A picture is worth a thousand words

So today's challenge is to take a picture of a person, place, thing, or specific moment that I am grateful for..well I have one picture that is all of those things!!!



This was right after our wedding, our entire wedding party and our families had a champagne toast on the front porch of the house I grew I up in. This was such an amazing moment. I will forever remember this moment of this day and how wonderful it was. I am so grateful to have such wonderful friends and family that I could share our wedding day with and so grateful that my parents allowed us to have our wedding at there amazing house. Which made it even more special. And last but certainly not least I am so incredibly grateful that I have the most amazing, caring, generous, kind hearted man as my husband and marrying him was the best day of my life.

My blessings

Today's challenge is to write a short note of thanks for all of the wonderful things I have in my life. This is easy because I feel I am very blessed...

*My husband


*The love and support of my friends and family


*Our dog, Mason.


*A roof over our head and food on our table.

*My faith

*An amazing vacation spot very close by.


*My health

*A JOB!!!(finally)

*My gorgeous wedding/engagement rings, and bracelet that my dad bought me for my wedding(a little materialistic, but I feel blessed to have such beautiful things!)



I am so blessed to have all of these wonderful things in my life(and more). And I thank God everyday for what he has given me and the people he has brought in to my life.


Nick and I have had an amazing weekend!!! Friday night we went out to eat with my brother and his wife for my birthday dinner. Then went to there house and watched a scary movie together. I am so happy we are spending more time with them and we have family so close by!! It is so nice to finally be building a relationship with my sister in law. : )

Saturday, Nick brought me coffee in bed and made me breakfast then we just went out bumming around. I got a few shirts from TJMaxx, we browsed a couple stores. It was cold and rainy but I actually liked it because it finally felt like fall down here.

Today Nick and I went to church together. We are searching for a church that we like down here, but I am sure as soon we find one it will be time to move to Charlotte, lol.
We went to the mall, bought Nick a book about Harleys, had some lunch. And now we are headed over to Michael and Laurens again to have dinner. All in all it has been a wonderful weekend!!!!

Hope everyone had a great weekend as well. Love you all!!!!!!!

Negative Gratitude

Today's challenge is to write about something negative in my life that I have gratitude for. At first I thought this would be kind of hard, what could possibly be good about something negative in my life?
But then it came to me, one negative in our life is that we live so far away from our friends and family. It has really been hard on both Nick and I. We used to fill our days and with friends and family, and now its just us most of the time. Granted we do have my brother and his wife very near by, which is nice.

I love my husband and I love our time together, but I really miss everyone in Michigan, ALLOT!!! But the good thing about missing them all and being so far away is that Nick and I are becoming closer and enjoying our time as newlyweds. AND we do get to spend time with Michael and Lauren(because they are our only friend, lol) so we are becoming closer with them. Which is wonderful!!! I love my brother and his wife so much, and from us not having any friends down here we get to spend more time with them. So to sum up, as much as it sucks to be away from the people we love most, we are making other relationships better and stronger, and like they say "absence makes the heart grow fonder" So we just cherish our time with our Michigan people even more when we do get it : )

My Mom

Today's challenge is to write about something that I am grateful for in my life today..and today I am extremely grateful for my Mom!


She is such an amazing woman and I have so much respect for her. She did such an amazing job raising me and my siblings and teaching us how to be good people. I was feeling extremely homesick today and even had an inkling of wanting to move back to Michigan(crazy I know), so of course I called my mom to chat and cry a little : )
And of course, my mom listened, gave me advice, told me she loved me, and made me laugh(allot, lol). No matter how bad a day I am having my mom can always find a way to cheer me up, whether its supporting me, giving me words of encouragement or just making me laugh at how quirky and corny she is! She has such a happy spirit and personality and it is so contagious. That is just one of the many, many things that I love and admire about her.

My mom is the most amazing woman I know, and I can only hope that someday I will be as good of a mother and friend to my children as she is to me!!!

I miss her so much and it is really hard to be down here and not see her as much as I would like to. I would give anything to have a shopping day with her, and just go bumming around the stores, gossip, and have some lunch. But for now, I will settle for the phone calls and smiles.
So today, I am grateful that I have such an amazing mother!!!! I love you Mom.

ABC's of gratitude

Today's challenge is to use the alphabet to make a list of things I am grateful for so here goes:
A: Autumn..it is my absolute favorite time of year..the changing color of the trees, college football, pumpkins, the colors, etc.

B: boating on the island with my family. I absolutely love being on the boat with my family, and since we moved to NC this was the first year I got to experience this for more than just one weekend during the summer.

C: Coffee!!! I don't think I would survive without my morning coffee

D: My dog, Mason. He is the best dog in the whole world. He is such a great cuddler, never barks, doesn't really shed. I couldn't ask for a better dog.

E: Evenings at home. I love when Nick gets home from work, and we have that time together. I love making him dinner, sitting down at the table together, and then cuddling up on the couch to watch some tv.

F: Family. I have the most amazing parents and siblings in the entire world and miss them so much now that we live here.

G: God, Although I have been away from the church for a few years and not really practicing my faith, I feel like God is calling me to get back. And it is a really good feeling. I am so grateful that I was raised Catholic and believe in God, and can now go back to the faith that I grew up with.

H:Husband...I love my husband more than anything in this world, he is my best friend, my soul mate, and he makes my life so incredible wonderful. I could not imagine having a better husband than Nick!

I: Ice cream...a small thing i know..but I love it : ) It's a great comfort food. lol

J:Jessica, my best friend who was killed in a car accident 3 and a half years ago. She was the most inspiring person I have ever met, she had a wonderful spirit and was a great friend. Even though she is gone, I feel her with me all the time and I am so grateful that she was in my life, even if for a short time.

K:Kelly Rickels..she is my cousins wife and a great friend! She has been there for me through so much, listened to me bitch and cry, always gives me great advice, and never judges me. She is a wonderful person and I am so grateful that my cousin fell in love with her : ) I just wish we lived closer, I miss her allot!

L:Love. I am so thankful that I have found the love of my life, and was able to let go of my fears and allow myself to love this amazing man that God has given me. Love is truly the most wonderful feeling in the world!


M:my mom, she is so amazing. Every day I have more and more appreciation for her and everything she did/does for our family. She is an amazing woman, and truly like a best friend to me. I can always call her for anything and she always knows how to make me feel better.

N: Night out.. it is so wonderful when we do get to have a night out together, whether its just to get some dinner or going to the bar with our "Topsail Friends" : )

O: Old friends, time was not age! lol My friends are wonderful and some of them I have known for so many years I can't even keep track! Being away from them is really hard, but when we do go home to visit I am so grateful to see them and know that we will always be friends. No matter how far away we may live.

P: Parents..I know I already talked about family and my mom, but my parents deserve two mentions, at least!! I am so grateful that my parents are such caring, giving, and loving people. I had such a wonderful childhood and I am so happy that we have such a great relationship. And I am even more grateful because now I have wonderful in laws as well. They are two of the sweetest people I know, and they really make me feel welcome in their family.

Q:Quiet..sometimes it is nice to just have peace and quiet and reflect on my thoughts or have time to pray. Knowing that we want kids some day and that quiet time will be rare..I am grateful to have it right now : )

R: Recording device..aka my DVR. I am so grateful to the genius who invented this. I hate sitting through commercials!!!! lol

S: Sunshine..it can make any day better and I get so much more of it in NC than I did in Michigan!!

T: Topsail Island...this is truly the best place in the world. It is so beautiful and peaceful and I am so blessed that we only live 2 1/2 hours away and go visit anytime we want.

U:United States armed forces!! They are true heroes and I am so thankful that they choose to put there life on the lines everyday to protect our great country. (Thank you Michael, Joey, and James!)

V: I won't say the actual word..but lets just say I am grateful I am a woman(and have this anatomy) and not a man! lol Being a woman is a wonderful thing.

W: Waffle Saturdays..something very simple but that means allot to me. When I was growing up, my mom made pancakes every Saturday and I loved it. So every Saturday that we are home I make waffles for breakfast and I like to think of my waffles as our own little Baker family tradition that someday my kids can talk about.

X: Xmas..it is such a magical time of the year, and I always feel so blessed to have so many wonderful memories of Christmas with my family while I was growing up.

Y:Year..with my birthday coming up this seems very appropriate. I am grateful for every year I get to be alive.

Z: ZZZ's---I have such a hard time sleeping(between insomnia and Nick's snoring this doesn't happen very often) So when I get some ZZ's I am very grateful.

Take Note, Give Thanks

I was reading an old co-worker's blog today and saw that she is doing The Gratitude Challenge sponsored by a website, tiny prints. I started to look at the website, http://www.gratitudechallenge.com/ and read all about the challenge and decided I wanted to do it as well. With all of the stress I have been under lately, with looking for a job, being so broke, and being so far away from all of my friends and family it was hard for me to see the good side of my life and be thankful for the thing in my life that i DO have! So I have decided to take the challenge and I will posting on the blog about it every day(that is my goal at least) That way I have it all in one place and can look back and reflect on it once it is all over. Plus I am hoping it might inspire others to take the challenge as well.

So Day 1....I am supposed to explain why I accepted the challenge(which I just did) and what I hope to achieve from it.
My goal by the end of this is to see the good things in my life, and realize that no matter what may be going wrong or what I may think is missing in my life...God has given me many things to be grateful for and it is up to me to notice those things/people and cherish them.

On a little side not...I finally got a job!!! I am going to be a nanny for 3 little boys, twin 3 year olds and an 11 month old. I met them and their mother on Monday and they are so cute!!! I start on Tuesday and will be watching them 5 days a week. This is only a temporary position, through the end of November. Which I think is perfect because by that time I will probably be begging for a break from children : ) plus that is right around the time that we will most likely be moving to Charlotte.

That's it for now...hope everyone enjoys the next 21 days of my posts through this challenge.
: )

Long time no post...

Well hello everyone..I know it has been a few weeks since I have posted anything. Things have been pretty boring with us lately. We have just spent the last couple of weeks doing the same old stuff..Nick working, me looking for a job, etc.

Last weekend was pretty nice though. We stayed home instead of going to the beach(our usual weekend options) and spent most all day Saturday with my brother and his wife. WE met them at the local coffee shop early in the morning, then headed to the Raleigh flea market with them and Lauren's parents, Randy and Lois. It was a gorgeous day and we had a great time just browsing and enjoying each others company. Then we came home and watched the U of M game at our place with Mike and Lauren. WE then spent the evening at there house playing bored games. I really felt like a true married couple...spending our weekend getting coffee, going to a flea market and playing board games..and thoroughly enjoying it! : )


Some good news on the job front..I have not 1 but 2 interviews tomorrow. The first one is with an accounting/payroll staffing agency. it sounds very promising and like they will be able to place me with a company fairly quickly. I am going in tomorrow morning to go over my qualifications and see what is available for me.
Then in the evening I am having dinner and meeting with a family that is looking for a temporary nanny for their 3 children. I am pretty excited about this meeting. The couple has twin 3 year olds and an 11 month old and they need a full time nanny(8 am to 6 pm) for two months while the mom trains for a new job. This would work out perfectly because I would work with them through November, which is when we will most likely be moving to Charlotte. I really hope it goes well and I get it! I know it will be stressful taking care of 3 children under 3, but I am up for the challenge!!! : )

We spent this weekend at the beach and had a wonderful time..yet again : ) Friday night we went to Homeport(the local bar) with all of the regulars..it was so nice because we pretty much had the whole place to ourselves. I love being here when all of the renters are gone for the season!!!
Saturday morning Nick and I went for a nice bike ride around the island and then spent the day at the point with some friends. The men all fished while the women soaked up the sun. It was a beautiful day.
WE made an amazing dinner Saturday night and watched LSU football. It was an absolutely perfect day!! Now I am just cleaning up the house and relaxing while Nick works on the jet ski and washes the boat for my dad..he is such a good man!!!

Back to reality in a few hours and then my two interview tomorrow!!!! Keep your fingers crossed and say a few prayers for me tomorrow that I get at least one of these jobs. I really need it.

Hope everyone is well and enjoying this wonderful fall season!!!


Our dinner Saturday night..grilled shrimp and pineapple and crabcakes!! Yummy : )


The view from our dock..two butterflies were flying all around me but by the time I got my camera out they were flying away...

Enjoying the sun at the point(the very end point of the island...my favorite spot on the island but a very long walk...)


Nick caught a tiny fish off of our dock before we headed to the point for some serious fishing.


Our group sunbathing and fishing....

I hate moving!

Well this week I came to the beach to help my parents move from one beach house to a different one, right down the street. I was told they would have movers so it wouldn't be that bad. I was thinking I would just help my mom organize and unpack and decorate(stuff I love to do) Boy was I wrong!!! Yes they had movers, but we were moving right along with them. By late afternoon I was about ready to die!!! It was hot, humid, and rainy..and my knee was killing me. And one of the trashy movers kept flirting with me...hello buddy..look at the ring!!!!!!
Being the clumsy person that I am..I hurt myself a few times. Hurt my hand pretty badly on Nick's truck trying to put the tanau cover back on, twisted my knee the wrong way a few times, and the worst of all...fell down the stairs and twisted my ankle pretty badly. Luckily it was at the end of the day, but I have been pretty useless to my parents since then..just hobbling around the house, lol.
The house looks amazing though!!! We are right on the water and the views are amazing no matter what room you are in! My parents are leaving tomorrow to head back to Michigan for the fall/winter. Which means Nick and I have the house to ourselves all winter whenever we want to come visit. : )

I am headed back to Durham today because I have a job interview tomorrow morning in the Paychex Charlotte office. I am not worried about the interview at all, just very anxious to find out if the position gets approved so that they can hire me : )
Then we will be moving...again!!! I will be so happy when all of the moving is over and we are in our own house!!!!!!!

Here are a few pics from the new beach house


Our last ngiht in the old house..very empty : (


Our dock on the water, old owners boat is still there.







View from the top balcony


A mural painted on the bathroom wall!!


Kitchen(kind of messy still)