Crockpots and Cockroaches

My, it takes a lot of work to run a house! I feel like I am constantly doing dishes, washing laundry, or running errands. On top of getting things squared away with bank accounts and name changes, we are also trying to figure out what to do with Caleb's car. Cars can be so infuriating sometimes....and for me it seems that way most of the time. I may have bad car luck though. We found out that he needs to retire his car by the middle of January. It will cost too much to fix the emissions related problems. What a waste of an otherwise perfectly good car. Infuriating. We now have to buy two "new" cars by the beginning of next year. And I seriously hate used-car shopping. One of the worst experiences I have had was finding my Saturn last year...which lasted until a couple of months ago. One consolation is that this may be the best time for us to do car payments. It will only take us three years to pay them off and right now we really have no other major expenses. No rent, no mortgage, no children, and no student loans. So really it may be a blessing that this happened right now. Still frustrating though.

I made my first crock-pot meal Wednesday night and it was really good! I have been staring at the "fix-and-forget-it" cookbook for a few weeks so I decided to give it a shot. But I only gave myself three hours...I soon found that a recipe like this can be finished quicker on the stove. Very nice.
I did not follow one recipe because I did not have all of the ingredients for just one, so I kinda made it up as I went. I will add the recipe because it turned out awesome! Note, I do not really keep track of quantities. Just a dash of this and a hand-full of that:

I'll call it "Spicy Chicken Stew"

~1/2 cup salsa
2 cup Chicken broth
a few red potatos (skin on)
1 small sized Garnish Yam
a few sticks of celery
a hand full of carrots
1/4 of a large yellow onion
1/2 red bell pepper
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (for some kick)
a dash or three of Italian seasoning (to be fancy)
One pre-cooked (boiled in broth) chicken breast

Directions:
Chop all veggies and meat to desired size and put in crockpot with all other ingredients. Turn on high for 4-6 hours. Or cook for three hours and finish by boiling in large pot over stove.

So simple even I could do it. :)
The Yams really give it a good sweet flavor to add to the salty of the broth. I'm a huge fan of the "salty & sweet" combo.
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The trouble with old houses is...are...well there are plenty of problems with old houses, but when you do not pay rent, those problems are worth it. I cleaned the bathrooms the other day. I don't think they have been thoroughly cleaned in decades. I found urine in places that amazed me.
We have a little bug problem. I would guess that this house has had this problem for many years because we found over ten cans or roach Raid in the garage when we were cleaning it out. The problem has diminished and I had thought it would simply go away with a little feminine care, but alas sometimes we have to call in the professionals. Our bug man came in yesterday and put out some roach poison gel into the hinges of all of the cupboards. We even found one immediately going for it. One thing many people know about me is that I HATE cockroaches more than almost anything ( I say "almost" because I am sure there has to be something that is worse, but I honestly cannot think of it right now). The story fast-forwards to this afternoon when I let my friend into the house. As I opened the door I noticed a good sized roach dead on the floor. (I realize as I am writing this that none of my friends are going to want to visit me after reading this...but the story must be told). I picked it up with a paper towel, and while I did so, I noticed another (much smaller) dead on the floor. I got him too. Then it hit me. The poison is working. But it also hit me, that these creepy creatures were taking their last revenge on me. I knew it would not be the last of the bugs I would be cleaning up that afternoon. When my friend left at four I knew I had a half-an-hour until I needed to leave to get Caleb from work. I was hoping to get a nap before that happened...but I knew it was futile. I got to work, feeling the shiver go down my spine. I opened the silverware drawer and there were two dead roaches inside. I pulled everything out and cleaned them out. Then SO reluctantly opened another drawer. Three, four dead bugs. This continued on until I had finished the drawers, then I got to the floor. There were even a few there. I cleaned it all up and took the trash outside. Just in case.
Did I mention I HATE cockroaches?!! I have the willies just thinking about them.

I love our home though.
I love it better now that the bugs are gone.

Turbid waters, Self-pity & Mind Renewal

I was forewarned that marriage would stretch me to need to be more selfless.
It's true.
A good friend told me that marriage tends to be a bit of an adjustment, but the way she explained it makes total sense now.
She said that the joining of two lives is like the coming-together of two rivers.
She said at first the two rivers are floating along just fine at their own pace, following their own course influencing the world on their own.
But then the two rivers converge and there is crashing and splashing and tumult, but then eventually the two rivers as they flow as one begin to settle into one pace and the chaos stills as they learn to flow as one.
I like that.

We got a card as a wedding present and I love what it said because it reminded me of this.

"A wedding is like the joining together
of two streams forming a new river. This
river will follow a new course as it moves
through landscapes that have never been
explored before. The purity of its waters ,
blessed by God, will bring life, love,
strength, and beauty. As the river travels
through seasons and change, there will
be many tributaries that feed into it, each
bringing its unique gifts, blessings, and
joys. In time, the river will grow in width,
in depth, and its influence upon the
lives of those who rest by its banks and
are refreshed by its presence."-Roy Lessin

This past week has been one of learning each other. Caleb is really clean, tidy, and considerate so there really isn't anything he does around the house that makes me upset. I am also not very particular about things like toilet paper direction, toilet seat position, or really anything in that category. But I am realizing that he is a little bit more particular than I am, which is fine. It just takes a lot more learning on my part. I am realizing that I tend to have a little bit more of a rebellious nature than I thought. I caught myself being pretty pouty one night at all of the things I have to remember.
I find myself having to pray for a servant's heart. It's good for me though. Really good.

Another friend warned me before marriage that insecurity may rear its ugly head early on in marriage. I think in a different sense than she warned, this has been true for me. But the thing I found the most helpful was her advice, because I find that when I worry about something or am just feeling self-pity it tends to take over my brain and temporarily incapacitate the freedom of my thoughts. She said that I must take every thought captive to the lordship of Christ. So I have been praying that prayer when I feel selfish, just surrendering my fears and feelings of inadequacy or self-pity. It's incredible how instant the relief comes!

Marriage

How beautiful is marriage!
It's not at all what I expected.
I expected it to be difficult. I expected to struggle through service. I expected it to be more difficult to communicate after marriage. I expected less romance and more of a struggle to blend two lives. I expected to be insecure and unable to meet expectations. I expected more tension between us.

It's been nothing like I expected.

I seriously LOVE being married. I love the pureness and cleanness I feel. I love the openness and ease of communicating about everything. I love the acceptance for every aspect of me. I was seriously surprised to enjoy serving him! I love the security I feel in his love and I love how that pours over into my interactions with other people. I love how it helps me to understand God's love. I love seeing how God has extravagantly poured out His blessings on us even though we absolutely don't deserve it.

I know it's only week two, but I am going to believe it only gets better from here.

Four days left and every day feels like Christmas

I have been laying in my bed since 545 thinking about wedding things. There are so many details to remember and it will be amazing to me if I can really pull them all off! Things going through my mind:
Janet gets here tomorrow, and I am SOO excited for that!
We still don't have chairs for our rehearsal dinner.
I wonder where my earrings are I am going to wear to the wedding.
Where are the girls going to get ready Saturday?
Where are the guys getting ready?
Does the photographer need to know?
Have I told everyone to meet at the park at 4 for the rehearsal?
I'm so excited about our bed! I hope it gets here by friday!
Should I get more burlap for decorating? How much is it?

I wish it was later in the day than it is, because then I could actually figure some of these things out!

I am SOO excited to get married!! I have butterflies in my stomach every day!

I have decided that someone should invent an instant clothes washer/dryer. Kind of like a microwave, but not to cook clothes..."When I have one article of clothing I need washed, I simply toss it into the Microlatherator, and twenty seconds later it's cleaned, dried, and ready to go!" I bet that already exists. I wish I registered for one.

Tuesday mornings I watch kids for Bible studies at church. I usually watch the one-to-two year-olds, but last week I watched the two-to-three year-olds. Both groups are a lot of fun. It's an amazing challenge to keep them all under control, but it's great. I think I am supposed to go this morning, but I never got a call from the coordinator of childcare. On one hand I know they are short on workers, but on the other hand I could really get a lot done for the wedding if I start before noon...I think I'll go, because I always enjoy it..and because I have TONS of time to plan my wedding!..ok, not so much the latter.

My aunt called me last night to stress me out. Not really, but it felt like it a little. She said, "well, since it's GOING to rain, do you have a tent on hand for me and the cake??" My thought was: WHAT?!! It's going to rain??! But...but I've been watching the weather forecast and it says it's not!
Ok, I'm really praying it doesn't rain, but I wasn't too worried about it until I remembered all of the things that shouldn't get wet. People are okay, decorations are okay, but what about cake and sound equipment?...Perhaps I should have one tent there in case that happens. Maybe I can just get a tent for the dance floor and if it rains I can display the cake there and put the sound equipment under the edge.

OK...I just checked the weather again and it says it's going to be partly cloudy, with a high of 71 and a low of 56. See? Perfect weather! :) We have nothing to worry about!

Home is where? & Static light show

We got most of my stuff over to the Princeton house today! Not only that! We even got a little settled in! I set up my library and we rearranged the living room. It feels SO much better. Today was the first day I have felt cozy and at home there. That feels good. We got some of our presents situated into cupboards and I set my desk up. AH! That will be my HOME next week! That's pretty weird. And great. :)
I have noticed I don't do well with transition times. It's strange to have my things at one place and to sleep at another place. I packed a bag for the next couple of nights
Did I mention I LOVE removing labels!? It's strangely addicting...a little like de-fragmenting a computer. We have a few root beer bottles that came with labels. Most of them came without labels. I have set myself to taking labels off by soaking them in water, then using an old fashioned replacement razor blade I cleanly remove the paper part. 
....
I just took a few minutes to fold clothes from the dryer. Upon starting, I could tell that whoever moved them over forget to put in a dryer sheet. So i decided to fold them in the dark so I could see the sparks. :)
That was difficult because once I got through about half of the basket I started to not recognize the clothes. I guess I was sharing a basket with someone else. So I went to turn on the lights and heard what sounded like a gun outside. I locked the door and went back to folding. I had done pretty well for folding in the dark! I'm used to dressing in the dark in the morning because Beth sleeps later than I do. When I sat down I realized the gunfire was not gunfire at all, because I could see fireworks out my window! Apparently something pretty legit is happening at Fresno State! That was almost the quality of the fourth of July, and I could see the whole thing quite well from my back window! Fun surprise.
PS, I love my dog. He follows me everywhere and just falls asleep at my feet wherever I am. He's at my feet right now. None of my roommates are home so without him I would be feeling lonely.
Tomorrow will be our last Sunday as an unmarried couple. I have butterflies in my stomach...of course that might be because I am listening to the song I will walk down the aisle to... :)

One mo' week. I put bleach in the pool.

I hate our pool. The green stresses me out. But mostly I hate the mosquito larvae, because we could get in trouble for having them. It is not our responsibility to take care of the pool, but the landlords have NEVER done it. Yesterday I was feeling itchy, thinking about the day when all of those larvae mature. SO I went to the laundry room and grabbed a bottle of laundry bleach. I poured the whole bottle into the pool, and at first it looked like there was no change, but a few hours later the pool looked a lighter shade of green! This morning it is even better AND there are no larvae! YAY! I feel better already.
I woke up early because I could not sleep any more. I made the mistake of going to bed at 10. I woke up at midnight thinking it felt like 7am. It wasn't.
So I'm up and rested and ready for the day. Good thing too, because today I move the rest of my stuff over to Caleb's. I will pack a bag for this week so that I can just stay here at the girls' house until then. Luckily Alex wants my mattress, so i could probably even just use that while I'm here. Janet and Anna will probably be staying here Thursday and Friday night...and maybe Saturday night (after the wedding).
Last night I had a lot of fun with Alex and Beth. Alex and I went dress shopping...and found nothing. Then The three of us went out to Madera to get some weeds for wedding decorations. In the dark. That was pretty fun. We came back with a trunk full of weeds...and a cricket. He might still be in Beth's trunk.
Beth ordered us a guest book for the wedding and it come in yesterday so we got to pick that up! It looks AWESOME!!! :)
Off to attempt  move out of my room without waking Beth up. Ha...

9 days. Last day of employment

Today was my last day with Joel, and I was actually pretty sad to go. I also felt a little worried...like maybe he won't get taken care of as well as he needs to be. I know what he likes and how to respond to him, but I'm worried someone else won't. It was also tough because now I am unemployed (aside from 6 hours a week grocery shopping for Mary Virginia). It's scary to think about starting something new...
I almost finished putting music together this morning/afternoon. I still have to finalize some of the reception songs.
Caleb and I were supposed to go downtown together and look for photography spots, but he ended up having to work late... I sometimes just really hate it when my expectations are unmet...kinda throws me off.
So I went downtown with Bethani and we mapped it all out and found some pretty good places in the art district.
I am really tired of being busy. It seems like since the day I graduated I have been busy planning, so I kinda wonder what it might be like to take it easy...
ok, I'm seriously exhausted. I have to sleep.