Afghan

Woop woop!  I finished my afghan.  Let's take a look at the progress.  About 2 1/2 months ago my friend and co-worker Mary Beth convinced me to make an afghan.  I've done plenty of scarves and hats but had never taken on a project so large.  She's done quite a few boosted my confidence.  She also kept me accountable so I didn't take any huge breaks from it.  I'm not going to bother giving you a tutorial because I'm not an expert, and I learned from MB and a youtube video, so you can do the same. :)

Balling up some more yarn while on our girls' trip in Minnesota

Mapping out the layout to see how many more I need to make

Sewing together all of the granny squares

Unfinished afghan as a makeshift tree skirt

December 23- Finally enjoying the finished product

Graduation

Robert graduated on Friday, December 12.  Way to go, Robert!  Robert is the bomb, but we give God the glory for leading us and guiding us throughout this whole journey.  Robert completed a 90+ hour Masters of Divinity with Advanced Standing in 2.5 years.  We've actually only had two friends graduate while we were here, and both of them started before Robert.  It's a rigorous program that puts my 30 hours MA to shame.

We were fortunate to have lots of family come for the event of the year.  Robert's dad, his dad's wife, and his dad's sister arrive on Thursday afternoon.  His mom and her husband arrived that evening, and my parents and Memaw arrived late that night.  We were able to spend some time with everyone together as well as smaller groups.  On Thursday we went out to Red Robin with R's dad and company.  Then he and I headed to the hotel to see Serina and Mark.  My parents and Memaw got to RDU around 11:30pm.  I was a zombie but still excited to see them.  All of our family stayed at the same hotel which was convenient.

Robert had to be up at the chapel at 8:00am on Friday, so I went over to the hotel to do my makeup with Memaw and Mom.  Robert doesn't understand, but it's just more fun to get ready with other girls.  We all headed to the chapel and got some good seats.  Since it was a small graduation they combined the college students with the seminary grads.  In the spring they have separate services.  Our friends Anna, Forrest, and Andrea were able to come as well; such a sweet treat!  It was a good service: President Akin was the speaker, we sang Christmas carols, and Robert didn't trip.

After the service we took pictures and headed to Over the Falls.  Lunch was delish!  After that, Serina and I picked up R's graduation cake from Sweet Traditions.  It came recommended by a co-worker, and it didn't disappoint.  I went with red velvet with cream cheese frosting.  We all went to our apartment to eat cake and chat.  The rest of the day was pretty chill - naps and takeout for dinner.  We wrapped up the day with some Christmas lights

Everyone but my family left early on Sunday.  My family was able to go to church, and we all ate lunch together.  Then it was time to take them to the airport again.  It was such a fun time of celebrating!  

Grandparents

God has blessed me with four wonderful grandparents who have created a lasting legacy for their family.  My family has a phrase for when we’re just thinking about somebody and how much we love him or her.  It’s called a “love bubble.”  Today, I had a love bubble for my grandparents, and I wanted to take a minute to type out some things that I like about them. 

Grandma

Grandma is a world-class cook and baker.  When you walk into her home you are guaranteed to be welcomed by some beautiful, delicious smelling food.  I think it’s just a tangible way to show she cares.  She’s willing to put time and energy into making an incredible meal that you won’t forget, and while you’re eating at her dinner table you’re bound to hear some great stories and share many laughs. Grandma can’t be beat when it comes to Scrabble.  When I was little she and I would team up together.  I’m afraid I’m too old for that now, and I’m also afraid I’ve never won in a game at their house since then.  Grandma helped nurture my love for reading.  The summer of 2009 I stayed a few extra weeks in Pennsylvania after my parents and brother left, and she introduced me to a series that she enjoyed.  I have such good memories of sitting out on their wraparound porch and reading those books in the evening.  Grandma is a faithful servant of the Lord.  She is long-suffering, doesn’t complain, and believes the Lord has always been faithful.  She is a prayer warrior and always speaks words of love and encouragement when we have phone calls together.  That being said, she also knows how to put Grandpa in his place!

Grandpa

Grandpa knows how to make anyone laugh.  Whether it’s with a backhanded comment, some funny saying, a sound effect or whistle, or just with a dramatic action, you’ll be laughing within about 30 seconds of being with him.  In my opinion, that’s always a good quality. Grandpa is one of the hardest workers I know whether it’s shoveling snow for the church, helping out a neighbor, keeping his house in tip top shape, or serving our country – when there’s a job to be done he does it.  Grandpa is another faithful servant of the Lord.  For decades Grandma and he have driven more than half an hour to get to church every week.  He has taught Sunday School, been a deacon, and served in many capacities for years.  When he walks into church you can tell everyone knows him and is glad he’s there. He is an excellent example of Christ’s love, and you can see it in the way that he has taken care of and loved Grandma faithfully for over 50 years. 

Memaw

Memaw is another world-class cook and baker.  I have great memories of putting on an apron and  baking bread together, watching it rise, and always making my own miniature loaf.  Memaw and I share a love for writing.  Memaw taught me how to garden.  I’m sure I probably slowed her down at times, but she always had my own garden shoes, gloves, and spade waiting for me.  I was her faithful weed puller, bird bath cleaner, bird feeder, and gumball picker upper.  And who can forget our various sewing adventures?  Memaw and I are both altos and enjoy harmonizing.  She also helped me know the importance of keeping a tidy home and how to be a good hostess.  She has the best toys, too – ballroom gloves, Mardi Gras beads, ace bandages (ha!), old board games, and even a wig.  How many grandmas would let you hop on her lap and “drive” home.  I’m guessing that’s illegal, but how could you pull over an innocent grandma and grandkid?  Memaw is another child in God’s hall of fame.  Memaw is quick to share an applicable Scripture, pray for me and follow up on my prayer requests.  She also enjoys using her time to write for Christian magazines and has done plenty of speaking engagements and served in various ministries.  I know she desires to make an impact on others’ lives.

Pepaw

Pepaw is a creator.  I spent countless hours cleaning his workshop, building things together (a dog house for Lucky was one of my favorites), and checking out the progress on his airplanes.  Speaking of airplanes, it’s always fun to go up on a flight with him, and he’d make sure to let me fly for a bit.  We even had a booster seat made of phone books for me to use when I was too short to see out the window.   I was always so excited to run out to the shop and have Pepaw measure me to see how much I’d grown – Wow!  A whole ¼”! When Robert and I got married Pepaw and Dad built us a kitchen table and chairs, and I will always appreciate the time and love that went into that project.  Speaking of our wedding, we even have the special memory of him officiating our ceremony.  Pepaw has built countless other things for me like a Barbie house, tv cabinet, and even an elephant and giraffe for the Homecoming parade.  I will always treasure our time spent in front of the fireplace.  That seems to be a good place to reminisce and hear stories about his childhood.  Pepaw enjoys learning new things which I appreciate about him.  He has dedicated his life to learning more about God and his Word and sharing that information with others through preaching, teaching, and leading Sunday School.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen Pepaw worry, and he is a great reminder that it’ll all work out according to God’s plan.

Wow!  That was fun!  I have wonderful grandparents!

Staycation

Robert had a nice, long Thanksgiving break of 13 days.  My break wasn’t as long at 4 days, but it was still so nice.  We didn’t go anywhere for the holiday, and Robert and I noted that this was the longest we had ever spent at home with each other.  We’ve spent week-long holidays together going out of town or hosting people, but we had never spent this much time together without either of us having to work or school.  We definitely enjoyed the time together and tried to soak up every minute.

I got off work at my normal time on Wednesday.  We ate a quick dinner and headed to church for a Thanksgiving Eve service.  I had never had one before, but it seemed fitting to have a service to show God our gratitude for saving our souls and blessing our lives.  After songs, a sermon, and communion  Anna, Forrest, Robert, and I decided to head to Dairy Queen.  It was very to catch up with them.  An evening with them is a guarantee for laughs and lots of talk about football between the two men.

Every day of break started out with about an hour of reading and journaling while eating breakfast and sipping coffee.  I could get used to that!  Too bad doing that would mean waking up at 6:00am.  I’ll become a morning person one day, right?  Robert and I go for a 30 minute walk every evening after work, but while we were on break we bumped it up to an hour a day and went during daylight to soak up some sunshine.  Surprisingly enough, our area of NC is very grey and dreary.  I would say it’s grey about 80% of the time, so when we can get some sun it’s nice to be able to take advantage of it.  We also watched lots of How I Met Your Mother and napped just about every day – always good in my book.  I always made a lot of progress on my afghan.  All of my granny squares are complete, and I’ve started sewing them together!

On Thursday, our walk was a hike through a trail and a walk at a local park.  We only saw three other people the whole time.  Apparently everyone else was busy cooking already.  We came home and whipped up our contributions to the Thanksgiving feast: mashed potatoes, dressing, and creamed corn.   We ate dinner with five friends from Sunday School and really enjoyed it.  Good food and good friends.

On Friday, Robert and I went over to see dear friend Andrea and her sweet girls.  Hanging with them is always a treat.  Robert became good friends with their dog, Honey.  Quote from the day, “It’s a law that you can’t chew gum until you’re 5.  It’s another law that you can’t get your ears pierced until you’re 8.”  Classic.  We went back over there again that evening to watch a movie with Andrea, Jason, Anna, and Forrest.  We knew we wanted a Christmas movie, so Robert and I suggested Snowball Express.  It’s a classic that nobody has ever seen. Somehow it became a traditional movie in my family, and Robert has grown to love it as well.  It’s definitely not going to win any awards, but everybody laughed throughout it, so I’d say it’s a winner.

On Saturday, Robert’s boss took us out to eat at Shuckers to thank Robert for his hard work and to celebrate his graduation.  Robert enjoyed his salmon, and my steak was very good.  It was nice to get to know Kevin since Robert has spent so much time with him.  After dinner we headed over to Anna and Forrest’s apartment to watch The Iron Bowl.  Anna and I were thankful to have each other to talk to and to work on our craft projects together.  Forrest and Robert were thankful to have someone to talk statistics and sports facts.  We ended up leaving after the third quarter.  Anna and I both fell asleep, but the guys made it through and ended the game with a “Roll Tide” text.

With Anna and Forrest's guinea pig, Einstein

Sunday was church, of course.  Robert is teaching Sunday School next week which will be fun.  Sunday evening we went over to Desiree and Stephen’s house to watch The Hobbit with Anna and Forrest.  Are you noticing a pattern here?  That’s right; we managed to spend a part of every day with Anna and Forrest during a break.  Sweet!  The movie was good, and I made more progress on my afghan during it.