Crafty: Creative Minds

(Created for my friend, Amie, for her Birthday)

We all have creative minds, we just use them in different ways! I like to use my creative abilities by making crafty projects. Usually I either make gifts for friends or make something for our house. Here's a few of the recent projects that I have created:

(I sold these on Etsy to a Bride)

(I made this one for a photography friend whose last name is Peacock)

(I made these for a friend for her Birthday)

(I also made this for my friend, Brandie, for her Birthday)

(My latest creation for my friend, Kerri)

Check out my Etsy page if you are interested in purchasing one of my crafty projects :)

Friend Post: Amanda & Cody

I have known Amanda for her whole life (despite the fact that I can't remember much about her as a baby)!!! Her sister is one of my best friends that I have known since I was 5 years old. We all went to the same daycare, we lived in the same neighborhood, went to the same schools, and eventually went to the same Church. Even though Amy & I did not always want Amanda around during our "tween" years we still loved her. Well, by the way she was treated at the time that wasn't always too obvious! We definitely both love her now though!!!I had a very close relationship with her even when I didn't keep up with Amy quite as much. The older we got the closer we became. We don't spend as much time together these days, but I know I can always rely and trust on Amanda. I consider her a very good friend (and sister too!). For her sake I only posted a few images from the early 2000's instead of the one I really wanted to post from the N'Sncyc concert from the 90's!!!!

Here's a couple more pictures from the early 2000's...

I was very excited when I found out the news about Amanda being Engaged. I had already met Cody a few times and thought he was a great guy! He was also very creative in his method of proposal, so I'll give him lots of credit for that. I am so grateful that I got the opportunity to take Amanda & Cody's Engagement pictures. I had such a fun time at their session! It's hard to even imagine that Amanda was a "tomboy" at one point of her life. Those days are LONG gone! She is such a beautiful girl (woman) now! I can't wait until their wedding day in February!!!

New Change: Goodbye Bills!

I should start off by saying that getting any type of credit card in college is not always the best idea. This is how some of my debt problems began. I went into Wachovia one day and they gave me a card that was considered my overdraft account. They didn't explain it to me very well, so when I received a credit card in the mail I used it. Then I continued to use it until I was over 5,000 in debt. This was around 2001 and I just paid this bill off (with the help of Chris) in 2011! It's crazy that I carried that much debt around for so long just on one card. I also got the brilliant idea to buy a dell desktop computer, which also took many, many years to pay off. My mom ended up helping me pay the rest of that off. I paid way more for a computer than I ever should have by the time it was said and done.

Even this year I did manage to get a Chase card and owed way more than I was ever hoping to owe. The purchases were usually business related, but I still couldn't pay it quick enough. The good news of it all is I've learned my lesson! I just paid off my Victoria's Secret card, my Old Navy card,  and my Chase card. I have about $10,000 in college loans to pay and we have a car loan. I guess that's not horrible considering the amount of debt most people are in!

I am just excited not to have to stress or worry about bills. Credit cards are in my past! Goodbye debt, hello savings!

Friend Post: Brian, Audrey, & Asher

Brian lucked out, because I can't find any pre-scanned pictures of him from our youth group days! I've known Brian since I was a teenager. I started going to South Rocky Mount Church of God with my close friend Amy around this time. I was heavily involved with the youth group. This is where I got to know Brian. I was pretty close to his whole family. His sister Karen was best friends with Amanda (Amy's sister). I always thought it was cool that they both had best friends that were named Karen! I was very close to Kristi. I miss that relationship a lot! Brian and I kept in touch while we were in college. I remember in one email he wrote about how we (as in us and the rest of our close group) just had that type of relationship that would always be close. Those weren't the exact words, but it was something like that. Those type of friendships are long lasting and you don't have to talk all the time to feel like you're close. There's so many good things to say about Brian. All the girls thought a lot of Brian and just knew that one day he'd make a good husband to somebody.

That one day came along, when I lived in Colorado, a few years ago! He married Audrey. Audrey is someone with a very sweet and soft voice, but she has this very fun and silly side too! I am so grateful that I have been able to get to know her better. We have also formed a friendship and I just love being around her. It's good to have those friends that you can talk to and you know they understand some of what you've been through. She is a very special person in my life.

I wanted to share a little bit about their life story. There are so many more in between details to be shared, but this is an extremely short version of what they've been dealing with recently. A little over a year ago they had their first son, Zachary. They took him home from the hospital and days later he passed away.  A few months ago baby number two came along. His name is Asher. I offered them a free photo session before he was born. That day I intended on spending a couple of hours at their house, but I believe it may have turned into 4 or more! I had such a fun time hanging out with them and taking pictures of Asher and their family. I am so glad I can share this with them! I loved meeting Asher and I can't wait for my next visit!