An update from the good twin (hehe...luv you Becca!)

For some odd and annoying reason, my blog is being stupid, and not downloading pictures from Nanette and Gabe's wedding. Grr... but you can see some at Becca and Jamie's blogs. Once my computer stops being dumb, I'll post some of my own.

Anyhoo-

I haven't written in a while, so I'll catch you all up to speed. I went to work on Monday with a small ache in my tooth, and over the course of the day, it grew into a full fledged throbbing in my mouth. It was UNBELIEVABLY painful, and I had to call Mike to bring me medicine.

Work called me off the next day because they weren't busy, so I spent all day trying to find a dentist that would take my insurance. FINALLY, after about 12 tries, someone gave me an appointment. Comes to find out I have a sizeable infection in my mouth, and I need a root canal. Yuck. They can't take me for a couple of weeks, so they gave me pain killers and antibiotics. That night my face swelled up to the point where I looked like I had a golf ball in my mouth. It scared the snot out of me, so I called my dentist as soon as I got up and left a message telling them that I need to come in ASAP. I had to work that day, so I went in and opened the studio, and called my manager and told her what was going on. So she let me off, and I went home and waited until the dentist to call me. They finally did, and they told me that I had to wait 48 hours for the antibiotics to work, and until then, I needed to up my dosage of painkillers.

Finally, on Saturday, the swelling was gone, and I could function like a human being again.

As for work, I didn't go in on Friday (which was suppose to be my last day). Mike and I stayed in NY for a day longer, and we had the most WONDERFUL time home. My mom made the best thanksgiving dinner, and got to spend lots of time with my older sis and my brother. My mom and I spent the day on Friday shopping, and it was so fun. It actually wasn't too busy in the stores...thankfully!

Sooooo....
This weekend was the first time that I sang on the worship team at Crossroads. It was tiring but fun. Mike and I had a lot of fun ministering together again, and we'll slowly start putting me into the rotation. Sunday night Mike and I put on some Christmas music and put up our tree together. We had so much fun. This was the first time we put it up together, and I want to start making it a tradition.


So that brings us to today where I've spend the day cleaning, and getting ready for small group tonight. I have a huge list of things that I need to get done this week, and I've been trying to cram in all in today. But then I realized that I don't have to work this week, and I have lots of time!!! So I sit here with my warm cup of hot chocolate and my lap top, taking a breath, and looking forward to the weekend when my sissy comes down!!!!!! YAY!!!!

So I hope that all of you are doing well! Oh, and John, Amy, Christy, and Jamie- I need to know what you want for Christmas!!!!!

Peace Out!

On to Greener Pastures

I figured that this is the best way to tell you all what's been going on in my life because it's been really hard for me this past month or so, and I don't want to have to tell my story over and over (I get really emotional..imagine that), so this is my solution.

So I put my two weeks notice in today, and it was probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I've been having a lot of problems there, and I just feel like it's time for me to move on. The hardest part about it all is that I LOVE my managers- I consider them friends- and I knew that I was going to hurt them by leaving.

Mike and I talked about it, and we decided that I wouldn't wait until after Christmas to quit, and that sooner would be better. You see, I was suppose to take over the assistant manager's job while she went on maternity leave, and now they have time to find someone else before she leaves.

So after a sleepless night, and getting up early to pray, pray, pray, I went to work. I decided that I would tell my managers at the end of my shift, so I spent all day with my stomach in knots. Whenever I felt my anxiety taking over, I'd just go to the back room and pray that the Lord would give me strength. I honestly have never been so scared. I know it may seem stupid to get worked up over something like a part time job, but I just couldn't seem to calm myself down.

At around 4:30, I told my manager that I needed to talk to her and Becky (who was coming in at 5), and she looked at me and said, "is it bad?". And I just looked at her. She said "you're quitting, aren't you". And I knew I had to tell her then and there, and I just told her that this was such a hard decision, and that I'm so sorry that I was doing this in the middle of the busiest season we have, but I had to leave because of personal reasons. You guys, she was SOO understanding, and so wonderful about it. She told my assistant manager, and she also was so nice about it. So I told them that I would stay on until next Friday, and then I'd be leaving. I was so relieved that it went well, but I know that there will be some fall outs in the next week and a half with other employees, and I know my managers will get stressed and take some of that stress out on me- but I'm prapared for that.

I left work tonight with a ton of mixed feelings. Peace because I knew I did the right thing. Guilt for leaving at such an inopportune time. Tired because I hadn't slept the night before. Relieved that they took it so well. And foolish for being so scared about it.

But I'll sleep well tonight, I know that. I'm going to take some time off and let myself heal before I find another job...I'll start looking beginning of December. I don't want you guys to think that I'm being lazy by doing this, but I really need time to get my feet back under me, and really figure out what to do with my life- with my career...

So that's what's goin on... thanks for your prayers and concerns. I love you all so much, and I ask that you continue to pray for me over the next few weeks!

Much Love!

Zathura

Mike has Fridays off, and to brighten my spirits a little, he treated me to a day of going to the movies, dinner, and a little Christmas shopping. I wanted to see Pride and prejudice, but it only comes out in select theatres today, and apparently no theatres were selected in Pittsburgh....grrr. So we tossed a coin between Chicken Little and this new movie that came out today called Zathura. It's like an outerspace version of Jumanji. The previews looked cute, so we thought, hey, lets check it out. BIG mistake. Huge.

We're pretty sure the movie has no plot. There were some mini plots that kept you occupied for a few minutes, but nothing to write home about. And the last 15 minutes of the movie we didn't really see all of because the movie reel went haywire, and the alignment of the movie moved up about a foot and a half, and all the heads were chopped off. Totally lame, and extremely annoying. Two thumbs way down. The ONLY good thing about the movie was the little boy- he was so cute.

I'm embarking back into the world of Sears Portrait Studio tomorrow, so I'd appreciate some prayer. I'm having a hard time trying to make a decision about staying or leaving, and I've been pretty upset about the whole thing. Poor Mike has to deal with my mood swings, so you can pray for him too! I'll keep you all posted about it all.

I'm sorry I've been so neglectful with my blogging! Life has thrown me a few curve balls this past week or so.... i hurt my back at work (where's Kurt when I need him!), and I now have to go to Therapy 4 times a week- it's a total waste of my time. I've been working a ton (and it stinks cuz I hate my job), and this week I came down with the WORST case of the flu EVER. Plus I've barely seen Mike this week, so I've been bumming. So needless to say, I haven't had much time to get on the internet.

But enough of my whining and ranting...

I got the chance to play with my new camera this past weekend. Our friends, Nate and Natasha, got married last Friday, and they asked if I could take some pictures. Of course I jumped at it cuz I love to do it, and the pictures turned out well. I still need to figure out my camera a little bit more, but overall, I'm pleased. I posted a few for you all to see. Enjoy!

Hope all is well with you all!

Mike was at it yet again, and he sang and danced along to Ice Ice Baby at the wedding, just like he did at Christy and Ben's. It was so hysterical! The little flower girl wanted to be just like him. Dare to dream, little one!