Motivate Me Monday~ God of this City

I get goosebumps every time i hear this song or see this video. And with the events of tomorrow... i hold this truth close to my heart.

God of this City
By Chris Tomlin

You're the God of this city
You're the King of these people
You're the Lord of these nation
You are

You're the light in this darkness
You're the hope to the hopeless
You're the peace to the restless
You are

There is no one like our God
There is no one like our God

For greater things
Have yet to come
And greater things
Are still to be done in this city

For greater things
Have yet to come
And greater things
Are still to be done here

My Hubs **ROCKS**

My husband is pretty darn amazing all around... really. He makes me laugh, makes me melt, makes me sure, and makes me proud. He's not perfect... there are things about him that drive me NUTS and that i pray God to touch... but he makes me happier than anyone else ever has and ever could, and i know that God directed our lives just so we would find one another.

The think i want to highlight this week though... is the fast that he's in the United States Navy. This past weekend we celebrated the Commissioning of his ship... the ship he is stationed to... the George H.W. Bush. It was a huge event... justin's 2 sisters, mom, and niece all came from Iowa, families flooded the area, and when the day came... 20,000 people attended the ceremony. As i sat there with my Mother In Law and sister in laws and watched our men line the deck and salute those of us who might not be IN the military, but who live the life and sacrifice all the same... i couldn't help but be so proud.

I honestly don't like the military all that much... i'm glad that some people like it, and support our troops with all my heart... but i hate living the life myself. but on saturday... i felt so great knowing that we were a part of this huge group that makes this country work, that promotes unity, and shows the world what we stand for. I couldn't see my husband... but i imagined him standing on that flight deck at attention and saluting. and i was so proud... he has done something i never could. He pushed himself through Boot Camp, he gets up at 5am every day and goes to a job where he is demanded to show respect to others... while he himself gets very little respect... he works around a loose and ever-changing schedule... and he sacrifices time with his family to go out and move the ship forward with time out to sea. He has even decided to live out here alone... so that we can invest in a home, and i can go and finish school. it breaks my heart... but trust him.

He is an amazing man... he loves me, he loves our son, and he loves this country. I absolutely adore him. :)

MHR Questionier...

I always love doing things like this... it makes me think, and along with allowing others to get to know ME, i get to know myself a little better too. :) This is a little questionier that runs along side the "My Husband Rocks" movement. Enjoy and pass it on!


1. Where did you meet?
We met at our job... we worked at a local grocery store, Fareway. He was a little bog boy, and i was a checker. :)

2. How long did you date b/f you were married?
Not long... we knew each other from Oct. 2005-May 2006, when we started dated. We then dated from May '06-Dec. '06 when we got married. And we have been married for 2 years now. :)

3. What does he do that surprises you?
he loves to cook and is GOOD at it! and often offers to cook dinner for us... i love it! :)

4. What is your favorite quality of his?
His faithfulness... i have NEVER seriously had a 2nd thought about him being unfaithful. :)

5. What is your favorite feature of his?
oh my... everything! he's a hotty... what can i say? i serioulsy don't know if i could pick one thing about him that i love more than the rest of him... ok, i'll say his voice. i STILL melt. :)

6. Does he have a nickname for you?
Nope... i kinda wish he had a pet name for me, but he's just not into them. But i love it when he says my name... like i said, i melt... i melt into a big ol' puddle of lovey ooze! :)

7. What is his favorite food?
Stuffed Peppers... but honestly i'm not sure. He loves all food... Pizza, Meatloaf, hamburgers in general... lol i know his LEAST fav. food... sausage!

8. What is his favorite sport?
paintballing... i know it's not the norm. but he's really not into football, baseball, or basketball that much. But he loves paintball!


9. When and where was your first kiss?
our fist kiss was actually about a week before we officially started dating... so the first week of May... like the 3rd, i think. We were sitting in his car in my grandparent's driveway. :) i LOVED our first kiss... I kissed HIM, and he was totally shocked... SO shocked in fact that he didn't move at all. *sigh* so cute.

10. What do you like to do together?
watch movies, cook...

11. Do you have any children?
We have one... Nathaniel James. He was born on March 21st, 2008... so he is now 9 months old. We LOVE being parents.

12. Does he have a hidden talent?
He's REALLY good at cooking. Also... he can sing, he's just shy about it so he never does. :P

13. Who said "I love you" first?
he did... i literally pinned him down and teased him til he admitted it. but i was mean... i didn't say it back for a long time... i wasn't ready, but he was amazing and waited. *sigh* he is amazing.

14. What is his favorite type of music?
Country... or Rock... :)

15. What do you admire most about him?
He fought for me against everything... my broken heart, my fear... he totally won me over with his devotion to me.

16. Do you think he will read this?
IF and only IF i show him... :) lol

MY HUBBY ROCKS!

Today i want to share yet another reasons why my husband rocks...





One thing i love about my husband is that he kisses me goodbye almost every morning before he heads to work, it's SO sweet...

i may expand on it later... but right now i have my inlaws here and i have to wake up at about 5am tomorrow. ;) Goodnight!

my little experiment...

hm... so, justin and i have always kinda had this "battle" between us... we have a very unbalanced need of intimacy between the two of us, and you'd think that the woman (me) was the one totally fine going awhile without any "mommy-daddy" time... but on the contrary! Justin is the one just wanting to CUDDLE... and usually HE'S the one who decides when we have ANY kind of lovey. kissing or anything else... this left me feelings a little jaded, a little unneeded/unwanted at times, and just plain dejected. It seemed totally unfair that HE got to call the shots in this area... (and i'm NOT just talking about mommy-daddy relations!) i was getting frustrated because Justin's really just naturally NOT very touchy... while i AM! if you know me... i'm huggin' on EVERYONE and their dog! so i'm just a touchy, lovey person normally! but justin is NOT... and often this really leaves me feeling rather cold as i grab my romance book off the bedside table and bitterly read about all the flirting in my BOOK.

so yesterday... justin had been at work for about 36 hours straight... Duty Day. :P So he came home and i decided i was gonna be as fickle as he was normally. Now, it was pretty easy since he brought a friend home with him (thank you very much for letting me know... i was cleaning out our closets in sweatpants, a baggy t-shirt and no undergarment!) AND nathaniel usually makes a point to have daddy's undivided attention when he gets home from work... so any kissing wouldn't have happened anyway. But once nathaniel was content and our friend was gone (about 2 hours later! :P) justin was wanting a kiss... and i just avoided it. Fed nathaniel, played with him, watched some TV, got on the internet... just did my own thing. And he's kinda noticing now that something's up... I start making some dinner and he was helping and kinda getting huggy, wanting a kiss. and i just said i didn't feel like it... that nothing was wrong, but that i just wasn't in the mood to get all kissy and stuff. He's like... "About 10 things are wrong with what you just said!" and i just laughed and said i wasn't feeling it. so he kinda sulked... went and did his own thing after he ate, and i watched TV... thinking he would come into the living room at any moment and DEMAND i kiss him after his long day at work! but no... HE JUST WENT TO BED! Seemed that my plan may have backfired... i hadn't meant at all to upset him... just kinda make a point. :S plus i had wanted to take an uninterrupted shower, and needed his help with nathaniel to accomplish that! BUT i didn't get that, so i just dealt with it and took a shower anyway... called my mom, chatted with her... put nathaniel to sleep, and then curled up in bed, WITH A BOOK (though... not romantic... "1984") and settled in. Woke up this morning to justin up 1/2 an hour early, out in the living room checking things on the computer... i came out, and continued with my distant treatment. he got ready, shaved, got his uniform on, and was at the door... i was NOT gonna let him go off to another full day of work without a kiss! :S

so i told him i loved him... "No you don't!" his playful reply was. and i laughed and looped my arms around his waist, looking up at him, smiling. "Why?" he asked. "Because." i laughed. "Thats not a reason!" he whined. I laughed a little more... "I wanted to give you a dose of your own medicine!" He looked totally flabbergasted! "Well thats a basic!" he exclaimed! "So?" i shrugged.

Anyways... what got me was that he went on to tell me that he'd been really frustrated... he wasn't gonna FORCE me to kiss him, but he hadn't know what to do with himself! "I didn't even want to watch the new Scrubs!" I just thought it was... unexpected how it had affected him, AND how he had handled it. he had totally been beside himself... wandering around the apartment, trying to figure out what to do with himself! it was slightly funny... but i really hoped he would see how i felt those nights with ALL I WANTED WAS TO MAKE-OUT A LITTLE!!!

I read a Bible vs... where it explains that once you're married the wife's body is her husband's, and his body, her's... now i'm not talking about demanding sex here, i'm talking about ALL touchy-feely-lovey stuff. And i know that usually it's reverse... the man wants more, and the woman has a "headache" or is "too tired"... but i'm talking about having that common respect and care for one another in the physical area. Sexually, and other areas... offering to take the kids so your spouse can have a decent SHOWER, for example! ;) AND... knowing when cuddling is enough, too and loving that time together too.

i am praying about this balance... and it IS something we can pray about! who knew sex and the such could be COMPLICATED! ;) never would have guessed it in those nice dating/newly married days!

baby steps...

well, i've kinda-sorta been MIA lately... i just feel like theres not much to blog about in my life... even the holidays left me feeling like i lead the ultimate boring life! lol BUT... i am back and will try to blog more often.

Nathaniel is now 9 months old, has one small tooth, and has taken his first steps and is well on his way to destroying our home even more! Thankfully it was a night where Justin and i were BOTH home and purposely working with him. :) i had the camera and justin was walking with him, then letting go and calling nathaniel to him. lol so he had our undivided attention! He is now trying to stand and walk by himself ALL THE TIME! :) soon he'll be climbing... i don't know WHAT i'm going to do then! i have lots of shelves and bookcases!!!!

Justin and i have decided to have me move home... and we are currently investigating the option of buying a house... applying for a loan, checking out houses, talking to realators. I have mixed feelings about it... excited to be HOME, with family, going to school, and buying a house... BUT, the uncertainty of it all scares me, and the thought of being so far from my husband for so long makes my heart ache. It will not be easy... or fun, really. But things have just kinda fallen into place, and justin feels confident in this decision. I think this takes a lot of stress off his shoulders... and maybe adds it to mine, but i feel like thats ok. It will maybe even be good for me. ??????? But... we were kinda in this limbo, and it was freaking us both out and we really just needed to make a choice. So we did... and we're walking in faith and praying that God is going before us. I intend on spending a lot of time at school, with my family (both sides), and at the gym.

I know that living this far apart for a husband and wife will have very..... touchy, vulnerable, and sensitive situations involved. Our communication will have to be sharp, and we will both have to watch our company. So as much as i love my guy friends... i'm gonna have to be careful about hanging out with them. this is new to me... but out of respect for Justin, i think i should limit hanging out with my guy friends to hanging out in groups, if that. plus, I'LL just feel more comfortable that... i don't want rumors going around Oskaloosa!!!! Just my luck some old lady from my church would see me having lunch with a guy friend and the next day everyone thinks i LEFT my husband in VA and am having a hot affair!!! LOL LOL Pa-LEASE! I just don't want that starting... and i'm not even gonna sit here and preach, "I don't care what other people think!" because i do... i do a lot, and i think we should. When we take on the "I don't care what people think! I'll do what i want!" attitude, thats when people start getting in trouble, and getting hurt. So i'm mostly gonna have GIRL NIGHTS! Which i'm PUMPED about! :D lol

I also want to spend a lot of time at the gym for 2 reasons... 1.) i want to look smokin' hot for my hubby whenever we see one another! HAHAHA! 2.) my ex-very-serious-bf recently got engaged... and i need to look SMOKIN' for that wedding!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA! i'm so evil, i know! ;)

and here are some pictures from over the holidays! :)