count it all joy!

I don’t know about you, but I am pretty excited to see February go! Why you ask? Well, February has been quite an interesting month for me…car wise that is.

Earlier this month, on one of the most brutally cold days we’ve had (it was around 15 below if I remember) my lovely little car battery decided that it was just going to bite the dust as I was trying to start it up to drive home from work. Thankfully one of my kind co-workers spent 20 plus minutes helping me jump start my car to get home (yes, it was THAT dead, usually it only takes like 5 minutes, EKK!). My handy dandy hubby and I went to buy a new battery, and he was able to change it out himself (thankfully!). About a month before my car battery died, Scott’s had died and my father-in-law taught the hubs how to change them out! What can I say, this Minnesota winter has been brutal on car batteries, and with both our vehicles being around 5 years old it was time to change them both. Bummer that it happened so close to each other, but that’s kind of how it worked out, such is life! After that little hiccup, it had been smooth sailing…until this morning.

I was pulling out of my driveway on my way to work early this morning and my car just felt weird as I was driving it. It was making a weird noise and something seemed off to me. Now, I don’t know you about but I am totally clueless when it comes to cars! I never know what should make noise, what sounds normal/abnormal, and so on and so forth. I pulled quickly over to the side to check my front tire and it looked fine to me so I kept driving. As I pulled off my side street on to the main road the noise got REALLY bad and I just knew something wasn’t right so I decided to turn around and take the husband’s car instead of my car to work. (Side note: this is when it’s REALLY nice that he now works from home!) I was still right by my house so it only took me about 2 minutes to get back home and once I pulled into the garage I went to look again at that same tire and it was totally flat as a pancake! YIKES! Not how I envisioned my morning going at all!

At this point I knew that I had two choices, I could either let myself get really frustrated and annoyed with the situation, or I could choose to laugh it off and count it all joy. As I was thinking about all this stuff God gently reminded me in my heart what it says in James 1: 2-4, and it was just what I needed to be reminded of in that moment! Love how He does that!

James 1: 2-4 (MSG): “Consider it a sheet gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all side. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.”

I decided to not this situation that was thrown at me from the enemy ruin my day or steal my joy. I began to laugh it off as I switched out of my car into my husband’s. As I was driving to work and spending time praying and talking with my sweet heavenly Father (as I do every morning) my joy became fuller! Instead of choosing to complain and give voice to all the things that I felt went wrong this morning, the Lord instead prompted on me to give thanks for all the things that went right, so that’s exactly what I did.

I started listing off all the things that I was thankful for about this situation:

-I am so thankful that my tire went flat right by my house instead of on the freeway, or at work would I would have to try and change to the spare. (Lord knows that would have been REALLY bad!)

-I am so thankful that I was completely safe and sound in getting my vehicle home and that it happened to go flat perfectly at the right time.

-I am so thankful that I was able to swap cars with my husband and not be delayed in any way in getting to work.

-I am so thankful that my husband is working for home so that I could take his car and that today wasn’t a day that he needed to go into the office.

-I am so thankful that we have two vehicles that are (usually) in full working condition and that each time we run into an emergency we have a back up to rely on.

-I am so thankful that we have the finances to go buy a new tire tonight (in cash, not credit) and that we do not have to sweat out how to cover the cost of the repair. I know many people aren’t in that position and I am so thankful for the blessings we have!

In every challenge that we face, we always have the option to choose our attitude, as well as choosing how we’ll respond to adversity that we are dealing with. Let me be the first to say that I am not perfect!! There are WAY too many times when I choose the wrong attitude. I automatically get frustrated and start complaining, doing the whole “oh poor me, I don’t deserve this” thing and so on, and so forth. However, I am thankful that God never gives up on me! He is always working gently to correct and remind me of the things I need to change in my life and I am thankful that He was quick to show me this morning the right way to deal with this situation. It’s so awesome to be His child!

With all that said, here’s hoping the rest of this week is less eventful!!!! :)

it's a tsnownami!!!!

I couldn't help but title this post with my new favorite catch phrase! This weekend we were POUNDED with snow here in Minnesota, and it truly was a crazy blizzard! (I am sure you all have heard about the Metrodome ceiling crashing!) We got around 17 inches here and I cannot remember a snow storm this bad for quite some time.

Last night, I was supposed to head to my sister's house last night to help watch her boys so she could go to work, and ended up getting stuck in the snow attempting to get on the freeway.  Thankfully my husband packed me up with a shovel in my car, and 3 kind passerby's pulled over to help dig me out.  As if that wasn't enough, trying to turn around to get home I got stuck yet again,  and it required 3 people to get out to push my car out of the snow mound. (Did I mention that this all happened within not even 5 miles of my home?!) Oh, and you think I am done there...nope there's more!! I got stuck TWICE in my own driveway and my husband had to dig me out.  Needless to say, I didn't make it to my sister's house! (SORRY PAMMY!)  I am thankful for all the kind people that helped me out, and even more thankful that I was just able to make it back home safe!

The snow has finally stopped, and this morning the hubs and I went out to "evaluate" the damages and I am sure you will all get a kick out of what the aftermath is!

My front door & walk way

A more detailed view of the height of the snow.  I cannot handle that it actually has my door imprint on it! LOL!!

Snow fort anyone? :) Still my front yard just stacked high with snow!

Our back door is covered too! Snow, snow, everywhere!

On another side note, yesterday was Scott and mine's 8 year anniversary of being together! We don't really do anything big to celebrate it since we are married now, but I'm such a sap and like to still do something to recognize that we have made it through so much together over the past 8 years. We had plans to go on a dinner date, but with the weather being what it was, we postponed that to a lunch date today.

I am still trying to wrap my head around the fact that we have made it to 8 years!! Wow! Part of me feels like it's been so much longer than that (in a good way) and the other makes me feel like it's been a blink and all that time has passed.  I am so thankful that I have been able to share my life with my very best friend and soul mate for all this time. God really brought us together, and formed a love story perfectly and uniquely for us, and I love that each day I find more ways to love and appreciate Scott for all that he is to be, and all that he has done for me. I never at 15 could have imagined what awesome thing Scott and I started in our lives that day when we started dating, but it's amazing to look back now and see all the great things that have come from that choice!  I love you more and more each and every day honey!

Our first date back in 2002, only a few days after we started dating.  Aww, young love!! <3

let is snow, let it snow, let it snow....

I woke up this morning to a winter wonderland! 

We have officially hit winter time here in Minnesota and I am so thankful that our first snowfall came on a Saturday!!! Does God love me or what?!? If any of you live in snowy areas, you understand why this makes my little heart so happy.  Morning rush hour in the snow is anything but pleasant.  However, I do love sitting in my house by the fireplace watching the beautiful white flakes cover everything outdoors.  There is something that's a bit romantic about it all, and I am happy that this weekend will be filled with plenty of snuggled up moments inside my home.

Speaking of inside my home, it's officially Christmastime here in at the Dodge's!!! Yes, I do love Thanksgiving, but there is just something about Christmas decor that gets me every year.  I was bitten by the Christmas bug late in October, and I held off until the first weekend in November to pull out the Christmas decor.  I just couldn't wait any longer!!  Last weekend, I went to it and got everything out and put up and let me tell you it's just gorgeous!!!  I love that we get more than a single month to enjoy our tree!

I mean really, can you blame me for putting all this goodness up early? I just love it!!! Have a great weekend everyone!!!

i've been upgraded!!

Yes, it’s true I have upgraded big time from winter 2007. All thanks to my beautiful new townhouse & our wonderful two car garage!! Winter is officially here in Minnesota and we have got a few inches of snow over the last 3 days, and I am so happy to pull my car into my garage and not have to think about scraping and brushing inches of snow off of it the very next day. It’s a beautiful thing!! Last year we closed on our house in January and Scott got to live there alone until the wedding, and every time we got snow last year and I was scraping off my car in the early morning with wind chills below zero, I would think about how unfair it was that he got to use our garage and I was stuck parking in the driveway at my parents house! So it goes without saying that I am so happy to have “upgraded” this year and have my very own garage!! It makes winter a little easier to deal with. Now only if we could come up with a solution for those pesky slippery streets….