My Happy Ever After

            Merry Christmas to our loved ones from Raleigh, North Carolina! Another year has passed, we're all another year better ;) From our family to yours we pray the year of 2014 has been good to you and you've set your goals high for 2015!             Each year I look back and think what a crazy ride it's been and the next year will be a little more calm yet we continue to move on to bigger and better. So maybe this is just how my life will be!              The biggest change this year was moving 300 miles down the road from Joppa, Maryland to Raleigh, North Carolina. For several years Tim and I have been planning a move to Raleigh, we just never dreamed it would happen the way that it did.              Job opportunities in MD had run out for Tim and we'd come to the end of our rope, desperate for a new beginning and frustrated with barely...

Every year my parents would bundle up us kids, pile us in the van and off we'd go to the Christmas tree farm to cut down our tree! My fondest memories were at Maranatha Farms, however it isn't the same anymore. There was just something about choosing a tree as a family and the excitement watching Daddy cut it down. Sometimes we were lucky enough to buy hot cider while Daddy paid for our tree and loaded it in the van. Most years we just enjoyed the free candy canes. If you sat in the back of the van you probably had to sit with the tree right next to your head because Daddy would sit it on top of the rows of seats in our 15 passenger van. I loved the memories we made picking out a tree together. Carrying on this tradition in my own little family was a dream come true, my husband loved the idea of sawing down one of those beautiful trees to set it up in our own little home. This is our 4th Christmas together and the first 2 years we bought an expensive tree from the place my pa...

"I bought a million dollar business in a $50 box" is a line I heard over this past weekend, I laughed thinking how true this was and how for many of us that $50 investment is a lot. I'll never forget the night I signed my distributor application, it was an investment we truly couldn't afford but it was an opportunity we couldn't afford to pass up. I attended and incredible event and my life was forever changed. I listened to stories of how this product and business had improved the quality of life for hundreds, even thousands of families. I paid $50 and got a family of like minded individuals, the tools I need to create a million dollar business. How successful I am is up to me. I don't sell, I don't bribe, I share stories and education. As a result lives are changed, financial freedom is created and health is improved in all shapes and forms. I have never had so much fun or been so rewarded for "working." The average distributor working...

I'm so excited and relieved! My Nana used to tell us, "You kids are going to send me to the poor house" when we asked her to buy us things. I never knew what she meant until I got older. I just envisioned a house full of poor people like a halfway house or something. Now I'll give you a brief backstory on why this is such a big deal to me. As a little girl, I assumed when my Prince Charming came along I would be able to be a SAHM like my mom was. My hopes and dreams came crashing down around me on August 25, 2008 when at not quite 20 yrs old I found out I was going to have to provide for more than just myself. This led to the launch of Running with Scissors, my mobile hair business. Working for yourself is scary and uncertain but God always provided for my little family of 2. Shortly before my little one turned 2 my dad said it was time we found our own home. I'll spare you the details of how we got to this place but I rented my first home with my best friend....

I have truly struggled lately with some emotional things from my past and it wasn't until today I realized what that was. Jealousy. I found out I was pregnant with Asher a week before my 20th birthday, I told his dad, he freaked out, I told my parents, they freaked out, I told my friends, they didn't know if they should say "Congrats" or "I'm sorry." A week after that positive HPT the bio-dad informed me he was continuing his plans to go on a 6 month long missions trip. I was crushed, I didn't want him to leave because I knew he would be disconnected from what was happening. Upon returning he was offered a full time position in Hawaii and didn't come home until Asher was due to be born. When Asher was born the bio-dad texted that he was unable to come see him in the hospital because he had a headache and sunburn. The day he did meet Asher he sat down a few feet away from me and immediately pulled out a paternity test. That night I cried myself ...

Well I haven't posted any updates this summer due to my laptop charger quitting on  me. Apple wanted nearly $100 for a new one, I finally broke down and bought a imitation one on Amazon. Our summer flew by in a whirlwind anyway, who knows how much blogging I would have really done! Our family spent several weekends in MD with family since we moved, many people have commented how often we have been in MD but we had prior engagements to meet and events we just couldn't miss. Plus, we miss everyone! Weddings, birthdays, doing hair for my awesome clients! It's been crazy busy and I do look forward to a time when we can come and just visit :) In the beginning of the summer we had 1 month where Tim's last two paychecks with Michael & Son were $200 each. Then there was about 2.5 weeks between jobs. Family stepped in and kept our heads above water but we still have lots of catching up to do. I've become much more serious about budgeting and really proud of my little...

http://www.rfachurch.org/ Well we have officially found a new church in Raleigh! We visited several before choosing this one. Each week we get more and more confirmation that this is where God wants us! The scripture verse that has carried me through this move is Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you.." Well guess what, the very FIRST week we attended the Pastor quoted that verse! It all started when I was feeling overwhelmed by the choice of churches in Raleigh and I googled "spirit filled churches in Raleigh" and the first thing that came up was Raleigh First Assembly. I thought to myself, this could be it! We looked over the website and it seemed pretty awesome. Each Sunday we have left church feeling challenged and encouraged! I love it! When the service lets out I kind of want to sit and soak in what we just experienced but the children's ministry wants us to pick up the kids, I don...

Every now and then I gotta brag on this guy and it's long overdue! When we discussed moving to NC one of the big things was that Tim was going to have to be our primary source of income. This was a big deal for us both. Tim had never been responsible for the financial outcome of us all by himself before! However he was happy to take on this responsibility and proud to be in a position to do so :)  As a little girl I wanted to be home raising and homeschooling my kids like my mom while my husband worked to provide for us. Now that dream has changed and altered in many ways over the years. In the end I'm thrilled to be home with my babies and proud of my hardworking husband for supporting us! I'm not the only one who is proud of him! Asher talks about his daddy all the time and brags about the things he can do :) It reminds me of how I felt about my dad as a kid. I thought he was better than anyone else's dad because he worked with his hands and could seemingly ...

I can't stop thinking about how my baby boy is going to be 5 in one month. I can't carry him or even fit all of him in my lap much less my arms. He is making jokes and being sarcastic with me, my favorite is when he says, "I know right?!"  Five Years ago I was anxiously awaiting his arrival, desperately hoping his dad would decide to love him and be a part of his life. Living with my parents I had everything set up in my room, a bassinet in a little corner of the room with a plastic bin of drawers for a dresser. More clothes than one child needed, unnecessary items like a wipe warmer and newborn shoes. My sweet boy was born a full 2 weeks late and rocked my world. Looking back I was so young to have a baby. Only 20 years old. That baby boy became my reason for living, my reason for going through one more day despite the loneliness, pain and shame of my situation. Asher's dad never did come around, we saw him a few times and he sent money for 4.5 yrs. He p...

Honestly, this is all about my amazing kitchen ;) When I saw the photo's of this house online the kitchen was just ok. Sure it has granite countertops and stainless steel appliances but I wasn't sure that it had enough cabinet or counter space. Would it have a big enough pantry? Would I like having the garage door coming into the kitchen? The fridge has the freezer on top, I'm not sure I would like that.  As a WAHM now I needed to know that this was a kitchen I could enjoy spending time in. However I had to trust Tim 100% that this was the house for our family. When we moved in on Sunday March 2nd I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it! There is MORE than enough space for everything! I am still settling into it and figuring out where we should keep things and how they should be arranged. (I LOVE ORGANIZING) I'm driving Tim crazy moving things around but I'm making the space we have more efficient! Want to see? So there is  a small pantry next to the...

In response to many asking how we are doing getting settled I would say, GREAT :) We love the area, love our house, learning our way around and making new friends! I get to be home with the kids all day, which I love despite it's challenging times. The enemy is not liking how God has blessed us or how we have given God glory for all He has done so of course he is coming against us. We have had a few bumps in the road as we start off our "new life" here in Raleigh. Minor things at the house like appliances not working and then the property manager being out of town for 3 weeks. Lots of rain (always a downer). Tim's new job has been particularly challenging! It's hard work and long hours, there have been several errors between his company and the company who makes the uniforms so he's been wearing ONE "trainee" shirt for 5 weeks now and losing sales due to the customer unsure of his abilities. They withheld his first paycheck, which was only trainin...

As I prayed about our big move to Raleigh the Lord told me this would be like having a baby. There were labor pains with breaks in between, then there would be transition. The transition is the most painful part, and the quickest part. At the end, there is NEW LIFE! Can you see the correlation to our life right now? Now you know after the new baby is born there is still pain and healing, adjustment and transition into a new normal. That's where we are now, I think for me it hasn't hit me yet that we are 300 miles from everything we know. Leaving the house is slightly stressful considering I have to use a GPS no matter where I am going. I have successfully gone across the street to the grocery store and tonight I went to Kohls in Knightdale with no GPS assistance, however I second guessed myself anyway. At first it felt like living in someone else's house, I saw the house for the first time the day we moved into it. Asher was anxious to check out the neighborhood and ma...

It took three weeks for the Burton's to make the move to Raleigh after talking about it for years. We never dreamed things would happened this quickly but the Lord had other plans. This move came about for many reasons, primarily because we have wanted to move south for so long. The South, in particular, Raleigh drew us in for it's uniqueness, friendliness, it's warmer and less expensive. With Tim being out of work for so long and unable to find work within an hour of our Joppa home we decided there was no harm in looking for employment in Raleigh. Not really sure how the rest would fall into place but oh well. Before we knew it we had chosen an apartment and Tim was hired, starting work the following week. We said tearful goodbyes as he left for 3 weeks of work while I packed the house and closed down my hair studio. Things started to fall into place and even our family (who didn't want us to leave) could see that the Lord was moving us to Raleigh. At the end of this...