Brief

Wow, I didn't realize how long it had been since I last posted.  Other than going through our daily routine, things have been fantastic!  I got a new job three weeks ago, and Chase has some things coming up for him, and we are so excited!  Tomorrow I start my third week at my new place, and I'm really enjoying it so far.  My coworkers are nice, and I'm learning a lot.  I don't really want to disclose where I'm working, so that's why I'm vague on the specifics.  With this new job, I'm able to put retail to the side (praise da Lord), and I'm still able to be at my other job.  Yep, I'm still working two jobs, but I have a normal schedule of working til 4:30 Monday-Friday and have the weekends off.  I really love having the nights and weekends off and getting to spend that time with Chase.

-Chase and I went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee back in January with our Roarin' 20's church group.  It was nice to get away for the weekend with a little group of friends.

-On January 23rd, my dad had his tracheotomy tube removed and is perfectly capable of breathing through his nose!!!  He had his tube for about ten years, and he is so happy that it's gone!  He is now able to live a normal life and do simple things like paint, swim, fish, shower, etc without having to worry.  He is a completely different person now and is so happy!

Other events:
-Chase's birthday is on the 29th.  Yep, he's a leap year baby!
-My sister-in-law's wedding is March 10th.
-Another friend getting married on March 17th.
-Birthdays in between the weddings.
-Probably something else that I can't remember right now.  lol.  I just wanted to give a quick update.  When I'm not feeling as lazy, I'll post a more detailed update with pictures!

Trippin', Stumblin', Flippin', Fumblin'...

I never willingly listen to Fergie, but I like to use lyrics for the title of my posts, and I feel like these lyrics sum up this entry.  I'm feeling very random right now, and I don't have anything that is just down right news worthy.  It has been a little while since my last post.  The past couple of weeks have kept me busy whether it was work or the 15 million (ok, more like five) Christmas parties Chase and I had to attend.  Speaking of Christmas, our first Christmas as a married couple was great!  The picture you see on the left is what I woke up to on Christmas morning.  I went to bed early on Christmas Eve, and as I was trying to fall asleep, I heard Chase ruffling around the house.  He told me earlier in the week he had a little something planned for us.  The sign hung from the living room entry.  Chase and I busted through it together, unwrapping our first Christmas :)  He is just so darn clever! 

In other news, at the ripe age of 24 I got my ears pierced.  This has been something that I've thought about doing for awhile, but I wasn't ready for that kind of change.  lol.  But I'm glad I went through with it.  I now have 12 pairs of earrings that I'm eager to wear! 

Anyway, I can't believe that 2011 is almost over.  It's so wild how time gets away from you and flies by.  2011 started off a little rocky.  I made myself sick with worry over finding a full-time job (which I still haven't found.  ughhh) and how to manage my finances to pay off my student loan debt.  But I'm VERY pleased to report that I am debt free!!!!  I amaze myself with how silly I feel when I think about the stress and worry I put myself through at the beginning of the year, and then God came through and made the way for me to get out of debt right before this year ended.  I was able to get half of the money by selling my car.  For those who don't know, I had the pleasure (ha!  yeah, right.) of driving a Pontiac Grand Prix.  Poor ol Penny broke down on me every chance she got and loved to aggravate me with small issues.  It's actually a miracle that I was able to sell it because my poor car was so beat up from all the hit and runs.  Anyway, Chase helped me out tremendously as well.  Before Chase and I got married, I told him that the student loan was my debt, and that I would take care of it.  But with Chase being the kind hearted, giving person that he is, he worked some over time to put towards the loan, not because I was whined or nagged at him to do it.  He did it because he wanted to.  He simply loves to help people.  Sometimes I can't believe that I am married to someone who is so wonderfully sweet. 

I found this picture on Pinterest earlier today, and it is so Chase and me in 50 years.  It's caption was "this is why you marry your best friend."  He and I have so much fun together laughing with or at each other.  We always find ways to make new jokes or find something funny to share at the end of the day.  This kind of happiness that I have with Chase is so refreshingly different from what I felt from my previous relationship.  I actually feel wanted.  Chase is so happy to see me and so eager to talk to me.  He sometimes calls me just to tell me he loves me.  Oh goodness, I'm now tearing up just thinking about how loved Chase makes me feel.  Before Chase, I thought I had the best.  I've never been so happy to be so completely wrong in my life.

So back to reminiscing on 2011.  This year is ending on a good note.  I am so excited to see what 2012 has in store.  2012 is going to be the year of blessings, answered prayers, and promotions.  Chase and I are going to prosper.  Chase and I will be able to move forward with our goals.  And hopefully we will become parents to a sweet little puppy!

"This is our fate. I'm yours."

I had been wanting to blog again, but I didn't know what to talk about.  I didn't want to bore anyone with the details of a typical day for me.  And then it finally came to me.   As I was getting ready for church this morning, I noticed how my heart was so full of love and joy.  I am so stupidly crazy in love with Chase.  So for this post, I wanted to share some of our story.

I met Chase back in the fall of 2006.  I had a class with Kevin, one of his best friends, and Kevin thought I would be a good match for Chase.  But at the time, I was dating someone else and our relationship was long distant (Kevin didn't know this).  Anyway, one night Kevin called me to see if I wanted to go out to eat with him, Amy (one of my best friends), and Chase.  We all met up at Mi Hacienda, and Amy and I were introduced to Chase.  I didn't think anything of it since I already had a boyfriend, but it was quite the opposite for Chase.  He was smitten with me from the start.  From later conversation, Chase knew I had a boyfriend, but that didn't stop him from flirting with me.  haha.  The four of us hung out a couple of more times, but the last time we all hung out was one of the most significant for Chase.  We were all at my house and wound up dancing in the kitchen (keep this in the back of your mind while reading!).  It was fun, and that was that for the night. 

So time goes on, and Amy and I drifted from Kevin and Chase.  Not because of anything bad, we just drifted apart.  We were apart for about a year, and during that time, my then boyfriend broke up with me.  It wasn't until Valentine's Day of 2008 is when Chase and I reconnected.  Chase was on his way to Hallmark to buy his mom, sister, and grandmother a Valentine's Day card (aww, so sweet!), and he suddenly remembered that Amy worked there.  He asked about me and gave her his number to give to me.  As soon as Amy got off from work, she texted me saying "You're not going to believe who asked about you!!"  After a few more exchanged texts, she gave me Chase's number, and I texted him.  Lol, I was entirely too nervous to call him.  So we had our first date on Valentine's Day and have been together ever since.  There was a brief break up period at the beginning of our relationship, but we ended up finding our way back to each other.  This is so wild.  Chase and I tried to date other people, and we both had our most terrible dates ever on the same night in the same town.  That's another story though.

Fast forward to December 2010.  I was getting ready for my college graduation and getting excited about lunch at Carrabba's afterward.  I had no idea that Chase had another plan up his sneaky sleeve.  After eating the best lunch of my life, Chase and I were heading over to his mom's house.  On the way there, Chase called me to tell me that he had to go help some friends pull their truck out or whatever and told me that he would meet me at his mom's.  Little did I know that he was actually getting ready to propose.  I get to his mom's house and stayed there for about 20 minutes.  Chase called and told me to come by his house because he had a present waiting for me.  It wasn't until I got in the car that I realized that he was going to propose.  I don't know how I got that feeling, but I did.  I remember that it was a very quiet ride to his house, and I kept thinking that I was going to feel really stupid if this didn't happen.  He had me come in through the front door (which is never used).  As soon as I came in, he started playing "You and Me" by Lifehouse.  I walked in the living room and was so surprised.  Remember the whole dancing in the kitchen night?  Well, that was the set up in the living room.  There was a big back drop that said "Chase and Kim Forever."  He also made a dance floor filled with his favorite pictures of us through the years. 

And I will never forget what Chase said as he proposed.  That night when we all danced in the kitchen, he felt something.  He felt like he fell in love with me right then and there.  He prayed for me on the way home and felt an overwhelming sense of peace come over him.  He never felt so sure about someone.  It didn't matter when we met that I had a boyfriend.  He had never felt so confident in pursuing a girl.  He had prayed for his wife for six years.  He was crying while he was talking, and I was so surprised that I didn't really say much or cry while he was crying.  I feel so blessed to have someone so sweet, selfless, and silly in my life.  I love how we can joke around and poke fun at each other.  I love the little moments we have.  I love falling asleep next to him.  I love how he loves to make me laugh.  I love how he puts others first and desires to spend time with people.  I love how he is willing to do anything for me.  I just love him.  I can't get enough of him, and I am so happy we are spending the rest of our lives together.  I can't wait to see how life unfolds before our eyes. 

Let's get it started in here.

This is my third attempt to start an introduction post.  Lol, I don't know why I always feel so awkward with that.  I almost always never know what to say.  Anyway, I had this sudden urge to start blogging again.  Yes, again.  I use to be on livejournal.com when it was all the rage (I guess it still is), but it started to feel more like a chore to keep up with as opposed to being leisurely fun.  A part of me has missed documenting my life in greater detail which brings me here.  So, let's get it started!

For those of you reading (or who I hope is reading, ha!) already know me or know of me.  So I figured I'd just tell you where I am at this point of my life.  I live in Alabama with my sweet husband, Chase.  He and I have been married since July, and it's so wild how we have been married for almost five months now.  Time has flown by, and so many good things have already happened for us.  I am so excited to see what God has in store for us, and I love how He has unfolded all the little blessings before our eyes.  In addition to being married, I also teach a sweet group of four year olds and work in retail.  Finding a full-time job has certainly proven to be difficult, so I swallowed a little bit of my pride and went into retail to boost the income a little. Hey, every little bit counts.  Even though I am not exactly thrilled about working in retail, I remind myself to be thankful that I am able to have two part time jobs.  I absolutely love my group of four year olds.  Sometimes I feel like I learn more from them than they learn from me.  They remind me to be thankful of the little things, teach me how to be resilient, and they have improved my patience immensely.  So in between jobs, I find myself on pinterest.  If you haven't discovered the greatness of pinterest, you definitely should!  Just go to pinterest.com.  You can thank me later.

And when I'm not working on a project that I found on pinterest, I spend time with Chase.  I have enjoyed getting to know him on a deeper level.  We have so much fun making new jokes, laughing with and at each other, and taking on new hobbies.  I find myself cooking more.  For those who really know me know that I don't really cook.  I do love to bake, but I just haven't been able to bring myself to cook until now.  I was on a roll a couple of weeks ago.  I made taco soup, homemade pizza, and homemade macaroni and cheese.  I have never cooked so much before.  lol.  Anyway, my absolute favorite thing to do with Chase is our Friday night dates.  We always go out to eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant, and then come back home to watch Dateline.  Sometimes we like to change it up by walking around Academy or Target after we eat, but that pretty much sums up our Friday night!  I love how the both of us are so low maintenance.  The little moments really do matter.

For the past week, Chase and I have been going to Lowe's to update our kitchen!  The house we live in was built in the 60s, so the design is a bit outdated.  Plus an older woman lived in the house before Chase, and it looks like her grandchildren went buck wild in here.  All sorts of stuck on food splatterings are all over our back splash.  And the color of the cabinets remind me of those embarrassingly unfortunate sweat stains on white t-shirts.  We are painting the cabinets white, installing some wainscoting to help cover up some of the stained paneling (which I dislike soooo much, and the paneling is all throughout the house.), installing wainscoting above our cabinets to cover up some of the buckling, picked out new cabinet hardware, and putting up a ceramic back splash.  I AM SO EXCITED!  I'll post before, during, and after pictures when the project is complete.  Thankfully our kitchen is the size of a hallway, and Chase and I both think that we can get this done before Christmas.  We've already sanded the cabinets and I painted some of the shelves and cabinets.  We hope (well, rather I hope) that we can finish painting the cabinets this week and get started on the cabinet doors next week.  The back splash is going to be the last thing we install since that will take the most work.  With the little bit of painting we've done so far, the kitchen looks so fab!  The white really brightens the small space.

Ok, now that you feel as enthralled as me about my mini kitchen makeover, I'm going to stop my rambling for now.  As dorky as this sounds, I have forgotten how much I like to update.  Hopefully I'll be able to keep up with this better.