Change

I can't believe I've been teaching for seven years!!...at the same school...in the same grade...with the same partner teacher!!  It's amazing to look back and see how God provided for me to student teach my senior year of Clemson at Powdersville Elementary, then He provided a job for me there as a third grade teacher, then He provided one of my best friends in my partner-teacher, Melissa, and he provided an awesomely fun third grade team and supportive administration!  I couldn't have imagined better.  It has been a much-needed reminder to my often anxious heart that "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" (Rom. 8:32)  I so easily forget how good and gracious God has been and continues to be and I so easily forget His promises that He will never leave me nor forsake me.  I won't be returning to teach next year, which is bittersweet for me.  I've loved the job God has provided for me the past seven years (or 1/4 of my life as Rob likes to remind me) but I know I'll love being at home as a full-time mom to Quinn.  This doesn't mean I've been worry-free since I don't have to make long-term sub plans or figure out childcare...I worry about labor, about finances, and about how in the world I'm going to do this whole parenting thing!  Again, Jesus reminds me of my weakness and neediness of Him- He is sufficient!  I'm thankful for how God speaks to me through His Word and says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:6-7)

Melissa and I...of course we would unknowingly match on the day of the baby shower the third grade team had for me!  (Our first year of teaching, we had at least 3 identical articles of clothing, that we would unintentionally wear on the same day of school.)  I'm so thankful for Melissa's friendship and godly counsel!

These ladies had a really sweet shower for me and Quinn, complete with baby headband making!  I'll miss them all dearly but will be coming back to visit especially since Quinn's pediatrician will be in the Wren/Powdersville area.

Sisters Shower

My sisters and sisters-in-law had a sweet brunch shower for me and Quinn at Heather's house toward the end of May.  Unfortunately, I have been awful about taking pictures at showers and in documenting this pregnancy in general.  Hopefully, I'll be better about this once Quinn is here!  I've been working on organizing some type of baby book and I'm sure I'll be taking lots of pictures!  I think Rob and I are most curious about what she'll look like.  Anyway, here are a few pictures from the sisters shower that others graciously took.

Macey and Nana

Yummy breakfast food! (I could possibly eat breakfast 3 meals a day, especially when it includes breakfast casserole, muffins, monkey bread, and yogurt parfaits!)

It was a fun shower and really sweet time with family!

Barnwell Shower

Quinn and I were lovingly showered by several of Rob's mom's friends in Barnwell back in April.  Everyone was so kind and generous to us!

Baby pictures of grandparents and parents were used for decoration on the mantel.  Who will Quinn look like?

Someone assumed that since Rob is a Carolina fan, I must be too...this will be used for Quinn's messiest spit-ups. ;)

The hostesses

Love these ladies

Funny story from that weekend: I got this cute newborn onesie and matching burp cloth with Quinn's name monogrammed except Edie was spelled "Edi", so I told Rob about it on our way back to Greenville that afternoon.  His response was, "That's how you spell it though, just take off the 'th' from Edith and you get 'Edi'!"  Come to find out, he had texted his mom that spelling of Quinn's name when she asked if she could share with a friend who wanted to monogram something for us.  We got a good laugh out of the whole situation since both of us were so convinced of how to spell her name that we didn't even check with the other.  Mrs. Fowler, my librarian at school, who amazingly altered my wedding dress almost two years ago and made the crib bedding and quilt, came to the rescue with her embroidery machine and added an "e" to spell Quinn's full name correctly.  If Quinn isn't too big when she's born this may just be one of her first outfits. 

Catch Up

So I'm awful at this whole blogging thing!  Maybe I'll update more often once school is finished, which is only two more days!!  Here are just a few pictures of what's been going on the past several months.

Getting ready for Quinn's arrival

Celebrating Ruth Anne's upcoming wedding

Cousin playdate in Greenville- hopefully many more to come, including Quinn

Spring Break/Babymoon to Cashiers, NC

Celebrating Macey's first birthday!

Stay tuned...I'm hoping to have more nursery pictures soon after some much needed cleaning and organization!

Latest Projects

We've been pretty busy lately with Christmas and now getting back into the swing of work.  We enjoyed time with family in Barnwell, Batesburg-Leesville, and York.

Rob's Grandma Martin with all her new jewelry :)

Rob's PopPop with his new ride.

4 generations of Halls 

Heather and cute little Easton

Little Macey...now teething

We can now show a few of our projects that were Christmas presents:

And our latest find from Craigslist!

 

We have been looking for a church pew to go upstairs against our short walls for a while and found one for a good price in the big city of Starr, SC.

Our next project will be a lengthy one since it will involve an entire room in our house...

What color will the nursery be? Pink or blue?

Yes!  We're expecting baby Martin!  Estimated time of arrival: July 28, 2014.

We're very thankful and excited!

Family and Rivalries

It's been way too long since I last posted, but it seems like the last couple of months have flown by!  The highlight of October was meeting our nephew, Easton!

Of course we had to stop by and see our niece too.

We got to see these cuties again last weekend, tailgating before the Clemson vs. Citadel game.

Speaking of Clemson, Rob and I kept our tradition from last year of going to one Carolina game and one Clemson game a year.  We somehow managed to get tickets to the Clemson vs. FSU game and were really excited for Rob to go to a "big" Clemson game in Death Valley.  The atmosphere was great for the first five minutes, maybe.  Rob even wore orange!!

We went to the Carolina vs. Florida game a couple of weekends ago and although I could never bring myself to wear garnet, I did wear black.  Shocking, I know!  With the big rivalry game coming up this weekend, I think we've decided the best thing for our hearts and for our marriage is to decorate for Christmas instead of watching the game.  We'll see how that goes. :)

Little Home Improvements

Rob and I have worked on a couple of little projects recently.  Every so often I pull out my sewing machine and am reminded of how impatient I am and exactly why it usually stays packed away.  Before school started I visited Joann's Fabrics which recently opened in Greenville and got inspired to make a super simple curtain to hang above our sink.  It did cheer up the kitchen a little.

 I also found a large metal spoon and fork at a yard sale that I spray painted to hang on either side of the sink.

Our other little project was to clean up the laundry room.  We had a counter with three sets of drawers below it.  Drawers just don't cut it for trying to organize dirty laundry, so Rob took out the drawers and knocked out the rails so it was completely open.

 I found some leftover paint in the garage that worked for painting the inside of the cabinet and the one set of drawers we left.  I probably should have bought a new can of paint so that the cabinet would be completely one color but I was cheap.

A little paint and new baskets go a long way!