tourist/shopping day than a beach day. (That would come the next day at Cozumel!) Our tour guide was a nice guy named Carlos.

^^ A neat monument in Merida, Mexico (close to Progresso). I was in awe of that SKY! Wowzers. So bright blue.

^^ My mom and I were obsessed with these trees! They were so pretty and they were everywhere in Merida. Our tour guide said that they were related to mimosa trees, which we have here in Bolivar and they are also very pretty (only with pink blooms). So that made sense!

^^ Our tour guide took us to this huge church on the square in Merida. I am guessing it was Catholic? Little did we know when we barged in, that there was a service going on!! Whaaaat?! It was kind of awkward, but we just kept walking along, following our tour group. Can you imagine the next time you're sitting in church - tourists come waltzing through? Snapping pictures? Ha! They were probably telling us to "get out!" in spanish, I just couldn't understand them...

^^ Hammock maker & Hammock (if you couldn't tell).

My mom caved and bought one.

^^ No, that is not a picture of a postcard that I bought. Yes, that was our view on our own private beach in Cozumel! This is "Passion Island." However, the entire trip my mom kept calling it "Paradise Island," not knowing she was calling it by the wrong name. Then we arrived on the island and realized that she had actually only been prophesying of what was to come: an island that felt like absolute paradise. The clearest waters I've ever seen in person, the softest sand, a buffet full of mexican food, everything you would ever imagine being on "Passion Paradise Island." It was my favorite day of the trip!

Momma & Daughter! <3

^^ We got a picture together the night of the formal dinner. No, we did not plan to match in black... I guess we both decided a LBD was needed on formal night. Let me just take this moment to say: I have a gorgeous momma! :) And one that I was so blessed to get to spend an entire week with. Thanks for going with me mom and for still loving me after 7 days of being confined with only ME to hang out with, talk to, and share our vacation with. You're the best!

Goodbye Carpet, Hello Hardwood!

For a while now, we have been discussing re-doing the floor in our living room. Our kitchen is already hardwood (you can see in the bottom right corner the start of the kitchen floor) and Ty, being the lover of all-things-wood, was sweet to give me an option: hardwood the living room or hardwood the living room...

I, being the lover of all-things-cozy, consented to his plan with the understanding that we would have to purchase a large, cozy and lovely area rug. The compromise was agreed upon and our floor mission began!

10+ Year Old, Nasty, Dirty, Dingy (get my drift?) Carpet

My hottie DIY Husband hard at work

It was seriously so gross when we began tearing up the carpet. Dust, dog hair (we do not own a dog...), and only the good Lord knows what else was flying in my face as we began to destruct our living room floor.

I'm going to go ahead and hope say that he is aiming for the nail gun, not my head in this picture.

(He was getting slightly tired at this point; there were some pretty close calls with the mallet!)

Despite the drama that we have faced this spring with saws and fingers, I cautiously consented to run the miter saw to cut the board pieces down to size. Ty and Tim were inside laying/nailing the planks, so after Gina left it became my job to cut the wood on the saw. I'm not going to lie... I felt like a total HGTV DIY-er after about 10 boards.

Our garage today, HGTV tomorrow

Here is part two of the flooring project tale:

About 2/3 of the floor got laid on Monday. On Wednesday, we headed to Springfield to get the rest of the hardwood to finish it out. We took Ty's Patriot (smaller SUV) and he claimed that the boxes would easily fit. Not so. This was our riding arrangement on the way home from Springfield:

I felt like we were on a 2-seater bicycle. Let's just say the conversations were interesting.

On the way back to Bolivar, about 10 miles from home, we ran over something small on the highway. We didn't think anything about it until 5 miles later when we heard the back right tire going flat. (It adds to the drama of this saga to point out that just a few minutes before this, it began raining/lightening/slightly storming.) We pulled over and Ty said there was a huge gash in the tire from whatever we had hit. Plus, the weight of the flooring on that side probably didn't help matters.

The only big problem we had was that in order to get to the spare tire, Ty had to move all of the boxes of flooring that we had in the car AND it was raining! So, seeing as it was after 10:00 p.m. and both of our dads were likely already an hour into their beauty sleep for the night, we gave my brother a call to come help us out. We are very thankful for he and Mariah coming and helping us solve our little predicament. (THANK YOU!)

Donut and all, the patriot was rolling again and our hardwood was dry and ready to take home. It was a long (and cold) hour or so, but Ty was grateful to get the rest of the wood home so he could finish the floor. I will post pictures of the new floor soon!!

A Long Awaited Vacay

Since last summer when Ty and I went on our "modified" honeymoon (as well as very fun and special honeymoon) to Kansas City, I have been dreaming of sandy white beaches and warm, topical sunshine. When I brought the idea of a vacation (and "proper" honeymoon) up to Ty earlier this year, I could never really get any enthusiasm or excitement for a trip out of him.

Fast forward a couple of months, and we were really needing to make a decision. Money, work schedule, and lack of desire to leave Polk county were all deterring Ty from agreeing to plan anything. (The more I'm married to Ty, the more I realize that I married a 6'9" version of my father.)

I finally gave up the fight and decided to ask my mom if she wanted to go on a vacation this summer! Lucky for me, she agreed! Having married her own version of a Polk-county-loving/Branson-IS-my-vacation kind-of-guy, she was eager for some beaches and sunshine too!

Fast forward to today, and we are heading to McKinney, TX to stay with Ty's cousins, Tab and Erika, before we head to Galveston tomorrow to embark on our cruise! Bon voyage!

Packing: The worst part of traveling.

I've never been to Dallas, so I am super excited to see The Slaugthers, as well as be one day closer to the beach!