a-MAZE-ing tradition

This past weekend Clint and I made our traditional fall outing. We went to a pumpkin farm and corn maze. We always buy the pumpkins we carve from a farm. The first year we were dating we went to one in Murfreesboro, last year we went to one in Clarksville and this year we went to a farm in Jonesborough. (Our new favorite place!)

We both agreed that we will have more of an excuse to go to these when we have kids, but each year we always have fun. This corn maze was the best we have been to. It took us over an hour to find our way out of the tall corn. After we made it out we got a drink and sat on the porch to cool off. We didn't have long because we were just in time to watch the pig races. What a hoot! The piglets were so cute. Next year we will have to try out a different farm.

We got lost a few times in this maze.

Chloe was glad we brought her back a baby pumpkin!

2 days and 3 coats of paint later...

Tadaaaa...


I'm finally finished painting the living room. It took 2 days and 3 (in some places 4) coats of paint to cover the yellow and brown/gray orignial paint. The new colors are tan and white. I learned some lessons in painting, this being my first time painting a big room. The main lesson learned: Always use primer, no matter what the guy at Wal-Mart tells you! I was fortunate to have Lo come over the first day and help paint the first coats. The rest I finished up yesterday. I'm glad to have it done and I think it looks much better. I will post more pics of our place once we get it decorated!

Before:




After:

Before:


After:

We're In

We are all moved in! I'm sitting here typing with Chloe in my lap and we are exhausted. Really, more me than her! It's taken a few days and there are still boxes to sort through, but for the most part we are all set up. I'm going to paint the living room on Thursday (yellow is not really my color!) and then I'm going to take some pictures.

In the mean time, I am still continuing the job search. Still no luck there. I am still holding on to the faith that God has a plan and it will all work out. If nothing works out in a few weeks, I will start looking in a different direction. I've never really been one to think any kind of work is beneath me. (Although, I must say that I'm not really the best with physical kind of work...ha!) If I gotta sell jeans at the Gap to make a paycheck that's what I'll do. I never understood people who remained unemployed because they couldn't find a job. I'm looking for a job in my field of study. But hey, if that doesn't work, you can always find a job, it just might not be a career.

In other news, the fall weather is here and that makes this girl happy! We have had our windows up and the front screen door open from the first day we moved in here. We haven't even touched the AC and haven't needed to. It feels wonderful! It reminds me that I need to start changing out my summer to fall clothes. I hate jackets, but love long sleeved shirts!

Now that I've found most of my belongings in the boxes, I thought I would post a few pics of Chloe from the past month. She loved her time at the lake house. She is still looking for her buddy Charlie and doesn't understand why he's not here to play anymore. We'll have to take her over to Joe and Lo's for a play day real soon!

This was after my dad helped us move all our belonging into the Budget truck. He was getting in some playtime with his "grandpuppy!"

I love this picture of her with her flower necklace. We went to eat dinner in Jonesboro during "Music on the Square" and picked up her a little present at the cutest dog shop. Jonesboro has the sweetest downtown I have ever visited. If you have never been, you should take a trip...it is the oldest town in TN after all!

I thought this was a funny picture. She looks like she was "caught" and she was. She had her nose stuck in Clint's stinky work shoes...gross!

Ready, Set, Move...again

We got a call yesterday from the lady we are renting the house from to tell us it's all cleared out and ready for us to move in. Whew! I'm excited to have all of our things unpacked and in one central location, but not ready to move again. It seems like only yesterday we were packing up our things in C'ville and moving here. Wait, maybe that is because it was less than 3 weeks ago that we were doing that!

The house is an older small 2 bedroom, 1 bath (blah, I know!) home. However, it has some real perks. We are finally going to have a nice fenced in backyard for Chloe. We will have a downstairs basement with a fireplace and my favorite: 2 huge UT Vol murals painted on the walls. Ha! I saw Clint's face drop when he saw those for the first time...and even more when the homeowner said we can do what we want, but no painting over the UT pride! I'm telling you, it really doesn't pay to be a gator fan in these parts! We also have so much storage it's unreal. No more storage unit for us. There are a few drawbacks but I won't focus on the negatives because I know we only have a 6 month lease and if we don't like it we can leave. We are making a mental note of it all so that when we begin house shopping we'll know exactly what we want in a home.

I've scoped out the area and even though we lived on the very top of a hill, there is a sidewalk that winds down it. Perfect for my morning jogs. Maybe not the most idea neighborhood, but hey with what we are paying, it works :)

So, if you don't hear from me until sometime next week, you'll know why. Hopefully, we can get the Internet hooked up soon so I can post pictures.

No Job? What's a girl to do??

The main answer to that is to try to find a job...ha! I have been unemployed for little over a week and each day that goes by I seem to work a little harder at finding a job. I'm really trying to enjoy this time (as so many of you have instructed), but it's hard for me. I'm think I am a working girl at heart. Don't get me wrong, I love sleeping in, but ultimately I seem to be waiting until Clint gets home. Granted, I am doing things to be productive. I can't just sit around all day. We do have things that I can take care of before we move into the house. I'm sure once we move into the house I will have more to do. Scratch that, I KNOW I will have more to do. Right now, Lo and Joe are spoiling us. Again,not a bad thing! :)
I am glad that I have gotten back into my morning jog routine. They past 2 weeks wasn't able to run because of my cold and then moving. My morning runs here are so much more scenic. In one jog I get to see mountains, hills, and the lake. I cannot wait for the fall!
Clint is still enjoying his job. He is sore from all the lifting, but that is expected. He likes the guys he works with too.
My camera cord is packed away under a hundred boxes in our storage. So, for now I cannot post any pictures. Once I get that unpacked, I will post some pics.

Killing time during the Florida game...

As most of you know, Clint and his family are big Florida Gator fans. (I know, it's sinful! But, we love to give each other a hard time.) So, while they are watching the game and I'm not, I thought I would take a moment to post. After a busy few days saying goodbye, packing, cleaning, loading and unloading we made it to East TN. We have loaded everything into temporary storage until we moved into a rental. Funny to think all our worldly possessions fit into one storage unit!

We are going tomorrow to hopefully sign a lease on a rental house. Then, we get the pleasure of loading up another truck and moving again. But, that probably won't be for a few more weeks. For now, we are enjoying spending time with our very, very gracious parents. Have I mentioned how blessed we are with wonderful family?!? Tonight, we packed up some burgers and chips and loaded up the boat. We took a nice boat ride to a cove and had a picnic dinner. It felt so great outside!
Clint starts his job with Pepsi on Monday. Please keep him in your prayers. We know he will be working a lot harder initially, but if there is one thing my husband is it's a hard worker! I will be continuing the job search and praying for God's direction. So far, His blessings have been abundant!

Last Day at Work

Today was my final day as an APSU employee. It was bittersweet. I found out that I am very loved and that makes me feel good. But, I will admit I held back tears when the student group I advised all came in my office at the end of the day and handed me a card with the sweetest messages and a gift card. They really are the best! I have made some really good friends here and it was sad to say goodbye to them. I keep reminding them that this is a perfect opportunity for them to make a trip to the mountains now.
I visited the HR office to sign one little piece of paper and turn in my keys. And just like that, I'm unemployed! Who would have known that was all it took leave when it was a such a huge process becoming a new employee.
On to a new adventure...