Grab Your Coffee, Pull Up A Seat, & Let's Gab

I realized that in the last 2 months my "followers" on this blog have tripled, and I don't know many of you well if at all.  So I felt like it was time to introduce you to myself and my precious family and welcome you into my life a little bit.

I'm a 30 year old woman who married her best friend at the age of 21.  In July we will celebrate our 10th anniversary.  Hubby and I went to college together and hung out all the time, never thinking of things "like that"...but "that" is exactly where we found ourselves 4 years after we first met.  We went to school at Zion Bible Institute in Rhode Island at the time.  He was from northern Maine and I'm a New York gal.

Our story is pretty funny and special (at least to us).  The first time he gave me flowers, I actually tried to throw then away...but ended up just giving them away.  That was 2 years before our first date.  On our first date, my Prince gave me a replica of that same bouquet...with the addition of one white rose to symbolize our new beginning.  When he proposed, it was the same bouquet with 2 white roses for our next beginning.  My wedding bouquet...well, you guessed it - the same, but with 3 white roses.  I have all the little notes and letters and cards from our courtship and early years in a scrap book.  I even remember getting squirted by a cherry tomato on three separate dates, which he still says was unintentional.  It's okay; on our wedding day he wore cake.  I thought we were even.  Until we were camp counselors and I wore a pie.  I still owe him for that one ;)

We have lived in Rhode Island and Maine and have been settled in Alabama for the last 6 years.  The Princess Chef will be 7 in just a few weeks and the Lil Man is 4 1/2.  Lil Bit (gender unknown...yay for surprises!) is due to arrive in about 6 weeks.  The Princess Chef has a huge, gappy smile and dimples that will melt you (or at least me).  The Lil Man can charm anyone in a ten mile radius with his sweet words and generous heart.  Lil Bit is our most active baby in the womb, and we are wondering what we're in for when he or she comes out to get to know us better.

We are a family who homeschools and loves it.  We don't have an overabundance of resources, but my hubby works very hard to ensure we have all that we need and I've learned to be be very frugal...and am continuing to learn each day a little more.  I am so blessed to be married to someone with a strong sense of integrity and a rock solid work ethic...as well as a mischievous sense of humor.

I'm a freelance photographer and I think that life behind the lens is not only fun, but an awesome way for me to express myself.  I love candid photos that evoke emotion or capture a moment.  I think we have only 2 posed pictures in our whole home on display.  My favorite subjects are my hubby and kids...but I actually love photographing any children!

I love to dance with my husband and our kids and enjoy music of almost any type...although my favorite genres are worship and country.  The kids have a current favorite worship CD called Paint Your Picture by Julie Meyer...and I highly recommend it.  My favorite country artists are Alabama, Tim McGraw, Martina McBride, Sugarland, and Lady Antebellum.  Favorite song to bump into on the radio? Old Time Rock n' Roll. I still love listening to the 90s hits from my high school days (Third Eye Blind, Three Doors Down, Eddie McCain, Savage Garden, and the rest).  Cheesy, right?  But they do take me back!  I also still have my very first CD even: DC Talk's Free At Last.  The BEST CD of all time, in case you wondered.

I have a weakness for NY style pizza, peanut M&Ms, tiramisu, and Dunkin Donuts coffee.  I can be bribed with chocolate (shhh, don't tell!).  My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and I collect snowmen which I put out that afternoon and keep out through February usually.  I want to learn to bake bread, but so far my attempts have been pitiful at best.  I'm an avid reader and love Lori Wick, Karen Kingsbury, Francine Rivers, Nora Roberts (not all, but some), David Baldacci, and more.  I think CS Lewis is brilliant and devour anything written by James Goll, Chuck Pierce, or about homemaking and parenting (loving Sally Clarkson right now!).  Someday I want to hike the Appalachain Trail.

My heroes in this life?  My 9th grade earth science teacher, my 11th grade English teacher, and my 8th grade teacher top the list.  Those 3 people have influenced my life from the day they entered it right up to the present.  Mr. L taught me to forgive, to reach further, to try harder, and to make it happen.  Mr. M taught me about faith, literature, dreaming, doing your best, the value of family, and character.  Mrs. M showed me that God can do wonders with a life submitted to him, taught me how to reach out and love people outside of my circle, to hold my head up and walk with faith no matter what life threw at me, and how to laugh even when life stinks.  I hope to inspire my kids the way these 3 have inspired me; they shaped my future and I know God put each of them in my life intentionally; I still thank HIM for them.

My favorite color changes depending upon what room I'm in or why I need to choose one.  I like certain colors for clothes, different ones for decorating, different ones for accessories.  A gal can never have too many shoes or purses.  A good hair cut can make you feel like a million bucks.  I love makeup, but don't wear a lot anymore.  I do wear earrings every day just because it makes me feel special.  I hate laundry, but I do it anyway.  I love being in the kitchen, and my new favorite household chore is mopping because I got a steam mop for Christmas!

Okay...nice to meet you.  I'm sure we'll get to know each other more as time goes by, but this is a good start.  Who are you?  Feel free to leave me a comment and tell me about yourself; I find it so encouraging when I get to know my readers and peek into your lives, too!