It's My Turn!!!!!!!!!

It's my turn!!! I've made so many of these and this one is actually mine!

Jessie, my Matron of Honor


The ladies at the church did such a nice job putting on this shower. The cake was gorgeous and so yummy!

My favorite gift. My Domestic Diva apron that came with some fun stuff. Wink Wink

This weekend has been so much fun. I feel so incredibly blessed. This was the weekend of my first wedding shower and it was such a great time. Mom and I had a girls night out on Friday and saw The Proposal, very cute movie. Then I got up early on Saturday to get my hair done (a practice appointment for the wedding day hair style) and then met up with Jessie, my Matron of Honor and the sister I never had. We got ready and went to the church for the shower. (It was overwhelming at first to have everyone staring at me...not sure how i'm gonna manage the wedding with everyone looking at me all day.) My friends from work came and there were lots of ladies from the church. I feel so blessed to have such a great group of supportive people in my life.

The shower was really fun. Jessie had a game planned where she asked me questions about Andy. For every question I didn't answer correctly I had to chew a piece of gum. It was hilarious...but great. The cake was beautiful and the food delightful. We got so many wonderful gifts....I can't wait for Andy to see all of the great stuff we got. I look forward to cooking lots of delicous meals for Andy and decorating our new home tegether. Aagghhhh I am SO excited! Can't wait for all that wife stuff!

This weekend has really made me realize the importance of God's timing... seeing how He has worked and put all of this together. Who would have thought that all those times in college of wondering who I would marry I was on the same campus as the man I would spend the rest of my life with. God is so good! I am so thankful for Andy waiting for me and picking me to be his wife. I am blessed!

awkardfamilyphotos.com

"awkward" doesn't even begin to describe this wedding picture:

No, this will not be one of our poses for wedding pictures. Who does this?

A critter adventure...

At 3 am I woke up to scratching at my window. I looked out to find a raccoon looking back at me right outside the open window. This stalker raccoon tried to get in the house when I was sitting at the kitchen table on Saturday night...now it's trying to get me while I sleep.

I'm living at my parents till the wedding and I'm sleeping in a room on the second floor. That means this crazy raccoon climbed the house and found my room. He/She was actually trying to get inside the house. Luckily it was a window that had a screen, but some of the windows don't, so of course I had to get up and check every window before I could go back to sleep. I was a little shook up and scared when I layed down in bed right on the bear that Andy got me for Valentine's Day. The funny thing is the bear has Andy's voice recording inside that says "Ashley, I love you with all my heart. Happy Valentines Day." So after my run-in with the raccoon, I lay down to hear "Andy" talking to me. I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. LOL

So if you have had a similar adventure with a critter and have any advice for preventing it from getting in the house let me know.

Joy

Wedding Shower gifts!!!!

This is Marvin, the newest crowned Prom King of the Academy of Flint.


Me and some special boys!

Many of you prayed for Javonate, one of my students who was very ill, this is him next to me. He is doing great! Praise be to God.

Two of my favorite students all dressed and ready for the Prom.

What does joy feel like? Does it feel the same for everyone? I wonder weird things like that. I have experienced pure joy. This is my last week of working at the Academy of Flint as a School Social Worker. I have faced some great trials this year. Over the past months I have questioned everything, felt huge amounts of guilt for not feeling compassionate enough, and I have realized my immense need to seek the Lord for daily strength.

These verses have come to mind many times.:

James 1:2 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind."

I have prayed and seeked the Lord in many things and I realize that through the trials the Lord does strengthen me. I have the word "faith" tattood on my foot as a daily reminder to walk by faith. My past three years at AOF have been faith walks. Sometimes they have felt like hikes, climbs, crawls and runs. I'm ready for this chapter of my life to end as I begin a new job of being Andy's wife and supporting him in ministry in Florida.

I am now in my final week of working in Flint and I can say this past weekend I experienced pure joy.

-Friday night was the 8th grade prom and I was able to see one of my special education students win prom king. This is a student who has faced even greator challenges than I will ever face and he is the most joyful person I have ever met. Always smiling and so happy to see me. He brings me joy each day and it was an incredible blessing to see him experience an unforgettable moment of being the prom king. I felt like a proud mama!

-Saturday me and my mom spent the entire day doing wedding stuff. It was so much fun and a joy to spend the quality time together.

-Sunday Andy and I received our first wedding shower gifts!!!! I experienced such JOY knowing that God has blessed me with a wonderful man to spend the rest of my life with. Opening the gifts just reminded me of God's faithfullness to us.

Look for joy-filled moments this week!

One month

I will be in Florida with my love in one month!!!!!!!!!!!! I am SO ready to be there. The next couple of weeks will be full of change. I am so blessed to be able to surround myself with people who love me and support me.

it's amzing what happens in a year....

Tonight I am feeling very reflective of what has happened in my life over the past year. A year ago on Memorial Day I spent the afternoon with my brother kayaking in Mt. Pleasant. It was a really good day filled with adventure and good conversation. I remember thinking that I would just sit back and relax while he guided the kayak. Much to my surprise the kayak's we used were one person-ers. So I had to steer my own. I'm not a fan of deep water and I'm not the best swimmer so I was freaked out. Brandon was really patient with me and had confidence in me. And I did it! We had a great time together and it was on that kayak trip that we decided to go on the road trip.

Today I had the family over for lunch and to celebrate. This year on Memoria Day we worked on packing my apartment, taking stuff to Goodwill and putting together wedding invitations. It was really nice to enjoy the time together. I try to savor each moment that we have together because I realize that I will be moving and getting married really soon.

As I sit here alone in my apartment I am wondering what next year will be like. Sometimes I get ahead of myself and have to take a step back. It's a good thing I have people in my life who help me get a hold of reality once in a while and aren't afraid of giving me a reality check. The move has been stressful and it has really helped having my family here to help through it all. A year from now I will be married and living with the love of my life. I can't wait to see what adventures will come our way together.