I am ENGAGED!!

Honestly, three years ago I thought that my life would never come to this point. But here I am writing about the day my heart desired.

It happened... and it was REAL!

On December 2, 2012 I travelled to meet Hunter during drill for the annual Christmas party. Since this was a dining out, I even asked Hunter what I should wear. In hindsight.. this worked out perfectly for Hunter.. as he got to choose every detail, even down to what I would be wearing.

I met a bunch of soldiers and their families as Hunter walked with me and showed me around. Hunter, as an officer in training had to serve the food to all the soldiers with the other officers, and so I waited until the end to get my plate and then he was able to quickly join me at the table.

After we ate we just sat and mingled. Hunter told me he would be right back. Before I knew it, he was near the stage, and his commanding officer said that Hunter had to make an announcement. Hunter took the microphone, and asked me to come to the stage. I was scared to death! I did not want to go on stage in front of all those people! But, I got up, and made my way to the front. I heard a soldier scream out from the back 'oh no! He's going to propose!' and my heart started racing even more.

When I got to the stage Hunter was grinning from ear to ear. He then got down on one knee, and said: 'Will you marry me, Keri Flowers?' I can't begin to tell you the millions of thoughts that were running through my head... how my mind was racing as fast as my heart. I was honestly shocked!! I got him to move the microphone away from his face and asked, 'Hunter, are you kidding?!'. When he said no, I was overjoyed! It was then that I responded, and I believe all I said was, ok!

Wow. What a day. I went the rest of the weekend in pure shock. We had talked about marriage, but in the future.. we even joked just last week about not getting married until 2018... wow. What a difference!

I am so happy, and so glad to have a wonderful guy who wants to be with me forever!

Where I was asking if he was kidding... :)

Yes!!

168th Engineering Company.. where it all happened!

High Five for Friday!

Praise the Lord it is finally FRIDAY! This week, I honestly thought Friday would never come. Here are five things I am super thankful for on this Friday!

• Hunter and I cooked almost every night this week, when I say that.. I mean, I cooked. It is nice to not have tons of homework to do each night, so I am making sure that no matter how tired I am, to cook dinner.
• Wednesday night, Hunter tried out the new men's Bible study at our church. He said it was really great, and I was so happy that he liked it.
• The diversion of the new class allowed me to have some time to get Hunter's birthday present! Sneaky, sneaky.
• A wonderful birthday dinner with some friends, Heather and Tyler. They came to my house last night to eat dinner and hang out for Hunter's birthday. What makes me so happy is that Hunter enjoyed the night and the meal. Last year, he was gone to basic training, so I tried to do as much as I could to make this birthday special!

This is Hunter's plate of food. We had corn, potatoes (grown in my Dad's garden), steak and shrimp.

• A restful weekend, Hunter and I only have a few things on our calendars for this weekend.. and, this will be the first weekend in over a month that we don't have a big event to attend. I am excited to spend some time sleeping (much needed) and just do a few things I want to do, as well as clean.

Linking up to Lauren at From My Grey Desk

Birthday

My birthday only comes around once every four years... Yep... you guessed it. I am a leap year baby, and a twin on top of that. One day, when I have time..  I will conduct a mathematical study on the likelihood of this happening.. Yep, I am a nerd.

Two of my best friends had birthdays this week, also! My friend Steph turned 22, and my friend Mary-Anne turned 24. Mary-Anne had a mini mid life crisis, which really got me to thinking.

24 - (or 6 if we are talking leap years) what do we have to look forward to? Most life milestones are gone.. or long forgotten. Now we just work, hope true love looks our way... and strive for retirement. That is when a co-worker and friend of mine said, you must set many more goals. Goals in life to keep you going, to keep you young.. to keep you strong. You can check out Clint's management blog here!

Life isn't over because we are getting older, we just have a new outlook on things. After all that has happened the past few years here are some things on my list:

Goals:
Graduate with my Masters (May 2012)
Get accepted to the PhD program
Get a teaching job, with my very own classroom
Get married (maybe one day...)

I believe after these goals are accomplished, another new phase in life will get started... then, a new perspective and yet another set of goals.

Perspectives:
Not much really matters in the grand scheme of things. Stephanie has taught me through her struggle to value life and everything that you are given. Don't worry about the petty pickings of those self absorbed drama lovers. As long as we have each other and know what is important... we can do this.

Have fun, working yourself to death when you are young will only kill you - I can thank Clint and Hunter, David Tingle and Mary-Anne for this one... IDK how many break downs I have had throughout this graduate school journey. And looking back to how much fun I had in undergrad. Working your tail off isn't worth if you didn't enjoy it along the way. Clint gave me an intervention pep talk about grades and perfection, and Hunter strives daily to take me away from the desk even if just for a little bit and make me smile (I have begun watching TV again!). DT and Mary-Anne, I wouldn't know what to do without their shoulder to cry on... through the tough times, it means a lot to have someone who will actually listen.

Take the time to listen, you never know what someone has went through, me included. Stop your judgemental rudeness and have a heart. Yeah world, I said it. ;)

Beyond it all, God can bring you out of and through anything.. it may not be the way you planned it, or the way you wanted it. But that is why He is God and we are not, isn't it?  This year I asked God to heal my friend Steph for my birthday, and even though He may have said 'no' or 'not right now' somehow... this will all work out... I haven't been in the greatest mood or mindset though all of this, and I am trying really hard, but it is harder still to watch someone you love suffer. But that is another post for another day.

Here's to another year, another goal, a blessed life from God and some of the greatest friends a girl could have. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!



Here is a wall shelf a friend handmade for me, for my birthday! :)

Click here to read a short article done by the local news back home for mine and Donna's birthday.

A special visit from Hong Kong

I was privileged to meet a beautiful newborn, along with the rest of Hunter's family this weekend.

Hunter's brother, sister-in-law and their two kids live in Hong Kong. They came to the States for a visit and we were able to spend the weekend with them in Tuscaloosa this past weekend!

Layla, the oldest child, is 2 years old and just adores Hunter. She calls him 'Uncle Hunty' and wanted him to be by her side the whole visit. She is sweet, and stunningly beautiful. What a great kid. Aly, the newborn was a peaceful and happy baby, cute as a button too!

Hunter's brother and sister-in-law were great. I now know where Hunter gets his mannerisms. He is the spitting image of his oldest brother, and they are very much alike.

Here are a few pictures from the weekend:

Layla wanted Hunter to rock her in the tiny rocking chair. She said it 'wouldn't rock' without him. How sweet!

After rocking, Layla and Hunter played more. Look at those smiles through the glass!

When the boys moved to the living room to watch TV, Layla and her rocking chair had to go too! Here is Hunter, watching TV, while steadily rocking the little one! Precious!

Hunter's brother came to sit in the chair with Hunter. This is Layla, concerned that her daddy is squishing 'Uncle Hunty'!! See those beautiful curls?!

I had a great weekend. And I even got to be Layla's favorite for an hour. She sat in my lap for dinner and we played and played. What great family. This weekend was truly a blessing!

Christmas

Hunter and I celebrated Christmas a little early since we are each with our respective families. He gave me a beautiful Pandora bracelet that I actually picked out myself! What a day!

Hunter and I went shopping last Saturday morning to 'buy a gift for his mother'. Boy, was I fooled! We looked at all the Pandora jewelery and he even sized my wrist to 'make sure the bracelet would fit his mom'.

After looking through many charms Hunter made his final selection and the gift was wrapped and paid for. We shopped around a few more stores and then went home.

I had dinner with my roommate and her family, and then Hunter game over later for us to exchange gifts. I was so shocked when I opened the gift we had picked out earlier that day. He even wrapped it the way I told him to!!! I told him, Hunter, this is your mother's gift.... and he assured me it was mine.

After going back and forth for a few minutes, I finally opened the beautiful gift! How thoughtful, and clever of Hunter! He did such a good job, and I love my gift!

A beautiful gift! A rose charm, for SAI, and a cross charm. This means so much to me, and I love it. Church is what brought us together, and what a blessing it is!

Beef noodles

Hunter's dad makes wonderful Taiwanese beef noodles.

The week I stayed when them for his graduation was the first time I had ever been with a family so immersed in the culture of Taiwan. After serving more than 20 years in Taiwan, that is where their heart lies.

Beef Noodles are spicy and heart warming. The perfect comfort food, and I understand why Hunter likes them so much.

The second time I stayed with his family his father cooked them again. It is Hunter's favorite, so they try to make it every time he comes home. This is when Hunter's family taught me to use chop sticks to eat my beef noodles. It was HILARIOUS! It took me twice as long to eat mine as it did for them, but I was not going to be the only one at the table using a fork and spoon!

The soup is a labor of love...filled with spices, beef and specialty items. It cooks all day, and the house smells delightful as the fragrance fills the air.

So... the other day, I tried to make a cheap knock off. While it was good.. it was nothing like the real thing.

Ingredients:
Noodles (I used fettuccine)
Beef broth (or bullion and water)
Crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste.

I first made my broth and brought it to a boil, then I added the spices. The soup is meant to be spicy... SUPER spicy.

I then cooked my noodles, and once cooked added them to the simmering broth.

Ta-da. Super simple, and quite tasty... but like I said, not as good as the real thing. But this would be a great soup for a cold winter night when you have a cold. :)

Happy cooking!

Fish Tacos

I must say, I have cooked for many a person throughout my college years, and I was quite impressed when I noticed Hunter eating (and liking) vegetables. And he likes fish too!!

I am excited to know that he will eat most anything, and it is fun being able to cook good for you items like vegetables, without a fuss. So yesterday we decided to experiment and make fish tacos for dinner. With a little help and ideas from my friend Jackie I think they turned out well, and Hunter like them too!

Fish Tacos:

Tilapia fillets

Blackening seasoning (I used Old Bay)

Tortillas

Toppings of choice: Hunter used re fried beans, I used vegetables and cheese.

The one thing Hunter seriously doesn't like, is cheese. Crazy, isn't it?!

One easy to make veggie side I love is sauteed bell peppers and onions. Chop your veggies into slices or cubes, for me, this varies depending on what I am cooking them with. Heat a pan on the stove with a little olive oil. When the pan is hot toss in vegetables and season. I usually just use salt and pepper, or a little soy sauce, again depending on what I am making them with. Stir occasionally, the veggies are done is a matter of minutes. Quick and easy!

Next, the fillets. I rinsed them, patted them dry with a paper towel and then sprinkled Old Bay Blackened seasoning all over them. I chose to pan fry them, so I then placed the fillets in a shallow pan with hot oil. cook for three minutes on each side, or until fish flakes with a fork.

Hunter and I then assembled our tacos. We each chose an array of toppings, and you can too! Here is my finished product: What a fun, quick and easy meal!

Go Guard!

Earlier this week, I prayed to my Lord... but this time my prayer was very different. I cried out to God. I told Him I knew we weren't worthy, and that maybe we didn't trust Him enough to take care of our situation. I didn't question why, I just begged that He take care of it, however He saw fit.

Hunter has been on a roller coaster ever since he left for basic. Riding on military promises of scholarships and the desire to return home, he and his family frantically worked to get him to Alabama this fall.
We have hit many potholes along the way. Somehow, a Tuscaloosa native was classified as out of state, and the promise of a military scholarship disappeared. Money was squeezed out of everywhere possible just to make it through the fall... $12,000, one semester. And best of all, there was 'no place' for him in the Alabama Guard.

If you can imagine, Hunter is now left with empty pockets, and no scholarship... There was no idea of what to do. Option one: go back to Arkansas and get deployed. Option two: Stay here, drop out of school and risk getting arrested if the Alabama Guard didn't give him a spot (he would be considered AWOL in Arkansas). There wasn't another $12,000 just lying around for him to go to UA next semester... but thankfully, many, many backup plans were devised.

So, I will spare you all the crazy details, but after many stressful nights and phone calls. Hunter was sworn in to the Alabama National Guard yesterday. There was just one catch, he had to re class. His MOS (military occupation specialty) would have to be changed. There was still no place for his job, a combat engineer, and he would have to change to get a spot. Unfortunately, there wasn't an MOS of his choosing, but he had to change to get in. There is the option though, in a few years, that he could change back... Here's hoping.

So, he is in, no more AWOL, and no deployment for now. He is going to enroll in the local community college for next semester, just so he can keep taking classes. To go there out of state is 1/3 the cost of going to UA out of state. He has another promise of in state tuition and the hope of a scholarship for next fall... But we shall see in time.

For now, we are just thankful to have a plan and a direction in which to work toward.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Focus

It has been titled the 'game of the century' and I am so excited to live, work and play in the town where heaven is, Tuscaloosa. ROLL TIDE!

No where else have a lived or anywhere I have heard of that your teams call sign is a greeting, a condolence and 'the right answer to any question.' I will never forget the conversation, 'Don't know what to say? The appropriate answer is ALWAYS 'Roll Tide'.'

#1 LSU vs #2 Alabama. Wow, what a concept. It is so hard to stay focused and not thing of the million things I have to get done before tomorrow, as well as the million things I have to do tomorrow.

Since Hunter was at basic all summer, he wasn't able to purchase student tickets this football season. However, he has been able to go to every game so far through ROTC or the student ticket donation system. We don't have high hopes for such a popular game... but we will see.

My parents and Aunt and Uncle are coming up for the game and I am so excited to see them! It will be my Aunt's first college football game she has ever attended.... I have to say, she picked a good one.

So here's to a crazy, chaotic, fun filled weekend! ROLL TIDE!

Semi-homemade dinner

I love to cook. It gives me some of the greatest joy in life. With my busy schedule I am often tired and worn out by the time I get home. Two nights ago Hunter and I were pondering what we would eat for dinner... I hadn't put anything out to thaw that morning, so unless we wanted to eat late, the meat needed to be something that didn't have to thaw. So, in the spirit of Sandra Lee I took my groceries and went to work.

Hunter loves steamed vegetables. The fact that he loves veggies blesses my soul... and he always wants them steamed, I guess that comes from his Asian roots. :)

So, we had: Beef tips (precooked, heat and serve from the grocery store), rice, steamed broccoli and corn.

The key to this meal was getting everything ready at the same time.. each component took different amounts of time to cook.. During this meal, I used all four burners on my stove.. I wish I had gotten a shot of that.

Now, most everything was pretty basic, heat the corn add seasonings, cook the rice and season.. warm the meat.. so I wanted to spruce up our meal by adding a little something to our steamed broccoli.

I steamed the broccoli by placing it in about an inch of water in a pan on the stove, let it boil for 3-4 minutes and then drained the water. Afterward I added a little soy sauce and some seasonings to the pan and cooked the broccoli a minute or two more, infusing the soy sauce.

And, we're done... a meal in less than 30 minutes. And Hunter seemed to enjoy it. :)

Like I have said many times, cooking at home saves you MONEY! It is good together time as well. Meals don't have to always be fancy and tough to be enjoyable... quick throw together meals are great too!



Oh, Happy day!

Lately, I have been in a slump. I am sick, tired, worn out and exhausted. These feelings have become a part of my every day life, and I am slowly learning to cope with them.

The past few weeks however, I have let the rude comments and remarks of others get the best of me. My main love language is 'Words of Affirmation' and I take what people say and do to heart. I know I shouldn't, and that I don't need to worry about things like that... and that is something I work on daily.

Last week, I just couldn't take it any longer, I took off work after lunch and made the journey home.  People had been rude, my student worker hadn't done his job, and I was stressed with school, starting to get sick and OH so tired.

Side note: My student worker never does his job, this is not an uncommon occurrence. Unfortunately on top of his usual laziness, last week, he neglected to do a weekly report that he has been doing for the past two years. Nothing out of the ordinary people, no special demands. No extras. So, at 11am as I was working to get everything I needed to do for the rest of the day finished, my boss asked about the report. I frantically finished a seven page report in one hour. It wasn't the fact that I had to work frantically to get it finished, it was the fact that this kid has all week to accomplish this.. and come Friday he hadn't even started. Anyways....

So, after a very stressful morning, Hunter and I began the journey to my hometown. Friday night we celebrated my high school homecoming. ZC beat NB for the first time in 5 years... and we won homecoming! It was definitely different being back there... but it was good to see some old faces.

Saturday we had a lazy morning with my family and traveled to the Troy game and watched my sister work with the band. My dad was loading hay for a man in Texas and I took the opportunity to show Hunter around the property. We watched my dad load hay, and I took him through some of the fields. That city boy was amazed! He had a great time watching the cows and being in the great outdoors. The Troy game was an interesting one. Things are different and it is weird just sitting and trying to watch a game, as opposed to being in the band. We left during the third quarter to watch the Alabama/Florida game and were very happy to celebrate wins for both of my schools! Go TROY and ROLL TIDE ROLL!

Sunday, was an adventure in itself. Hunter came to church with me... mind you, Hunter is a big city, mega-church kind of guy. So it was interesting bringing him to my down home country church! But, I think he enjoyed it. :) We had lunch with the family and then traveled back to Tuscaloosa.

I cleaned up, unpacked and worked on homework until late into the night. Hunter and I got into our first fight of our relationship.. and it was all over a miscommunication! HAHA! He was so sweet... as I was angrily unpacking he walked up behind me turned me around and just hugged me. (JUST like in the movies!) I cried I was so angry, and because I was so happy to have him there, and to know that one little fight wasn't going to ruin us. He is truly a blessing.

So here we are... back to the daily grind. I hope you each have a wonderful week, filled with many blessings!

Unrealistic Fears

I have an unrealistic fear of bugs.. ESPECIALLY roaches.

This morning, I woke up at my usual time (4:30am) and went into the bathroom... I started the water for the shower, and was washing my hands when I noticed something moving. Mind you, I just woke up... I have no contacts in, no glasses on... So if I can see something... it is BIG.

I was freaked, so I ran out of the bathroom, grabbed my glasses and went back in for a look. Sure enough, it was a roach. So I go to the kitchen and grab the roach spray... I was freaking out. I tried spraying the roach, but it just kept running... It ran behind my hand towel and I thought, here is my chance. I grab a shoe, and slam it full force flat on the towel, trying to cover as much as possible to maximize me actually squishing the roach. To my demise, out the roach ran... AHHH!

When I say I have an unrealistic fear, I mean... my mom has recommended I get counseling for how afraid I am. However, I am not doing that... because I know they would just put me in a room with a bug and make me deal. NO WAY!

So, I am trying to be as quiet as possible not to wake my roommates at such an unreasonable hour. But after my two attempts to kill the roach... I just can't take it anymore. I am completely freaking, being hysterical and sweating.. like, sick nasty, rolling down your back you have sweat so much, sweating.

I get my phone and call Hunter... and after explaining what is going on, he comes to my apartment, at 4:45am to kill the roach. Praise the Lord for him! He then cleaned out my bathroom so that I knew it was safe to take a shower, and I then got ready for work.

Praise the Lord for him! Today, I am so thankful. I don't know what I would have done without him being able to come help. Yeah, I know it is sad.. but there are just a few things that I can't handle. Roaches being #1 on my list.

Do you have something you have an unrealistic fear of? How do you deal with bugs when you are home alone?

Just call me 'Anna Clare' (Embarassing Moments) 2.0

Hunter was kind enough to purchase three Army themed shirts for me while he was at basic. When deciding what to wear to church Sunday night... I chose one of the shirts. This overjoyed Hunter, and his mind immediately devised a plan.

Hunter wanted to match to church. The shirt I had chosen was also one he owned. I thought, oh my.... I laughed and told Hunter I never wanted to be 'that couple'.... and that I laugh at couples who do that. So then, we made it a joke. How hilarious and out of character would it be?!

So he went home, changed into his shirt and a pair of pants almost the same color as my crop pants. When he got out of his car I thought... oh my goodness.

Some of the people at church loved it, others were, well... just plain rude. But in the end, we had fun being the crazy couple we are. As we were singing in church I 'sang' the words 'everyone is looking at us' to him.. and it was all we could to to keep from laughing. Our college minister was dying to take a picture, but we escaped her. ;) Before the sermon got started, I wrote on the back of Hunter's sermon notes, "Matching, a twin's worst nightmare."

Something I have avoided all my life, because I am a twin, is matching. When Donna and I would walk into the bathroom wearing the same thing, the one who put it on first got to keep wearing it.

We had a hilarious night at church and had a good time making those around us laugh. However, I was super embarrassed at times, and I am so glad we don't have picture proof! :)

Abundant Blessings

This week I have been struck by so many blessings. Hunter and I are having a great time getting to know one another IN PERSON. There were times when I wondered if the bliss of the letter writing would still be real when he got home. Praise be to the Lord that I can say, he is. Hunter is a true blessing.

Now, this post may be... as my besty Mary-Anne and I say... "gagarrific" but I felt the need to post a little about how great God is and how He is blessing me.. especially in the small things.

Have you ever wanted something so badly, and never thought you would get it? You may think of big things, or little things.. maybe even random things. This may seems sad to you, but I take great joy in the small things in life... so here goes.

REWIND: Hunter brought me lunch to work, the week before he left for basic, and it was really sweet. It was the first time we ever hung out together.... so I guess our very first informal date. He texted and asked if I wanted to have lunch with him, when I told him I could not because my lunch break is only 30 minutes, he said that he would bring me something. I was overly flattered, to say the least.

Back to the story: New blessings...

1. Hunter continues to bring me lunch on random days. It is so sweet, when he gets out of class he shoots me a text and asks what I would like for lunch.
2. Hunter made my bed for me one afternoon, funny enough that he made it just like they make them do at basic (he is still a little brainwashed) but I was just thankful that he did something to help me! :)
3. One Sunday after church we went to his grandparents house for a visit. I had slipped my shoes off at the house and was just enjoying our time there. When it was time for us to leave, before I could even think, Hunter had my shoes in his hands and was putting them on my feet, Cinderella style.
4. Hunter killed a bug in my apartment. For those of you who know me, I am deathly afraid of bugs; so this, my friends is a BIG DEAL.
5. Hunter randomly stops by to visit me while at work. To me this matters because he drops in just to say hi, or see how my day is going. I have longed for a friend/companion who cares enough just to stop by. It really makes my day.
6. Hunter comes to my apartment on Wednesday's and makes sure I am ready to be at church at 7. I go at 7 for choir practice, and the college group meets at 8. Hunter comes to church with me at 7 and just sits around, just so that we can go to church together. It is a wonderful feeling having someone who wants to lead and having someone who wants to go to church with me.

Ok, so I will stop being gross and sappy. HAH! I hope and pray that all the small blessings in life become fully evident to you throughout the rest of the week and the coming days. Praise be to God for he blesses us beyond our imagination!

Just call me 'Anna Clare' (Embarassing Moments)

Just call me 'Anna Clare'. HAHA! Do you get embarrassed easily? I definitely do. Part of it has to do with my naivety and how gullible I am. When embarrassed, my face turns red as a beat and my skin gets hot. I cannot hide my emotion, and it is very obvious.

Times like these has been the source of a good laugh for many people for many years. And so, occassionaly I would like to share a moment or two with you.

Today I want to share an embarrassing moment of Hunter's, that directly involved me. Surprisingly I was not embarrassed at all and laughed it off. However, his eyes grew as wide a saucers and he continues to apologize.

Last Thursday Hunter and I stopped by his grandparents house for him to change out of his ACU's for the BCM Church tailgate. This was the first time I was able to go over there with him, so we took the opportunity for me to meet his father's parents.

Since Hunter returned from BCT/AIT we have laughed at the fact that he is bad at introducing me. I think he just honestly isn't used to me being there and he is still coming off the brain washing. Not that he won't introduce me, he just waits a little bit into the conversation to finally say, oh by the way, this is Keri. HAHA!So no biggie, if I don't remember the name of the person I am speaking to, I am not going to try to awkwardly introduce you either! ;)

Anyways, back to the story. Hunter and I walked in to his grandparents living room and he said, Hey, this is Anna Clare. His grandmother questioned and when I realized what he had said I was shocked and then doubled over in laughter! His eyes were as wide a saucers and he immediately apologized, said he had no idea what he was thinking and reintroduced me as Keri. HAHA! Whoa.

This has been the joke of the week when something goes wrong. Just call me 'Anna Clare'. Hunter and I returned to his grandparents on Sunday and he successfully reintroduced me, as Keri. Wound mended, time table restarted.

Have you ever done something complete mortifying?

I feel that this is the beauty of God's grace. We are human, guess what!? We aren't perfect! So many people judge so quickly and look so harshly at others when something goes wrong. However, how many times have you made a mistake today? Often times it is an honest mistake. Deal with it people, you are HUMAN!

Praise be to God for the forgiveness of all the times we wrong Him, whether we mean to or not. Praise God for His infinite mercy.

Chaotic Afternoon

Yesterday, my afternoon turned to utter chaos. I was having a hectic day at work trying to get things done before the start of classes today. Hunter was able to come back with me on Sunday rather than driving down on Monday like originally planned. This threw a wrench into my surprise party planning... but thankfully it all worked out.

Here at UA I have an assigned advisor and a research advisor. My assigned advisor is very disorganized and rude. It makes me sick to have to go see him every semester.

Yesterday, I received an email from my advisor saying that he had been looking at my transcripts and that I must meet with him, that afternoon. After a series of emails discussing that I have to work and could only come at a certain time.. we finally found a time.. and the sickness was on. I was red hot stressed and physically nauseous. Yeah, I know... but he bothers me that bad.

After I got off of work I went by picked up my books and headed to my appointment. He was actually in his office at the time he said he would be and I was shocked! (Last time I waited for over an hour for him...) We met and discussed a lot of things, he said a lot of hurtful things and then completely redid my schedule, literally the day before classes start. After discussing this with an old friend who assured me it would all work out, I went to see my research advisor and tell him what had happened. They each have differing opinions of what I should take. My research advisor is who I trust, someone who remembers my name, and took the time to get to know what I wanted to do with my life, etc. My advisor can't even remember the name of the undergraduate university I attend, all the while hurling insults in my face about it.

Unfortunately, my academic advisor is who signs off on my graduation, so my research advisor and I were forced to comply with his wishes.. completely changing my schedule. Side note: My academic advisor had no suggestions for me on what to take this fall back in the spring when I met him for advising... that is why my research advisor scheduled my classes.

So, I went down to the computer lab, registered for the new list of classes that I was supposed to take and then returned to the secretaries to turn in the books I had just received and get books for my new schedule.

As I was walking out to my car, it hit me. No matter how crazy this seems, how scary it is to go from a plan you have had for a long time to suddenly throw that out the window.. God has a plan. This plan has been the theme of my life, especially since moving to Tuscaloosa. I have experienced the worst of utter chaos, and here I stand to tell about it. This, class change, was just another bump in the crazy road called life. God gave me and absolute calm and a sincere peace that He was turning things upside down again to protect me. In the end, God will provide and His provision is all I need.

I thought that was then end of my troubles for the day and I went to my apartment to get things ready for the party. Just when things couldn't be any crazier, the person who reserved the club house for me didn't do it correctly and I was out of a party venue. My sweet roommates agreed to frantically clean the apartment and have everyone at our apartment. Gabby and I were sure Hunter knew about the party... and that there would be no surprise.

To make another long, crazy story, short... Everyone made it to my apartment fine, there was plenty of food and fun, and Hunter was totally surprised. :) I am so thankful for my church family... what an amazing night, and Hunter was so thankful. We were able to celebrate him graduating, coming home and his birthday while he was at basic. What a great night.

In the end, God is our healer and provider, and no matter what chaos may be thrown our way... it all will work out, just the way God planned. PRAISE THE LORD!!

Hunter's graduation

I had such a great time traveling to Arkansas, staying with Hunter's parents and then traveling with them to Missouri for Family Day and Graduation.

It was a great experience that I will not soon forget. Family day was interesting because we were allowed to spend most of the day with our soldier, yet he wasn't allowed to do anything. So, we just sat around post, ate and chatted. These boys are like zombies... it will take a while for them to get back into a normal routine after 16 weeks of basic training.

On graduation day we got all dressed up and waited for our soldiers to arrive. They marched into the theater shouting an Engineer cadence. What a sight. So many proud new soldiers, and many more proud families and friends.

After graduation while waiting to be reunited with our guys, Hunter's mom looked to me and said they each looked like zombies. And she was right. We learned from Hunter that they had been awake since 3:45 that morning... wow. Every last one of them was sleep deprived and worked to near death. I am sure they were glad to be done.

I spent another two days at Hunter's parents with him, getting things done and just being lazy. It was a great and much needed vacation. Short and sweet.. but so happy. I am glad to have Hunter back in town and look forward to many great things this semester.

ROLL TIDE!

A year from now...

Yesterday was a hectic day, move in for UA started and Building Maintenance is crazy busy. Here I am typing my blog, at work... on Saturday. HAHA! I am working 7am-5pm, today... and tomorrow. But, I get to work with the best guys in the world. So I don't really mind. ;)


Yesterday afternoon as I was wrapping things up around the office getting ready to go home I got an all too familiar question asked. "Are you engaged?" I laugh every time. People are so hilarious. It is a question I am asked more often now that I am getting older... and the presence of my 'True Love Waits' ring kind of throws people off.

My ring, however, gives me a great opportunity to minister to all those who ask about my non-existent engagement. I am so proud to share that my ring is a commitment to my Lord to be pure and abstain from thinks such as pre-marital sex, drugs and alcohol. The Lord knows how to show Himself, even when we don't know. It is amazing how simple actions can convey the love of the Lord.

As 'pchamp' continued to talk to me about my ring eh then moved to ask me how old I was. HAHA! I am a total child compared to this guys. Working here gives me almost 80 big brothers and dads... and I just love it!! When I told him I was 23, he asked if I was dating anyone... when I responded yes, he asked for how long, so I told him Hunter and I had been dating almost four months and he responded with, "I give you a year". This had me hysterically laughing at my desk! He said, I am serious, I give you a year until you get engaged. With a smile I told 'pchamp' that I would still be working here in a year, so that he would get to see if his thoughts were true. ;)

That is why I am posting it in my blog. Too funny. I love these guys, and in a year from now, I am going to look back on these posts and see how much my life has changed, and if 'pchamp's' prediction comes true. I know it will all happen in God's time and I am honestly not worried about it at all.

In 5 days I will get to see Hunter for the first time since the tornado. I am beyond excited to see him, and beyond excited to be able to spend time with him. Our church friends have jokingly labeled us as 'courting' rather than 'dating' because we have only been able to communicate by letters for most of our relationship.

I thank God for the wonderful blessing to get to know someone this way, and to have a legacy of letters that I will be able to share with many generations to come. Writing letters is truly a lost art, and hey, if this math girl can like it, ANYONE can!

I hope you have a happy weekend!

30 Days

The waiting is almost over... It is hard to believe that is has been almost three months since the tornado.. and and almost three months since I have seen Hunter. I am thankful for the 5 minute phone calls, (sometimes I get a 20 minute call!!), that assure me that he is doing well.

Yesterday's letters said that God has blessed us through this journey. And I could only agree. I am so happy to have gone through this time with Hunter, and I am so glad that he was willing to go through this time with me. I couldn't be happier, and the legacy of letters and memories from this summer filled with old school communication, aka 'snail mail', will be memories and times I will not soon forget.

30 days.. 30 days left until I travel to Arkansas to make the journey to Missouri with Hunter's parents. I was fortunate to have coffee with them on their most recent visit this weekend. The Lord blessed us with beautiful weather and I had a great time sitting outside Starbucks just taking the time to chat. We solidified plans for my coming and I am so thankful to have such a blessed relationship with Hunter's parents!

30 days. When I first started this countdown 76 days ago, I almost felt as if I would never make it to this point. Don't get me wrong, there have been times I was so sad, or worried, and I wasn't sure that I could deal with him being gone. But God has provided and blessed. God has given me the much needed time to focus on my studies while Hunter was away, and has strengthened me and grown me in ways I never thought possible.

I am so thankful for what God has blessed me with through Hunter. I pray that the Lord would continue to draw me close to Him over the next 30 days, and then continue to draw me closer beyond that time. What an amazing chapter to add to my journey. God's blessings are definitely better than anything that we could ever imagine!

Fitness goals

So... yesterday I went to the student rec on campus.. with the idea to get a little work done in the fitness department. I received a letter from Hunter about two weeks ago talking out his PT test and his recent run times. Hunter was a track athlete in high school, and his brother even ran track for Alabama.

His recent run time was 12:48, that is 12 minutes and 48 seconds... He ran two MILES in this time... WOW. So, naturally.. ever since we started talking, and I had my 5k stint last fall.. He wants me to run with him. Haha, no way. He runs almost twice as fast as I do.

Therefore, I must work on it... and get better. When he gets back from basic and AIT, I don't want to be miserably embarrassed. So... yesterday I began. I did 20 minutes on the elliptical, unfortunately, I was only able to make a distance of 1.55 miles, but my back is definitely soar from the arm workout. :) Hooray for progress! I then did 20 minutes on the stationary bike, for a distance of 9.0 miles. I was playing with my ipod and phone and what shocked to see the total distance. Hopefully after working up considerable distance and resistance I will have the endurance to actually run a few miles. :)

So, here is my workout goal.. hopefully I will stick to it!!