Australia

So Bill and I are going to go to Australia (hopefully) next year.  

Next year is a very momentous year for us.  

We are celebrating our 

10 year anniversary 

in January and I'm celebrating my

30 birthday

in April.

Now normally we would be going out of the country over my birthday but this next year my Aunt from Australia will be in Japan during my birthday so we postponed the hopeful trip to Australia to the beginning of June.  (It also gives us an extra 2 months to save.  Yay for that.)  So we are going to start living like the poor and save every penny we get in order to save for Australia.  I'm definitely excited about the thought of this trip!!! 

Lilac Tree

 This is my Lilac tree.  Before the maintenance. 

After the weeding.

Yes there are still piles.  I am a half at a time kind of weeder.  I weed and then eventually I get to actually cleaning up the weeds.  Yes there are still weeds sitting in the front flower bed to be scooped up.  I'm going to clean it all up tomorrow as long as it's not raining.  Anyway, the next step that we are going to do here is redo the rock work.  I'm going to straighten out the blocks and make it even.  I'm thinking about putting another row of blocks up but we will see what it looks like after I straighten them out.  I also want to plant some bulbs and get some color under it to spice things up.

More to come...

Yard Projects - Front Flower Bed

 BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

Surprisingly the one part of gardening that I love is pruning the fern every year.  I absolutely love doing it every year.  It's the one thing that I never gripe about it.  So far I have done this in the last week.  I'm proud of myself.  I still have to put the weeds in a wheel barrow and dump them behind the shop but I'm proud that I have at least done this much.  It's better then nothing.  I'm happy that this are getting done in the yard.  Bill is going to get top soil for the front flower beds so soon it will look really nice.  I can't wait.  I have a goal to get the yard in great shape by August.  So you know what I will be doing for the next 3 months.  It will be totally worth it though!!

The Yard Before The Work

So these are the pictures of our yard as it is right now.  

"The Before"

 Yes it is quite sad but as the spring and summer progresses it will start to turn beautiful.  

Well with that said I'm going to go out and start the weeding pulling.

Gardening

This spring/summer I am finally doing it.  I'm starting a garden.  Now your views of gardens and mine are probably complete opposites.  Most gardeners actually have gardening beds in their backyards caked full of many vegetables and/or fruits (aka...my moms).  My idea of gardening is using pots and planting only a few things.  This year I'm trying butternut squash, zucchini, and green onions.  We will see exactly how this goes.  I also bought a couple of packages of sunflowers.  I'm super excited about all of this because I have been talking about it for the last few years.

I'm one of those girls who hates working outdoors.  I blame it on the fact that I'm lazy and I just don't like plants very much.  I love the beauty that you can achieve from gardening but I hate the act.  I just don't find much pleasure in it.  I also blame my younger years.  When I was 11 my family moved to an acre lot that was completely overgrown so started the 2 year demolition phase of my life.  It was torture and awful. 

I am definitely the variety of girls that loves to clean the house.  I love to do anything in the house.  I would rather clean the toilets and dust the window sills then work outdoors but this year I'm excited to finally start something easy maintenance hence the gardening in pots.

It will also be nice to actually have a yard that looks good with lots of flowers and the beautifulness (yes i know it's not an actual word) that comes with it .  We both have put other needs before the needs of our yard. 

But, this year 2014 with Bill's help we will be cleaning up our yard with the hopes of it looking great by the time August comes around.  So here it goes.  The first experiences by myself of gardening.  I will take pictures of the progress. 

The Unusual Truth

I've thought about this quite a bit lately.  It's one of those things and times of the year that I hate.  I do mean HATE.  I usually don't say that I hate anything but this is something that bothers me beyond belief. 

"I HATE mothers day."  

It is not because I don't love my mom and grandmothers because I absolutely love them and can't imagine my life without any of them (don't worry I still call and say happy mothers day - I'm not an awful daughter).  I hate mother's day because it is the ultimate reminder that I am NOT a mother.  Maybe one day but that time is slowly passing away.  I don't think that it will happen, truly.

Circumstances are not the best.  Bill and I can't have kids because he doesn't have swimmers.  Then Bill's dad got diagnosed with ALS.  The past 9 years has finally made sense of why it has never happened.  I have been waiting for God to show me why my life was going to be so different from everyone elses that I know.  It only took 9 years.  Which in Gods time frame is a blink of an eye, in my time frame it seems like a lifetime of constant heartbreak.  I have come to terms with it finally realizing the "why" and it has made me feel a little better.  I'm finally really working on my relationship with God again.  Which is awesome.  It has been a tough 9 years and will continue to be.  It will always be something that I will constant be thinking about.  Who knows what's going to happen in the next 5 years but I'm focusing on me and trying to draw strength from God.  For all the mothers out there truly I wish you a happy mothers day.  I just wish there is a happy wife only day.  Haha...that would be a funny day.

Small Steps

So, I have had this dream of being a photographer for years.  Slowly I have taken steps to become a photographer.  Full Time or Part Time it doesn't really matter to me.  It will just be fun to do something that I love. 

I started with buying a nice digital camera Nikon D3100 in red. 
                 Always a good starting point when you want to be a photographer.  Hahaha.

I became more confident and started a blog.
                 nyssacardwellphotography.blogspot.com

I actually posted that fact in Facebook. 
                 If you know me that is a huge step for me.

I have actually had some photo shoots.
                Just need to get more.  

I printed out some sunset and snow pictures and are taking a poll of which are the best of the best.  Which I'm slowly going to do with all the best pictures that I have.

I just ordered business cards.

I printed out my pictures and giving them as gifts.
                With my business card attached to the back.

Next...I'm going to print out the best of the best pictures and put them on matting and trying to sell them at a bizarre in California in October.  I'm also going to try to make postcards.

Next...I'm also thinking about starting an etsy page.

Next...Working on making my own frames.

Who knows whats going to happen with this but I'm trusting in God and making small steps towards my dream.  Even if it's just for fun and I make hardly any money it will still be worth it.  

My Last Year

Well this is my last year of my 20's.  Now I'm not like some people I love the fact that I'm getting older.  I am gaining more confidence as the days go by.  I have this feeling that as I get older my life will starting coming together.  Ok, the last statement might just be my hope for the future but it's always good to hope for something.

To this being my last year in my 20's I am trying to come up with ideas of things to do before I hit the 30th year of life.

So far Bill and I have come up with this list -

1.  Coal Juggling

2.  Milk a Cow

3.  Go On A Blimp

4.  Climb Saddle Mountain

5.  Skydive

6.  Pay Off the Credit Card (the final and last time)

Any other suggestions would be fun.

The Gross Part of Life Part 2

Well we saw the surgeon today and we have goodish news.  It is healing quite well which is a good thing and he said that it was up to us if we wanted the surgery or not.  I wish that he was more on one side or the other (surgery or no surgery) but instead he told us that it was up to us.  It is a good thing that Bill was there because he made the decision for me.  I just didn't know which way to go to just do the surgery and get it over with or hope that it continues to heal on its own.  I think though the Doctor thought that when I said "thank you" to Bill for making the decision for me he was slightly upset.  He started going off on a rant that it is under 5% that the husband comes in with their wife. So I should be happy that he was there and that since Bill made the decision for me I needed to do the dishes when I got home (which they are done).  Haha...He was funny. 

We decided that we ARE NOT going to do the surgery at this point.  We are hoping that the divot will continue to finish healing in the next few weeks.  I have another appointment with the surgeon in 2 weeks to continue to see if its healing in the correct way.

So here we go to the healing power of prayer and Gods power which is always the best medicine. 

The Gross Part of Life

Well...I know I don't blog much let alone very many people reading this but I haven't had very much to really write.  I have gone back and forth about writing about this or not but I've finally succumbed to temptation.

I have since last Monday been in pain.  My body in a certain area started to swell and hurt quite bad.  Now I hate going to doctors because all I can think about is the cost of that darn bill that comes a couple of months after the fact.  So I waited until the pain got so bad that I ended up in the emergency room on Thursday at 1:30am without Bill (He was on a trip with a friend.)  I have never been to the emergency room by myself and it is a little nerve wracking and slightly lonely but I survived.  Anyway, little did I know that I had a pilonidal cyst.  The doctor had to cut it open and clean it out.  It felt better afterwards but I was and still am in pain.  I am slowly getting better and have an appointment on Thursday with a surgeon to see if I have to actually have surgery on it.  (Lets hope not - again all I see are more bills and this one would be huge.)  I have to go in every third day and get it repacked and bandaged up not a fun process but hopefully soon it will be over and I will be healed again. 

The sad thing about all this happening is that I have been so good at walking the last three weeks but because of this I haven't been able to get out on the streets and walk around.  Ah....it always happens to me.  Oh well, as soon as I'm done getting better the walking will start again.  I'm pretty determined about it.

Well that has been my life for the past week.  Excitingly gross isn't it.

Pie in the Face

Well at work we did a fundraiser for March of Dimes like we do every year but this year we decided on whoever raises the most money gets a pie in the face or if we raised $1000 then everyone would get a pie in the face.  

It was the most awesomest fundraiser ever!!!

Here are some pictures from it!!!

This was definitely a first for me.  I've never had a pie in the face until May 1st, 2014!!  It was awesome!!!