I come to say Hello...

Six weeks... I have been in the U.S. And no motivation to blog. My so called exciting life in France came to a halt and I had to come back home where I had to return to my old job and get another just to keep myself sane and make enough money so I can pay my last school payment.

But through all that I am finally doing better. It might be because I know the time for me to return to France is coming up quickly and I will be back to traveling the world and taking care of my adorable little boys. It's also easier because of all the support I have from family and friends. There is never a moment when my week isn't filled with few giggles from several different kids. On top of the nanny job I have I am picking up babysitting jobs almost every weekend. Keeping my heart full with laughter of kids and helping me get the extra money I need. 

They say you experience reverse culture shock when you make it back to your home. And in some ways I think I have... having no cell phone or car. I might as well be telling people I am Amish. And going to Wal-mart is such a pain in the butt. Even our biggest store in Albertville didn't even compare to the headache I get every time I go into Wal-mart.  Save-A-Lot is looking more and more normal to me these days. 

In conclusion, that's my life in a nut-shell since I have gotta back :)

Tats

So I have been waiting for this moment almost all summer when I could go get my tattoo. And it finally happened yesterday. I am very proud of my tattoo. Naturally I spent out a few a pictures via text of my tattoo as soon as I took my bandages off. All bloody and all to show my friends. True friends still tell you how great it looks blood and all. hehe. Don't worry I will save you from the blood pictures. 

As you can see the nervousness on our faces right before we got our tattoos. 

For pure enjoyment. I will share the conversation I had with my coworker this morning. 

Me: Tyler! Wanna look at my tattoo?! Isn't it cool?!

Tyler: Did you do something different with your hair?

Me: Yah. I am a whole new person. 

Tyler: Wait till you come back from France.

Me: I know. I will be totally different.

Tyler: You will be like all tatted. 

Me: hahaha. No way. This was so painful. Probably be the only one you will ever see me with. 

So now that I have shared the after story here's the whole process. . . 

Walk By Faith

March Newsletter

"Nounou"

. . . this French word translates into NANNY.  And yes, that is what I am going to be: the Stoner's nanny while they go to language school for eighteen months in Albertville, France.  Here are the top three questions I have been asked recently:

How did you get involved with the Stoner's? 

  Do you have to raise support?

How is it going so far?

I love having this great opportunity to serve with the Stoners and help them on their way to Togo! But before I tell you how I got involved, I will start by telling you a little about myself.

I accepted Christ as my Savior in second grade.  My faith has grown a lot since then, and I fully understand that Christ died for my sins.  I want to serve Christ using the gifts he has given me, especially my love of working with children. 

After high school I knew I wanted to take a break from school for a while so I looked into a couple of short term mission opportunities.  They all ended up not working out for different reasons.  So,  I thought that was God's way of telling me I needed to stay at the Y.M.C.A. a little longer.  While working at the Y.M.C.A. I got involved in the kids program and signed up for online classes  through Liberty University to get my Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education.  At that time, Beth Fuller told me about the Stoners and how they were looking for a nanny for their soon-to-be four kids while they lived in France.  I prayed about it, e-mailed the Stoners, and met  with them a few times.  And...they approved of me as their nanny!

         

   www.fasterandfarther.com   

Support Address:  ABWE  PO Box 8585  Harrisburg, PA  17105  Account #: 0786971

                                        

                

                                                                                                

It Feels like Summer!

I knew my day was going to be good when I got in my car this morning at 5:25 and "American Boy" was playing on the radio. Love that song. Followed by a somewhat non-drama day at work, which doesn't seem to happen much these days. 

Started my afternoon off with a three mile run. Dang, did it feel good on this beautiful sunny and 70* day. Followed by a afternoon of tanning with Andrea and Sarah. Later which we went to clean out Andrea car and busted out our moves with Rachel during Tyler's hip hop class. 

And it was a good day even though it wasn't near any beach :)

Hockey Games and Life

So I do have a good excuse for not blogging in like forever. I have just been busy with life. Now that I have started my online classes and new responsibilities at work since certain co-workers are going off and getting married and finding better life's other then working at the Y.M.C.A. (I know its kinda hard to believe.) I have been super busy. The only real reason I had time to blog today and because I took the day off of work. Don't taddle on me, I just needed a break to focus on school and rest up some.  But through my busy schedule I have found time to have fun also. About two weeks ago Rachel, Mya, and I all went out to our first hockey game to our local hockey team, the Oilers. It was so much fun. We didn't end up staying very long but it was a fun experience :)

Rachel and I also took a trip down to Washington D.C. this past week. So I will try to get those pictures up soon because I do have some mighty fine outfit pictures. hehe. Hope your all have a great week and its not to stressful. 

p.s. Happy Late Valentine's

Tuesday Tunes. . . All Your Life

I like this song a lot. I get little excited when I hear it on the radio at work. It never seems to get old :) So I thought I would play it for you guys today. 

Hope you like it and have a great Tuesday!

New Year's Resolution

Happy New Year! 

I hope 2011 was as good of a year for you guys as it was for me. I was filled with a lot of blessings during 2011. First of all I graduated high school. Yep, I survived all 13 plus years of school it was hard work. I have a job with good hours which is more then a lot of people have right now. I am enrolled in college class' for next semester and am currently being interviewed for one of my dream jobs of being a nanny. I would say 2011 was pretty good. 

And I would like 2012 to be just as good. So I made a few new year's resolutions to keep me on track for the new year. 

1. Eat healthy.  

I was doing good really good last spring about eating healthy and working out. But then I got busy with work and lost time to work out and with the holidays I most definitively ate a lot of sweets. So my goal is find more time to work out and get fit by eating healthy. 

2. Run a half marathon. 

My real goal is to run a full marathon but since the farthest I have ever ran was 9 miles while I was training for the Akron Relay I have decided a half marathon is the perfect start to my marathon goal this year. 

3. Learn how to cook. 

Yes, sad to admit but I don't know how to cook. Somehow cooking was gene that missed me. So pinterest  has helped me a lot to find simple recipes to help me start :) I am excited about this new adventure. And my uncle has said he would pay for the groceries if I made him dinner. So its a win win. 

4. Blog more.

This past summer, I have really gotten away from blogging on a regular basis. So I need to get back on track. So hopefully 2012 will bring me enough adventures to blog about. 

5. Get good grades in school. 

Now that I was going to be going back to school with a little more purpose this time. I plan on getting good grades in all my class'. No excuse for me to slack off this year. 

I hope you guys had a great New Year's Eve and that you will have many blessings in 2012!

Carving Pumpkins

Between the trying to sleep and trying to get naps this weekend I somehow found time to spend time with family, carve pumpkins with my sister, and babysit some of the world's cutest kids. And they all survived a weekend through my grumpiness and thank goodness I caught up on my sleep Sunday night right before work on Monday. 

Minnie Mouse and Mickey

Aren't our pumpkins somewhat cute? Sadly you can't see Minnie's bow in the dark but believe me it looked pretty cool. Hope you all had a great weekend too. 

Footloose and Feathers

This picture sums up my weekend. A bit drowsy but fashionable cute :) hehe.  It started by staying up and watching the old "Footloose" with my sister Friday night in preparation to see the new one. Follow by an early morning workout with Andrea. And a crazy over dramatic morning at work like usual.  

Shirt: Kohl's; Belt: Thrifted; Cardigan: Kohl's;  Side  Purse: Maurice's; Pants: Kohl's; Loafers: JCPenny's

But the day got a lot better when Jess and I went and got a feathers. For only six dollars. Yaya! And spent the night with friends from high school. Followed by church Sunday morning were I had a hard time staying a wake during church. Then lunch with Jess at Panera, yummy! 

Then followed by a much needed afternoon nap. And ending my weekend having dinner with Rachel and Andrea.  Hope you all had a good weekend too. :)

Mapleside Farms

You guys have probably been wondering where I have been the last couple of weeks or you may have not . . .  But I have been super busy, working 40 plus hours, visiting friends at college, and house sitting. Yeah, it at least sounds crazy busy I feel like I haven't slept in like three weeks even though I spent all Sunday laying in bed but that's besides the point. . . 

Shirt: Kohl's; Vest: Charlotte Rouse; Head Band: Claire's; Belt: Thrifted;  Purse: Marice's; Jeans: Kohl's; Flip-Flops: Old Navy

Saturday after a busy morning at work, Andrea and I headed to Mapleside farms with our mama's. Mostly to see the beautiful view and eat some food :) Who doesn't like eating. alot. Right?!

We had lots of good fun and I got a cute picture with my mom :)

Why The New Blog?

Dress: Kohl's; Sandals: Marshall's

I am back! But as you can see with a new blog. My last blog expired and every time I tried to get on it. They said I had to start a new one. At first I was mad thinking about all the time I put into the blog for it to expire.

Another reason I was originally delaying creating this blog was I am busy with work. I am blessed that I was given more hours and my boss trust me enough to give me more responsibility but the YMCA sucks at giving raises so I am still making the same amount even though I am doing more work and working more hours.

But then after all that, I put on my big girl pants and decided to start this new blog and to call it Sweet Pea's Place . . . So I can talk about everything happening in my life. From friends to work to fashion. I hope you like this blog as much if not more then the other one :)