Happy 36th Anniversary!

On this day of love, I couldn't think of a more appropriate thing to celebrate. Today is special, not because it is Valentines, but because it is the day that my parent's will celebrate their 36th anniversary.  That's right.... 36 years. In a world where marriages have trouble making it longer than 36 days, I am so honored to have parents who have made a commitment before the Lord and kept it every day for 36 years (and many more years to come)!

Dad and Mom, I am so blessed to have you as parents.  Although I am sure marriage wasn't always a piece of cake, you made it look easy.  I admire the way you have partnered together in this life and have supported each other through every step of your journey. You can tell that your relationship's centeredness on the Lord is what has strengthened you both throughout the years.  Tyler and I both admire your love for each other!  So on your special day, we celebrate you and pray for the Lord to bless you with many more years of love, happiness, and togetherness.

Weren't they precious??

Love,

How the "I" became "We"

I saw this idea on my friend’s blog and I thought it was a great idea!  So here is our story in Q&A format.

1. How long have you and your significant other been together?

Tyler and I started dating towards the end of my freshman year in college.  Which means we have been together for about five and half years.

2. How did you meet? (what's your "love" story?)

Check this link for our "love story".

3. If married, how long have you been married?

Tyler and I have been married two and half years. And I have loved every second of it! I don't mean to get cheesy on you (although this is a Valentines post) but marriage for us gets better every day. I am one lucky lady!   

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding? 

I would say we had a medium sized wedding.  It was perfect for us.  We had our wedding in Mississippi so all of our friends could be a part of our special day and we were so blessed that so many of our family members were willing to make the trip to share in our special day.  We got married at a church not far from the college where we met and it was beautiful (center aisle included!) and then had our reception at an art museum which made for the perfect environment.  I wouldn't have changed a thing about that special day!

5. Do you have any nicknames that you call one another? Share!

We totally do! What's a relationship without nicknames? However I must be honest and tell you that Tyler's nicknames for me are always a spin off of a nickname I have for him. Nicknames obviously aren't his specialty. But it always makes me laugh when I hear how he has ever so slightly adjusted the nickname to fit me.  Our nicknames are definitely for at home use only, although every once in a while one slips out here and there.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

Wow, just three things?  How to narrow it down... I think one of the most valuable things about Tyler is his positive attitude.  He reminds me of Psalms 1:1: " He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither..."  At times when life seems to throw us a curve ball, he is not moved and can see the goodness of the Lord. I also love how wonderful Tyler is with people.  I tend to be the more shy between the two of us and I admire the way he gets to know people and can immediately make them feel comfortable. His way with people reminds me of Proverbs 17:22 "A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up bones."  Tyler definitely never falls into the "dries up bones category".  I love to watch the way his humor and personality give him a great platform to invest in the lives of others.  And lastly, since we are doing just three, I am so grateful for the importance Tyler puts on providing for us as a family.  I firmly believe that the way he provides for us is his faith in action. He is such a hard worker and there is not a day that goes by that I don't value his commitment and discernment.

7. Tell us how he proposed!

 Tyler loves the unexpected.  I loved the planned.  So when he told me he was taking me out to a really nice restaurant for my birthday and that I should dress up, I thought it was obvious.  Of course, he was going to propose that night!  And of course, I was completely wrong.  But the great thing about Tyler is that he knew me well enough to know that I was sitting there the whole night thinking he was going to propose.  So of course, he did everything possible to play into the situation.  But a few weeks after that dinner date, Tyler asked me to come over to his apartment to study.  This of course was nothing out of the normal and we often studied together.  Since I had a huge test the next day it seemed like a good idea.  He came and picked me up at the dorm and when we arrived to his apartment I saw one of his roommates sprint from the building.  I didn't think much of it other than, "He must be late!". As we walked up the steps and opened the door to his apartment the whole apartment was filled with candles and a single string lead me through the apartment.  As I followed the string, there were notes and pictures of special memories that Tyler and I had shared along the years starting with the day we first met until I reached a point where the string divided.  I had come to a crossroads and the rest of the story hinged on the answer to one very important question.  Tyler popped down on one knee and asked me to marry him.   I of course, said "YES!".  

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?

Ummm... No. Ha!  And I am not that kind of girl either.  I love to be loved all year long and so a little something extra on Valentines Day is nice, but I would never trade that for the love and care that Tyler gives me each and every day. He is always so thoughtful!

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?

I guess I am a pop a in movie in and relax kinda girl?  Because I am not really a dinner on the beach kind of girl....  but is there a go out to a nice dinner, inside option- because that's probably my real answer. But between those two options, it would be the movie and relax.  We do that a lot around here after a busy week at work.  

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant other one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

Tyler and I love to travel!  And it is my hope that we get to visit some of the places we have always wanted to go to: New York, California, and if we are really dreaming here...Italy!  Oh and another trip to the Bahamas; we love that place. I think we love to travel because it gives us time to just be with each other while see new places and trying new foods (yes! food is important around here!).

11. Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day.

I love to give sweet, little gifts during Valentines.  So for the past week I have given Tyler a little something just to remind him that he is loved.  And as for the actually Valentines Day, Tyler has a plan to make dinner for me at home and we plan on enjoying time talking, laughing, and loving.  But other than that, nothing out of the ordinary around here.  

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?

Nope, not a thing! To me, Valentines is a holiday about giving :)

13. Give us one piece of advice about keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

I think in a lot of ways Cystic Fibrosis makes our relationship different.  But I guess you could say my advice would be mindset.  Tyler and I know that we are not promised another day together.  I think because of this we live more fully.  Sure we have our days, what marriage doesn't?  But living like the person you love is a gift from the Lord, that you are not promised to have forever, makes arguments seem insignificant, mistakes more easily forgiven, and love seem so much more important. It is my goal each day, in my relationship with Tyler, to make him feel like the most valuable thing to me on this earth and he does the same for me.

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you.

I love you Tyler!

A New Desk!

I have been a little absent from the blog these days.  What can I say?  Life has been running us wild and time to sit and write has not been as frequent.  What has kept us so busy you ask?  Well, I have been doing a few home projects.  I love a good project and for some reason they are so therapeutic to me.  I count myself lucky to have a husband who doesn't mind me wanting to change the paint colors in a room or build a desk in a closet.  He is pretty wonderful at letting me just go for it!  And in the project I am sharing today, he even jumped in and helped!

The reason behind this project was that I am going to be doing a little work from home starting this month and so I needed a place to where I could do just that.  Tyler has a "home office"  but if we are being honest, that room is much more like a man cave than an office. So there wasn't any room for me there!  And since I hate clutter I really didn't want to set up anything up in the guest room.  That's when I found the perfect idea on Pinterest-- a desk in the closet!  It works perfectly because I really don't need that much space and I can close the door and the clutter is hidden! Ahh... hidden clutter... it's a beautiful thing.

Here are a few pictures.... I must say, my amazing husband is responsible for constructing the desk.  If I ever said he wasn't handy, well, I was wrong!  At first I thought I would paint the closet and while that would have been great, I had a second thought.  I used fabric to cover a project board and measured it to fit perfectly in the space between the desk and the top shelf.  It works great to post notes on and in case I want to change the look, its super easy to take it down and switch up the fabric!

The empty closet and the handyman :)

 Desk is ready to go! And Tyler didn't think it needed any "frilly" details....

....But SO much cuter!

Grace: We can't wait to meet you!

The Lord has been working in such a neat way in my sister and her husband's life.   They have two of the sweetest little boys in the world (okay, I am biased!)  and they are excited for their newest addition, Grace, who they will be adopting from China.  My whole family is anxious to meet Grace and we have begun to pray for her during this time she is away from her "forever family". I wanted to make a little something for my sister this Christmas to let her know how much support and love we feel for their family as they move forward in faith on this journey to bring home their daughter.

So I made these stocking hangers...

One for Robby

One for Daniel

and one awaiting a picture of Grace.

I hope you will pray with us as the Lord directs each step of the adoption process.  You can follow everything more closely on my sister's blog. 

A Baker Family Christmas!

Tyler and I got to go to Florida for Christmas this year!  The temperature was a cool 80 degrees- which we were definitely not expecting! This vacation was long anticipated because it was the first real vacation for us this year, since most of our travel time this year was spent on trips to Birmingham.  But we also looked forward to this trip because it was so wonderful to have all of my family together.  We only wished my sister, Meg, and her family could have been there!

Tyler and I were lucky enough to stay at my Grandma's.  This is one of Tyler's favorite things about going to Florida because staying at Grandma means lots of homemade yummies and all the special treatment. Its always a treat to stay at Grandma's!  While we were at Grandma's, my sister, Amy, and her family were at my parents.  We managed to spend as much time as possible as a whole group with lots of eating and just hanging out.  My mom always has everything planned and so it seems like everything happens so smoothly, but I know it takes a lot of effort on her part! Santa actually came a little early for us, since we all wanted to be at church Sunday, we thought it would make the most sense to open gifts on Saturday morning.  It was so fun to watch my nephews tear into their gifts.  They were so excited!

You know me, I think pictures tell the story so much better than I do, so here are just a few from the busy trip!

Christmas Morning!

Robby and Daddy Bob

Tyler and Grandma

Tyler's Stocking :)

He was so excited about this little ball that lit up! What a cutie!

The boys opened up a present for Grace.  It was the sweetest little sweater! We can't wait till she comes home from China!

Daddy Bob and Mimi with Robby

Sadly, it has probably come to the point where I have been out of Florida long enough to be considered a tourist.... so Tyler and I had to check out the sites :)

We had such a great time and so enjoyed being with family! We hope your family had a wonderful Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior!  

The Annual Pizza Party

This season has been especially hectic, so we didn't get to plan like we normally do for our friend Christmas party. This is another one of those special traditions created and passed down by my Aunt Jackie and whether it was well planned or not, we were still determined to keep the tradition alive.  We kept it simple, just our friends Allen and Jessica, and it was perfect.  We all got together at our house and made homemade pizzas.  The boys always try and get creative while the girls keep it pretty original.  This year the boys though sauce on top was the way to go. After pizza, we ate sugar cookies and watched Christmas with the Kranks. It was a perfect Christmas evening!

We were excited about the new Dr. Pepper 10- which Tyler let us try even though the commercial has convinced him it is "for men only."

Until next year!

Captain's of Industry

I hope my husband always knows that I am and always will be his biggest fan. I am just so proud of him! This year he was asked to speak at the annual Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Captain's of Industry dinner. It was the perfect opportunity for Tyler to express our deep gratitude for all of those who give so generously to help find a cure. It was wonderful to be able to put a face with many of those donors who we will forever feel grateful for.

Tyler was, of course, such a natural on stage and we had a great time at the event. I tried to refrain from taking too many pictures.... but I had to take a few!

Tyler's mom came with us :)

Thanks to everyone who continues to fight for a cure! We are closer everyday and we couldn't say that without you!