Holy Week

As I have progressed through this week of remembrance and celebration I have become so aware of my complacency. I have been given so much throughout my life. Sure, I’ve experienced hard times: my parent’s losing their jobs and then our home, parent’s divorce, poverty (not really, but in my mind it was), my own job loss and now my husbands’. But you know, I’ve never suffered. Through all those hard times God provided and protected, I never wanted. He provided, just as he provided Jesus for my sins-for the world’s sins.

This week God’s provision was made so real to me as I traveled to rural New Mexico and Colorado for work. I visited two towns with a poverty I have never seen or experienced. You hear about it and you see it on the news, but until you walk in it, you do not know. I still don’t know how the people in this town feel or what their lives are like, but just to see it is life changing. I’ve been consumed lately with my plans. My plans that D should have a job now because it’s house-hunting season and we have to have a house by a certain time because the time to start a family (by my plans) is coming soon. Then I realized this week, I should glory in this moment God has given me. D and I have been supernaturally blessed with wonderful new friends here in Houston. Friendships I know are real and genuine and that came so quickly. Blessed to be a part of a church living the Word-genuinely and actively. I am blessed with a job I like and a boss I love, a job that provides for all our needs and more. God provides and I need to be satisfied and content in what he provides in this moment, not worrying about when my plans will come to fruition. Why would I want my plans when his are so much more awesome? It makes me laugh at myself.

The devotion listed below spoke volumes to me, made me appreciate my Savior and my God. Take a look and let me know your thoughts in the comments. I hope it brings you blessings.

http://proverbs31devotions.blogspot.com/

Happy Easter!

Hello Old Friend

Um, yeah, ok, it's been quite a while since I've posted one dang thing. I've been a little busy with, ya know, LIFE. I miss you bloggy world. Where else can I be the total dork that I am?

So, sorry for all 2 of you who read my blog. I cannot promise I will write everyday, but I have made it my goal to post at least once a week. We'll start there and see where we end up.

Where have you been, GrumpyPants, you ask? Well, bussssay! Where to start? I'll make a list, that always helps my Type A, Melancholy brain.

1. Started a new job in October. If you read this blog, you know that at least. I love my new job, but it's a Big Girl job. No more breezing through the day. No more going to work and not being challenged. No more wondering how the people I report to ever got their job and have kept it for 30 years. And, hallelujah, no more Baby Boomers making me feel like a worthless idiot simply because I'm a woman and under 40 years old. I love that my boss is exactly my age and bases her opinion of me on the quality of my work. It rocks! But this job entails a lot of hours. I'm at work by 8am and leave between 5:30 and 6pm. No lunch people, there is no time. Oddly enough, I enjoy this because the days zoom by. It's great, no more watching the paint peel and begging God to make the day go faster. There's also a bit of traveling involved with this job. I've never had a job where traveling was required. It's taking a lot to get used to - mainly getting used to being away from the Hubs. But it's totally manageable. So work is good-for the first time in my career.

2. The new job brought Hubby and I to Houston, TX. It's very different from Shreveport, but we are learning to love it as well. God has been so wonderful to us in Houston. We have a month to month lease and I live less than 30 mins from work - I never have to take a Loop, or a Freeway, or a Toll Road, or an Interstate. If you are from Houston, you know what a miracle that is. The only drawback is Hubby is still trying to find permanent employment. I love him so much. He gave up a steady, easy, cushy job in Shreveport to follow me to the great unknown. He's been so incredible. He's handled it with his usual faith, patience, and trusting attitude. I want to be like him when I grow up.

3. We joined an awesome church, Houston's First Baptist. The moment we set foot in the sanctuary, we knew it was the place for us. Since we've been here we've joined the most amazing Sunday School class, the church, and choir (me). Love it and it keeps us busy. We absolutely adore our Sunday School class and small group. The very first day we visited Sunday School we had friends. We've been making friends ever since. This is such a blessing. I was so concerned it would take us years to form the same close relationships we left in Shreveport, but God let it happen in 2 months. He rocks and so do all the sweet people in the Veritas Sunday School class.

4. Then there is P90X. Have you heard of P90X? If you haven't, then apparently you're not cool. Because all the cool people are doing it. No, not really, but everyone we know seems to know about it. It's the most extreme workout program, or at least that's what they say in the infomercial. Anyway, I have gained about 20 lbs since the whole Thyroid thing started happening and it's now time to get it off. So Hubby and I borrowed the DVDs from our friends. Again, this is why my husband is the most awesome man ever. He gets up with me every morning at 5 am and works his butt off. He rocks! We began the routine 3 weeks ago. It's been tough and I know exactly how out of shape I am. But just watch out - I'll give updates periodically. Apparently in 90 days I'm supposed to have a completely new, Victoria's Secretesque body. Watch out Heidi Klum, here I come.

So, as you can see, I've had a lot taking up my time and there's been no time for blogging. Between moving, starting the new job, traveling every two to three weeks, going to church, going to choir, working out, and oh yeah, making time for my man -there hasn't been much down time. If there is, I'm sleeping.

But, I will be back. Look for a recipe post soon. It might even be more interesting than this post. So, there you have it, that's what's been going on in my so called life.

Christmas 2009

This is our first Christmas in Houston and it's different. Every year I usually pull out the Christmas decorations at Thanksgiving. I spend hours and days make sure the tree and hosue look perfect. I look forward to it every year. But this year, we are still in temporary housing and all the decorations are tightly packed. So I thought I would have a hard time getting into the Holiday Spirit. Not so, thankfully.

A few nights ago my husband surprised me by pulling out our little silver table topper tree. Here it is in all its glory surrounded by presents.

I know some of you may be thinking, What's the big deal? And you know what? You're right - that's what I learned in Christmas 2009. The decorations are fun and festive, but they do not make the season, they are not the reason we celebrate.

We celebrate because our Savior came from Heaven to earth to save us. It's not about stressing over getting the house ready and buying a lot of presents. It's about Him, His love for us, and sharing that love.

Don't get me wrong - traditions of putting up the tree, going to parties, exchanging gifts, and celebrating with the ones we love are awesome. I just learned that it's all about balance and putting Jesus first during this season (really all year round).

The Echols pray you have a very Merry Christmas with your family!

I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:10b-11, NIV

The Eternal Question...

What do I get my husband for Christmas?! I already bought him one gift, but he knows what it is -he picked it out. So I'm stumped. He just had his birthday in October and he got a lot of what he wanted. Then he used his birthday money to buy some books and DVDs. To top it off, he doesn't have the typical "guy" hobbies. He's not into hunting or fishing or sports (the Big 3). He does like video games, but he said he doesn't want any right now. He also does not want any clothes. So, again, I'm stumped.

Anybody have any creative husband Christmas gift ideas? What did you do when you were a newlywed and found yourself in this position?

This sounds so petty compared to what this season is really about. And I know he could care less what I get him, but I just want him to feel special on Christmas morning. So any help is greatly appreciated. And tell me if you've been there too - there's consolation in numbers.

Happy Shopping!

We Don't Get White Christmas's in Houston - Or Do We?

Well, living in Houston has brought it's share of challenges and surprises, but nothing tops yesterday. We got 3 inches of snow! It was so beautiful! Here are a few pics. They're not great but they give you an idea of what we saw.

We did not get much on the ground in our backyard because of all the trees, but look at the roofs!
You can kinda see how much snow was coming down in this one.
It really was awesome. The hubs and I were sipping hot cocoa and watching the snow fall as Christmas music played from the ipod. It reminded us of our honeymoon to Whistler, Canada. A perfect winter day.

Making it Feel Like Home

Houston is definitely a good fit for the Echols. We've only been here 2 days, but we've had some fun exploring our new home. There are so many new and exciting things. But there are also many familiar things. Such as, the torrential downpour of rain yesterday. Well, that's Fall in the deep south for ya. Lots and lots of rain. It made running errands yesterday an adventure. We avoided I10 and 610 completely. Which was a good thing. We saw parts of town we would not normally have seen. We made the obligatory Lowe's run and then I had my first HEB experience. That is the coolest grocery store ever. I could have gotten my entire lunch free there by just visiting all the cooking demonstrations. Then finished it off with a delicious dessert wine or coffee. I. am. in. love. Thank you HEB.

It's going to be fun these next few months exploring neighborhoods and boroughs to find our perfect home. We already found a few neighborhoods we'd like to see homes in. If you do not know, we are leasing until we find the right house. Don calls it Base Camp. It's a perfect description.

We moved in on Thursday and found that our master bathroom toilet spewed water out the back everytime you flush. Then found that the guest bathroom toilet did not work at all. Quite a problem. But our landlord was wonderful and she had them both replaced. So we have brand new toilets. I know it's not a big deal, but it's nice to have something new.

Next, we discovered that the tiles on a section of the counter in the kitchen are not glued down nor are they grouted. Interesting. So leasing is turning out to be an adventure. Even though in the big scheme of things we have a nice lease home - these things are such an incentive to find our home to buy. It's going to be fun looking.

The move itself was an adventure, but easier than I thought. The puppies were awesome. Mostly because we gave them doggie downers before we left Shreveport and they slept the entire way to Houston. Saweet! Then, we hired Impack Movers to unload the truck in Houston. The best money we ever spent. Those two guys had everything, and I mean everything, unloaded in one hour. And that includes the refrigerator and washer/dryer. It was amazing to watch.

The only thing I'm disappointed in is that I will not be able to decorate for the upcoming fall and holiday season. We decided to only unpack the bare essentials. Everything else is staying in it's boxes since we'll be moving again in a mere 6 to 8 months. All the boxes (our entire home) is stored in the two guest bedrooms. So even though I really want to make the house homey and Fall-ish (and Christmassy later) - the thought of repacking the house again in 6 to 8 months is enough to keep me in check. But next year will be awesome!

Lastly, the hubs and I are enjoying all this time we get to spend together. In Shreveport, we were committed to a lot of things (Church ministries, friends, social activities). So we were constantly busy. We were together most of the time but just busy. Here we cannot commit to much until find our home - so it's like we get to slow down and date again. It's going to be so much fun.

Keep us in your prayers as my man begins his job search. I'm not worried because God has provided so much for us already. Just pray for wisdom and discernment. We want him to be exactly where God wants him.

We love and miss everyone in Louisiana. But we are so excited to get to know our Houston friends and family better. And I promise pictures are coming soon.

Moving Day or Days I Should Say

Well it is officially MOVING DAY! Yay! I have prepared for and dreaded this day for weeks. Now it is finally here. Although a lot of the heavy duty stuff was done last night by my new superheros.

Sasquatch and his two awesome Side Kicks - Troy and Noland. You guys rock! I mean they really do. Troy was even injured and he still managed to get it done. These guys moved the refrigerator, washer and dryer, sofas, dressers, hutches, and dining room tables with the greatest of ease (well - maybe not ease, but they did it).

Poor things! We have had the most wonderful Fall weather the last few days. Cool and breezy. Then yesterday the Heavens decided to rain down their fury, not to mention 200% humidity. It was awful, but my superheros persevered.

So that's the latest update. Sasquatch and I need to get back to work. I'll catch ya in Houston (with pics hopefully!).