Life - Real.

Howdy friends!  I hope this blog post finds everyone doing well.  With an assignment due date moved back 24 hours, I found that I finally had a sliver of time to sit down and give a little update.


Holy moly!  June turned out to be way more busy than I had planned on!  The summer school course that I am taking this month is usually a 6 week course, but in order to give us a little more time off before diving into the grad program, our professor decided to cram it all into 4 weeks - which we all greatly appreciated.  However, it made my schedule for the past 3 and a half weeks a little crazy.  Don't mistake any of that as a complaint though, I would much rather be busy than be the opposite!

So what else is new?  A lot of events going on this month.  Jonathan started full swing with his new job the first weekend of the month and has been going nonstop since.  From what I can tell, he is loving it.  I am so thankful that God has provided a way to keep baseball in his life...and in mine!  What's more...he is SO close!  It has been so great to be able to see him every weekend and not have the stress of traveling so far to do it.  We are really enjoying having all this time to spend together. Even though most weekends that I am there he is working tournaments all day, it's still a huge difference and I feel immensely blessed!  One of the things that I know Jonathan has been really thankful for is being able to spend more time with his godson, Cooper.  Coop just turned 2 and until now, Jonathan has only been able to see him on holidays.  I know he was really ready to be around enough that Coop could really get comfortable with him and know who he was. Without surprise, that little boy loves his Oggy!

One more benefit of him being in B-Town - I get that much more time with one of my best friends, Sydni. Syd and I met while I was at A&M and we lived together for a year. Who would have known the friendship, no - sisterhood,  that would come out of that year of living together. When life gets rough and I start to feel discouraged, Syd has been there every time...with a bottle of wine and some Blue Bell. (She knows me pretty well!)  Soon after the ice cream and wine, comes the "saddle up and get over it" and the constant reminder that GOD'S PLAN IS BETTER THAN MINE. She truly is my faith drill sergeant!  With all that said, you can see why I am so blessed to have her and am so thankful to have the opportunity to spend more time with her. I've always loved this pic of us from the day that Blake proposed to her:

Other things? Let's see...

Mom left last Wednesday with a group of others from GSUMC on a mission trip to Rwanda.  She has been wanting to go to Africa for a long time.  If didn't know this already, Mom has a real heart for missions work, so this opportunity is very exciting for her. She returns this coming Sunday and I can't wait to hear about her trip and about all the ways that God was working through their group to change lives across the world.

Mine and Sam's sweet friend Courtney was married to her wonderful guy, Rob, last Tuesday in Key West.  We are so happy for the both of them and it breaks our hearts that we couldn't be there for it.  They are such a GREAT couple.  Here's the funny thing - when we were in high school the 3 of us always said that Court would be married first, then ME, then Sam.  Boy, did we get it wrong!  Sam was married in May, Court was married last week, and then there's me...oh my. ;) On that note, here's a little throwback for ya:

On Sunday I got to go help my wonderful bff's, Kat and Kyle, move into their new home. I am so excited for them as they start a new chapter of their lives - being married AND being homeowners!  It was so fun and special to be there to help them get started.  Love 'em!

Other than those things, the rest of my life has been filled with work and school!  One of the really great opportunities that I've had this month is to observe in some pretty amazing speech-language pathology settings.  And I want to go on and tell you more about, but there is so much!  I will save that for another post, coming soon!


Leaving you with this from my devotional the other day:

"Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat.  But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over.  In the same way, anyone who holds onto life just as it is destroys that life.  But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you'll have it forever, real and eternal." - John 12:24-25 (The Message)

Lord, help us to remember every day, to give our lives up to you and to seek your will - not ours.  We want to be reckless in our love for life, knowing that you hold it in the palm of your hand and that a life in you is real and eternal. Amen.

Professional Bridesmaid for Hire

Some of you may have heard me speaking of my recent "career" as a bridesmaid.  It seems that I am at the point in my life where ALL of my friends are getting married. And when I say all, I do mean that four of my closest friends have gotten married in the past year and a half. Is it my turn yet?! I suppose that is up to other forces, besides my own. (*cough* *cough*) This semester in particular has been FULL of wedding festivities, with two of my very best friends getting married within 2 weeks of each other.

While helping plan 2 weddings at one time was busy and certainly blocked off quite a bit of my calendar, now that both weddings are over, I do have to say - I thoroughly cherished every bit of it. I have felt truly honored to stand next to both of these beautiful brides on their special days. It was such a special moment in my life to see both of them take the next step in their lives with two of the most amazing men. So, I figured I'd write a little about each wedding...in honor of the brides and grooms. (Notice the plurals?)

First to tie the knot was Sam and Phil on May 12th at The Salt Lick venue in Driftwood, TX.  What a gorgeous bride my best friend was!!!

It was such a special moment to watch her walk down the aisle and marry the man of her dreams. As she came up to the front and noticed the tears welling up in all four of her bridesmaids' eyes she ordered, "Get it together girls." Much to my surprise, she was the calmest I had EVER seen her!  I felt like a proud momma standing up there as she recited her vows without even the slightest crack in her voice.  Sam and I have been best friends for almost 18 years - it was a strange feeling to watch her do this! I can't think of anyone more perfect for her than Phil. Especially when she told me that he "hops" with her when she gets excited about something - thank goodness he's someone who can take that job! My personal favorite event of the night: Phil's "routine" for the garter toss. I don't know where he learned that, but it was.......... well, it was all Phil. The night was even complete with 3 wedding crashers who asked for money for a cab ride back to Austin when they were kicked out. Seriously?

Next on the wedding list - Kat and Kyle. They were married this past weekend, on May 26th at Ashelynn Manor in Magnolia, TX. Again, my best friends make the most gorgeous brides.

This was a pretty special event. For one, Jonathan and I got to experience being in the wedding together - which was equally honoring for both of us. The four of us have been best friends for a long time. We have learned a lot from each other and have shared some really wonderful memories. As the guests heard in my toast, Jonathan and I were actually the people who "planted the seed" in getting these two cuties together. We didn't have to do much though, they really were meant for each other.  God had a special plan for them 6 years ago, and He has so much more in store for them down the road. There have been some pretty big moments in my life that I would never have made it through without both Kat and Kyle. I am so incredibly happy for the two of them and all that life has in store for them in the future! I have to say, the dance floor at this event was hoppin'!!! We even got my date on the dance floor - those of you who know him will know how much of a milestone that was! It was so great getting to run into some old friends at the wedding. A real Cy-Fair reunion! 

And to top it all off...look what we got!!!!!!!

I would say that we "caught" both of these things, but that wouldn't really paint an accurate picture. If we didn't catch them, we would have been knocked out by them.  It was more like having a target on our chests. Not going to lie, I was greatly appreciative! Can't wait for those pics!

So...that wraps up wedding season for this MOH. Anyone else getting married and looking for a seasoned professional? I only charge a small fee. ;)

What to do with my extra time now!?!?!? Oh wait...grad school here I come!

An Intro to Me

Hello friends!  Welcome to my new blog, Grace and Diamonds.  Let me start with a warning - this is my first attempt at blogging.  Forgive me of my lack of technological creativity, if you will!  I'm starting this in an effort to keep friends and family updated with life happenings, because life is always changing. A little disclaimer on the title, Grace = my middle name and the thing that keeps me going, GOD'S grace. Diamonds = the baseball kind of diamond, not the sparkly kind. Got it?

Let's start with some introductions, shall we?  Here is how my life works...

This is me.

I was born and raised in the fabulous CYP (Cypress, Texas), graduated from Cy-Fair HS (BFND), but most importantly...here it is sports fans:

I am the LOUDEST and PROUDEST member of the FIGHTIN' TEXAS AGGIE CLASS OF 2010.
(whoop!) :o)

After receiving my degree from Texas A&M in Special Education, I set out to pursue my career goal of becoming a speech-language pathologist through the post-bachelorette program at the University of Houston.  Currently, I am finishing up my post-bac year with one more class over the summer. I applied to the U of H graduate program for communication disorders and sciences in February and received a notification of my acceptance in March.  I cannot begin to explain my excitement to begin this program this coming August. Over the past year, my passion and deep interest in this career path has become so strong. Can't wait to have all those letters after my name and start spending every day in a job that I am in love with!

Something else you should know - I am an incredibly blessed girl, which is something I thank the Lord above for each and every day.  He has certainly placed some special people in my life, those of which I cannot imagine life without.
I have a truly amazing, and interesting, family.  My poor parents have YET to become empty nesters - I am living at home again as I make my journey through grad school. Although, I'm not so sure that they aren't halfway avoiding the whole "empty nest" thing!  I have the best big brother a girl could ever ask for and an absolute wide array of aunts, uncles, and cousins - all of them especially unique in their own way. (And when I say unique, I do mean strange as well. :o) )

I also have some pretty awesome, crazy, fun, and beautiful ANGELS for best friends. They have each been there for me through different times in life, each of which I could not have made it through without them. Don't worry, there will be many stories to come!

There's also one other person...some of you may have heard of him?

*sigh*

That's my boo!  Jonathan and I have been together for 7 & 1/2 YEARS.  Yes, that's what I said. 7 & 1/2. Sometimes I still can't believe it's been that long myself.  I feel like just yesterday we were keeping our feelings on the DL because we had different homecoming dates and we didn't want to make things awkward.  What were we thinking? Wasn't high school one big awkward moment anyway!?  

Since then, we've been through ups, downs, and all arounds.  Our love story is a special one.  Isn't everyone's?!

Jonathan is a recent graduate of Mississippi State University, where he majored in Business Administration and was a two year starter as a shortstop on their baseball team.  After coming within a couple of outs from a trip to the College World Series, he completed his college baseball carrier and moved on to play in the Detroit Tigers' organization. Some pretty excruciating injuries brought him to decide that it was time to "hang 'em up" and he returned to Starkville to finish his degree.  Before playing at MSU, Jonathan spent his first two years of college on the Blinn baseball team in Brenham, Texas, where some amazing relationships were started. One of which has brought him to his present position.  Beginning in August, he will become an official member Blinn Baseball's coaching staff as an assistant coach.  As you can imagine, I am one proud girlfriend. I cannot wait for this year to start because I just know that he is going to make one heck of a coach!  Brenham has been a particularly special place for both of us and we are so excited to start a new chapter of our relationship that isn't quite so long distance!  Like I said, God has truly blessed our lives in the most beautiful way!

I'll end this "about me" sesh with some pictures of some other important "beings" in my life....

*Lexi*

*Lucy*

*Ike*

*Tucker*

That's all for now folks. Here's a little message to wrap this one up:

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."    - Philippians 1:3-6