Things about Amarillo

Here are some things we have learned about Amarillo since we have been here :)

• Everywhere....I mean EVERYWHERE is closed on Sundays!
• There are way more cute little boutiques than I thought.
• It's dry as a bone out here....although it has stormed twice since we've been here.
• Our neighborhood is apparently full of cats.....which we know how I feel about that!
• The historic district (about a block from our house) is gorgeous with the most delightful old houses, huge trees, and perfect lawns.
• There are lots of bikers in this town.
• There is no DSW, Chipotle, or Fuzzy's which is just sad!
• There IS the largest Hobby Lobby I've ever been in, a very cool downtown area, and lots of parks!
• There is a ZOO!
• It's full of cowboys...real cowboys.
• It smells like cow poop a majority of the time....yes worse than Lubbock haha

More adventures of West Texas coming soon :)

Sean and I's ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY was the other day, and I can't believe it still.  We are a wonderful day looking at wedding pictures, notes from friends and family, and just reflecting on how this past year went.  We both decided that we had the best first year ever and are incredibly bless to have each other.  Sean is defiantly one of a kind that balances me out and brings me so much joy.  One year in and I can't imagine my life without him :)

We did get some good laughs about how we have changed in our relationship and individually!  He told me that he thinks he knows exactly how I would act in any situation, which is probably true.  I also learned that Sean loved Spice Girls when he was younger....guess that's what they mean when they say you learn new things about your spouse everyday!  He truly is my other half and I'm so blessed to have him as my husband :)

I'm dying to post pictures of our little cottage home up in Amarillo, but I have to wait for my interior decorator, Jennifer Lipman, to come and help!  She has ALWAYS decorated my living spaces for me whether it's half a dorm room, a tiny tiled room in a house, our first apartment, and now she's coming for our cottage home.  I truly couldn't do it without her, and I have a feeling we will be on pinterest all day getting ideas for diy projects and different ideas.  I still think she should open up her own store and decorate for a living!

Speaking of DIY projects....I am taking on my first HUGE furniture project!  Sean and I are redoing his old dresser for our bedroom.  I tend to get pretty ambitious in my projects, so hopefully this one turns on ok!  I'll post pictures hopefully tomorrow with the finished product!

Here are so pictures I've been meaning to post:

Dessert date with mom and dad

Crackle Barrel dessert.... delicious!

dream door knobs from our hotel in Galveston

Our last meal in our first apartment :(

Sean insist I put this on our blog :)  One of the most hilarious pictures of all time!

Amarillo is Home?

Well folks we are officially moved in and semi-settled in Amarillo.  We still wake up every morning and can't believe we are here.  With some fantastic help thanks to Marshall, Bekah, and Josh, we got all moved up here in a very large, very full Uhaul.  We were blessed with a breezy 114 degrees moving weekend...needless to say we owe some friends.  My parents also came up for the move extravaganza, as they always do to help their little girl move.  They were a HUGE help as mom made the place shine, and take fixed everything broken in sight.  Sean and I are crazy blessed to have family and friends that love us and love Jesus so much!  Pictures coming soon...

Also between the last post Sean finished Step 1....praise the Lord!  We should be finding out the scores here within the next few weeks.....keep those prayers coming!  We also went down to Houston for Grampie's memorial.  It was a very good remembrance of him and some wonderful family time.  I'm so glad we got to be down there for a few days on Sean's break.  After our visit we headed down to Galveston for a day/night relaxing celebration.  We arrived that morning and spent the whole day at the beach.  After that we drove to our fabulous European style hotel and realized we looked like LOBSTERS!  Guess that's what a day at the beach does to you.  After we bathed in aloe vera we had a wonderful seafood dinner.  It was a very relaxing day with good, quality time together!

I feel like there have been so many changes in our lives recently and lots of stress along the way.  Sean and I have spent the last few days really reflecting on how we handled the past few weeks and if we truly trusted Jesus in all of it.  Something we learned was that when we take situations or problems into our hands and we try and figure out a solution, it ALWAYS turns on wrong...duh right?  God has been teaching us to look at him for everything life gives you and to never rely on your own strength.  We were listening to a podcast and the pastor said something about hating when people say 'God never gives you more than you can handle.'  He said he gives us more all the time so we are forced to rely on his strength.  We could have never gotten through this crazy time without God's grace and strength.  My prayer right now is that my passion to know Jesus grows more and more and in that, that I would fall in love with him more.

Pizza and Dust

The night before the big day Sean got done studying at about 6:00 so he could relax.  It worked out pretty perfectly that game 6 was on...I was praying that it would be a good distraction and not an even more stressful one.

I surprised him by ordering his favorite Chicago style pizza from Lou Malnatis which he was very excited about.  Nothing like good food to calm your nerves.  We sat on the floor in our living room and scarfed down the pizza while watching the Mavs dominate the Heat (our kitchen table has been turned into an office therefore we eat on the floor now).

Precious husband eating his pizza with a glass of wine

While we were watching the game during a commercial, the very energetic weather man from Lubbock comes on and announces a "Severe Weather Warning."  He shows a map and says that a WALL OF DUST was approaching Lubbock and to take cover!  What does that even mean!  We look outside and we couldn't see anything, it was perfectly sunny and a few clouds.  A few minutes later we looked outside and could see some red off in the distant, nothing out of the ordinary for LBK though.  THEN we looked out and it was crazy wind and very low visibility! The picture doesn't even do it justice!

Crazy "wall of dust" in Lubbock

Nothing like pizza, dust, and a ship to get you focused for Step!  Keep him in your prayers today...he should be done about 4:00!  Wahoo!

The Circle Trilogy

Right now I'm reading The Circle Trilogy books by Ted Dekker.  I just finished the second one, Red, this morning and can't wait to pick up the last one, White.  Normally I'm not into christian fiction as they can be a little cheesy sometime, but Sean told me to read them so I did.  


After finishing Red, it truly is like experiencing God through literature.  I don't want to give anything away in case you read it, which I strongly recommend, but they way Dekker parallels Christianity is incredible.  If you need a good summer read, pick it up! 


I need more summer reads though, so if you have any let me know!


My new obsession, other than SYTYCD, is a website called pinterest.  I could literally spend a few hours on this thing thanks to Mrs. Julie Eyehorn! It's really helping me organize my thoughts about decorating, recipes, and diy projects....and if you know me at all you know I need some help with that!

3 days and counting

Alright ladies and gents...3 more study days till Sean's test!  He's doing wonderful, but very ready to get it over!  I'm so proud of how disciplined he has been, and I know he's going to absolutely rock this test!

The other morning I was sitting across from him while he was studying, and I was looking at diy/decorating blogs (don't judge) and I asked him if I could quiz him!  He gladly handed over his 2 inch book that he's been going through.  I opened it up and he already know what was on that page...he seriously has photographic memory!  I stumbled through pronouncing the words and, with his help, eventually spit out a question.  Ya'll he rocked it!  He knew every answer and could just say these crazy words!  Sean seriously amazes me with all that knowledge he has packed into his head :)

**Hopefully he won't read this blog cause he hates when I brag on him :)  I'm supposed to though!

Please keep praying for:
-Townsend family
-Sean's test (all day on Monday)
-Direction for next year
-Peace as we are getting ready to change directions in our lives
-Carpenters as they get ready to move to Africa!

Miss You Grampie

Yesterday morning we got a call from Mrs. Townsend that her dad, Grampie had a heart attack and was in the hospital.  Throughout the day we were hopeful that when he woke up from the coma, it would be difficult, but that he would be fine.  That was not God's plans though.  Yesterday afternoon precious Grampie went to be with Jesus.  While this is very unexpected and difficult, we know God prevails through even this.

Grampie and the family at our wedding 

Please be praying for his wife, his family, and friends as they are copping with this loss.  Be praying for strength and that God's name would be known through this.  Pray for comfort and assurance in Jesus.