It's been for.ev.errr!

So, I know it's been forever since I last updated so I'll try to fill you in on the last 3-4 months.
We got the house that I'd been talking about!!! You can't imagine how happy we are about that! We ended up doing a TON of remodeling on it. My dad, grandfather, Nick, and our friends did the work so we saved a ton of money :) always a plus! We completely tore out the kitchen, 3 walls, and breakfast area..and ripped up all of the floors except what's in the bedrooms. This was  a lot of work! We should move in this weekend if we're done with the floors this week. I'll add pictures when we move!

Nick and I have now been married for a little over a year. Thanking God for getting us through this year together! Many more years together to come :)

Another exciting thing--I got a new job! I start next Wednesday. This job seems awesome. It's less than a mile from our new house and higher pay! SO I should be bringing home a lot more money!

I recently started couponing. I haven't been able to do it much because we've been working on the house so much..but I'm getting pretty good! I think I'm going to start adding my grocery shopping/savings to this blog with tips on how to save money. I also have some awesome DIY ideas to save money running through my head. Once we get moved in and settled, I'll start adding this to the blog :)

Those are the only real highlights I can think of right now.. I promise I'll keep this thing updated more often :)


Worry about nothing, instead pray about everything. This has stuck with me the past few months. Amazing to see God providing for my family the way He does!

Update!

Well we're still dealing with house stuff.. signing papers, getting stuff together, and deciding about what we'll remodel and update. Closing is in just 3 weeks!!!! I can NOT wait. I'm so impatient!

Well..anyone that knows me knows I go through period of INSANE baby fever! Well, got the fever again now haha. So lately I've been looking at tons of baby stuff online.. it's gotten pretty ridiculous--but passes the work day by quickly! :) maybe it'll happen once we move in. I always just figured I'd be pregnant within the first year of us being married.

Also..I need to vent a little. You can mess with me all you want, but do NOT mess with my family. I'm so defensive and protective over them..

Well I didn't have much to say today. Love you guys!

P.S. due to circumstances out of my control, I'm left running my office by myself until a new director is hired. Exciting, but stressful. Prayers are appreciated!

It's been a while..

Unfortunately things have been pretty hectic at the Roden household so I haven't had much time to blog!

WE GOT THE HOUSE!!!!! It took a lot of patience and prayers, but we finally got word that the house we made an offer on is ours! We'll hopefully be finishing up paperwork tonight. We're very excited and thankful that God blessed us with this opportunity. We've already started designing things in our head! We've got some reconstruction things that we want done.. some painting, tearing walls out, redoing the kitchen..blah blah! (So if you want to help, let me know...ha!) We don't close on it for a little less than a month away though. Til then, I'll be doing lots of shopping!

Details: the house is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath. We have 2 dens--but we're tearing out the wall that separates them to make one large living room. We have a dining room, breakfast area, and large  yard with a shed too. Nick's going to have his 'man' room/ office to decorate. I'm going to be designing and decorating the guest bathroom (which I will primarily use) and guest bedroom (which will one day be a nursery!). The rest of the house we'll decorate together. For the bathroom I want to do a modern animal print with pink accents. For the guest bedroom, I think we're going to do a 50's theme! :)

I'm sure I'll be talking about the house a lot on here and keep everyone updated.
Thanks for reading :) if you have any ideas/thoughts about the house please let me know!

Jeremiah 29:11

Update!

We made an offer on the house yesterday!! We should hear back in the next week. Please keep your fingers (and toes) crossed for us and keep us in your prayers!

Nick isn't going to deercamp this weekend like he usually does on weekends, so we're getting to spend some time together! I'm very excited. Tonight we're probably going to sit at home and watch movies and cuddle...old married couple!haha! Tomorrow we're going to the gun and knife show and tomorrow night the Colt Ford concert! Should be a good weekend!

Til next time..stay warm! :)

Excitement!

So since I last blogged a few big things happened! Nick and I decided on a house and we're going to make an offer on it! There is also another house we like from the outside with an amazing price--we just have to get in and look at it! Sooo, we're kind of stuck between the two. Please continue to pray for us as we make this big decision!

I also won tickets to a concert that I'm pretty excited about! It's Saturday night...check back for pictures!

Everything at my new job has been going great. I honestly couldn't ask for anything better!

:) Til next time :)

House :)

Well I've been slacking the past few days and I haven't blogged! Oops! Nick and I started house "looking" this week. We've found a couple we like and hope to look at them very soon. It's very hard to find an inexpensive  house with no major problems these days! I have one house picked out that I'm just dead set on..hope I don't get my little heart broken! Please pray that Nick and I will find a house that meets our needs and price range! Thanks :)

promise the next blog won't be so short and sweet!

New Year's Resolution: Lose weight and get in shape!

Looking back at old pictures makes me really want to get my old body back! So, since it's the new year and the season for making resolutions, I decided starting today I'm gonna do something about it! I've measured and weighed myself and come up with goals. I hope you as my friends hold me accountable and cheer me on! Thanks guys :)
Height: 5'8
Weight: 135 ---- Goal weight 125
Waist: 28 inches ---- Goal 26 in
Thigh: 18.5 inches ---- Goal 17 in
Hips/ Booty: 37 inches!! ---- Goal Something smaller than that--Eeek!
Breast: 33 inches --- Goal I'd like to gain inches haha ;)
Upper arm 12.5 inches ---- Goal I like my small arms, I just hope to tone up!

I plan to join the gym soon and limit my sweets and monitor my calorie intake. Wish me luck!

I'm adding a picture of what I looked like around this time 2 years ago. It's my goal to get this body backkk!

Our pets :)

Well as most people know I'm absolutely in love with animals! Nick usually gets so mad at me because I always want to adopt stray dogs on the streets and when I see dogs for sale I always want to buy one! If it was my way, I'd have tons of animals of all kinds. I guess just because I live in the country doesn't mean I can have my own barn! ..Maybe one day :)
I talk about my children--dogs-- alot so I figured I'd devote a whole post for them so you can get to know my sweet babies!
The first pet Nick and I got together was Harley, a basset hound. Nick's parents bought him for us right after we got engaged and we got him the week we moved in together. He is such a joy to us! I love his huge ears and droopy eyes. Even though he's a pain early in the morning wanting to go outside, I can't stay mad at that sweet boy. We hope to breed him with a girl basset hound sometime soon!
The second puppy we got was my sweet puppy Brantley. Nick promised me I could get a small puppy and the same day that he promised I made him go looking with me! We were going to go out by Northpark where puppies are always for sale but fate had another plan! On our way we saw some puppies for sale in Clinton. We stopped and a couple had one little "miniature chihuahua" left. We paid for him and took him home. Turns out, he's not miniature..or a full blooded chihuahua as we were told..but we love him anyway! He's very hyper and loves to play. I swear he thinks he's a cat though..he "paws" at you like cats do and LOVES to sleep behind your neck. Nick makes fun of him because his tail was broken as a puppy so it curls up. I think it just makes him unique :)
Hopefully we'll have more animals soon :) Thanks for reading! Til next time..Love!

Getting up to Date!

Since this is my first post, I should probably start by getting everyone up to date on things that have happened this year until this point. In March I became an aunt to a perfect little baby named Kaiden. He's such a good little boy, so full of energy, and has the bluest eyes I have ever seen! In May I was blessed with another nephew named Caleb. He is a sweetheart and I love to cuddle with him! He lives in Florida now so I don't get to see him much but I cherish the time I do get to spend with him! June brought the best day of my life! I got married to my best friend, Nick. We had an outdoor wedding and I absolutely loved it. The rest of the year was filled with trips, parties, and family get togethers.

Now a litte about my family. I'm the oldest of four children. My brothers-Michael and Tony, and my sister-BreeAnna are my world! I'd do anything for them! My mom and I are best friends, no really! I can't go a day without speaking to her or I just don't feel right. My dad and I are also very close. He's the best daddy I could ever ask for. My husband Nick does electrical work. He loves it! He loves to hunt, work on cars, and play with and build guns. Yes, GUNS! We really do complete each other, how cliche'. Nick and I have 2 children. Our dogs Harley and Brantley. These little boys bring me so much happiness-even when I want to kick them outside for good!

Well this post got a little long, I'll continue with more another time. Please check back for more posts. I'll be including recipes, recent pictures, gossip, and more details of what's going on in my life! Love you all :) :)