New Years Eve 2013-Year in Review

This was a post from 12/31/13 that I made on FB but wanted to share on here.

2013, I'm kinda sad to see you leave. You've been a great, eventful, busy, chaotic year starting moments after the ball dropped. 

I became engaged to my best friend on 1/1/13 shortly after the ball dropped.
We went on a medical mission trip to Haiti the first week of February. What a powerful experience!
March was the end of an era...I left a job that I had for 10 years. A job I "knew" I'd work there forever. It was my comfort zone. It was what I knew. I began a new job in areas of nursing I knew very little (pretty much nothing!) about. Although I annoy my team members with questions, feel insecure at times and am definitely outside of my comfort zone...I love my new job. There are some patients that tug on your heart strings, there are some you just wanna shake the stupid out of them but I've learned something from almost every single one of them.
April was full of last minute wedding planning...like, fitting into a dress (or lack of)! ;) And finding a tent for the wedding because it became apparent that God was gonna prove to me, that no matter how hard I try...I will never be in control of my life!
May 11, I married my best friend. A beautiful day! My friends and family made sure the day was better than I could've dreamed of (even tho I fought them every step of the way).
June, July & August were about adapting to having a roommate. Holy guacamole! No one warned us how hard that would be!
September began crunch time for fundraising for Komen. Holy apple butter! We started helping out with the BCC youth group...something both of us feel called to be a part of. We love youth. We love Jesus. And we love helping youth learn about Jesus.
October was wonderful! We took on a new responsibility with Komen-we were part of the Race Committee and were responsible for the stage on Race day. Loved being a big part of the race!
November was about coming up with new holiday traditions.
December brought about new changes. With my Dirty 30, I began to realize my health is in jeopardy if significant changes aren't made in my lifestyle. Ha! What a month to decide that! But we exercised daily through the month & helped to get exercise back into our routine! We had a busy but blessed Christmas. We were able to see almost every member of our families, even if it was for a short time (minus the Baltimore crew).
2013, you've been a great year! I don't make New Years Resolutions but do plan to make monthly goals based on what's going on at the time. I hope 2014 is slightly calmer, has a few less life events and is a year of growth.
Whether you're glad to see 2013 leave or you're ready for a fresh start, I hope that all reading this know that I pray for God's will on all of us. I pray for comfort on the bad days, strength to get us through trials, salvation for the lost & knowledge of God's love daily! 

Here's a slideshow review of the year! 
https://www.icloud.com/iphoto/projects/#5;CAEQARoQSu7WOKtEwrZ1ISwrYL7Jeg;5970AD6F-0B09-469B-B091-BF698FE7BBE8

My Passion: Why I do what I do.

The fight against breast cancer started my sophomore year in high school. It started with my mom's diagnosis with breast cancer. In 2007, my grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. It became evident that this was a problem that was not going to go away and I wanted to do something about it. After graduating nursing school in 2008, I decided this was the time to start my own battle against breast cancer. The hospital I worked for had a Susan G Komen Race for the Cure team. I joined the team and took on the challenge to raise $100. Within 3 days, I had met that goal and decided to increase my goal again. Low and behold, I met that goal! That's when the fundraising addiction began! I made a new goal to raise $1000. With the support of many Many MANY people, I surpassed that goal! 

The wonderful thing about raising money for Komen is that 75% of all donations stay in our community! The money helps educate people in our community about breast cancer and how to prevent it. It assists patients that may have difficulty getting to their treatment, paying their bills or buying groceries. And the money offers people in our community with no insurance (or the UNDER insured) with free or discounted mammograms!!! 

Imagine, that you've done your self breast exam and find a lump. That is one of the scariest discoveries anyone can make. Wonder if you don't have insurance? Or your insurance company won't pay for a mammogram? You now have a shoulder that's burdened with more than just the lump you detected. Individuals have options, because of fundraising efforts by Susan G Komen. You may receive a free or discounted mammogram because of money raised. And that, my friends, is how this saves lives. 

I think everyone has a passion. And breast cancer awareness, prevention and fundraising has become mine. There is one morning a year that I enjoy waking up at 4:30. There is one morning a year I enjoy running. The Race for the Cure is my Christmas morning. I'm surrounded by a sea of pink and people that share my passion. I love it! 

These are some of the faces that have supported me! 

Some people just don't get it...and that's ok!

Joey put a ring on it. We set the date. And we set the place. Everyone was good with the engagement. Everyone was good with the date. The location, however, was (and still is) scrutinized by many.

"A field? A FIELD?"
"It's gonna be hot!"
"There's no bathrooms!"
"What if it rains?"
"There's no electricity"
"Who's going to decorate?"
"Can't you get married in a church & just renew your vows later out there?"

If you've never been out to The property, you just won't get it. We've been talking about getting married on this property for quite a while...LONG before the engagement actually occurred. There is just something magical about this property. You'd never know there was a major highway on the other side of those trees. It's a beautiful lot of land. And most importantly, you can truly feel His presence out there. We have a couple parties a year out there. We've even had a couple worship services out there. But tonight, we celebrated the Lord's supper out on The property; it was an amazing service! Probably my favorite experience out there so far!!! We read scripture, heard a great story that painted THE perfect picture of salvation & were reminded of God's continuous grace in our lives! I'm not the best with words anyway but words truly cannot describe how special tonight was!

I've never second guessed our decision to get married on The property. And honestly, I'm not stressing about the "what ifs". But tonight confirmed we are getting married in the perfect spot for us! You may not get it. That's ok. But those that DO get it...we truly appreciate your support and can't wait to share our special day with you!

p.s. There are 4 portapotty's (and plenty of trees). There is a hand washing station! There is electricity. There will be a tent for those that can't tolerate 25min in the "heat". Who needs to decorate?! This land is beautiful WITHOUT decorations! And if you don't feel His presence on this property...well...I'll pray for ya! ;)

A decade of ups & downs & in betweens!

"There are places I remember
All my life, though some have changed
Some forever not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life I've loved them all "

Today, I informed my boss that I would be taking a new full time position elsewhere. This definitely comes with mixed emotions...I'm not gonna lie.

I was a freshman in college...what started out as a part time job in the nursery turned into a life changing decision!!!

Started in the nursery, paid coworkers to change diapers, transferred to the hospital (and QUICKLY got over my fear of changing diapers!!!), became an LPN, made some great friends, met the love of my life & became an RN. Phew. I've worked everywhere but family birthing & psych. Seen some CRAAAAAAAZY stuff. Cried. Laughed. Broke the love-of-my-life's nose. Met some wonderful people. Met some not-so-wonderful people. Helped brighten a few days. Made a few people miserable. Educated. Loved. And, most importantly, passionately tried to do the right thing.

In the last decade, I've had my fair share of ups & downs. I've learned a lot thanks to some awesome mentors! I've grown up a bit (I said a bit!). I am thankful to all the good apples & bad apples, for they all have taught me something.

I am excited for my new journey! New place. New hours. New direction!

Praise God for answered prayers, at the right time!

In a relationship, single & engaged...all in 30min!

Phew! What a day! And it's only just a couple hours into it!

Before I forget...HAPPY NEW YEAR! :) May 2013 be a blessed year for all!

There's this THING that happened tonight...it's kind of a big deal! :) After 4.5 years, Beasman is FINALLY engaged!! :) We enjoyed a fun evening with friends, watched the ball drop, I kissed him & said "see ya"! I, like the last couple years, had told him that if the ring wasn't there before the end of the year, I was gone. :) So, we are leaving, I kick him to the curb & start to drive off...he jumps in & says you can't do that or I wouldn't be able to give you this!!! :) And that's the humorous proposal for Beasman. :) The cool part is today is my parents 31st wedding anniversary. :)

p.s. I hope everyone else knows how to plan a wedding cuz I'm not girly girly enough to plan it! :)

Christmas! Mixed emotions bring about positive response!

So Thanksgiving, surprisingly, went really well...on both sides. So, being the Realist Rachel that I am...I start to anticipate the reality of what goes up must come down. Started out with last minute shopping (on a budget) for the boyfriend. The Eve of Christmas Eve, in the rain, right before work. Nothing says icky & last minute as that! I put on my thinking cap & really thought about what Mr Beasley would like. I think I did ok. I hope I did ok?!
After working, not sleeping, it's family time! Yippee! 😁 As I'm getting ready, I hear that my cousin Andy had just passed away. Now, Realist Rachel is really in rare form...
We arrive at the grandparents & things surprisingly go really well. Somber but not depressing. I think we all realize that none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. There was no bickering. There was no yelling. There was no crying. There were no hurt feelings. Everyone's gifts were heart felt. On a side note, the best gift...a laser pointer for cats. Yes, a normal person would think that was silly. But I am an experienced mother with an infant unlike any of my other children. This laser pointer wears out my infant so that she does not scratch, bite or claw at me (or her older, not as active siblings) when we all want to be sleeping! Score!!! It's like baby Benadryl without the harmful side effects! 😁
Joey & I spend the last few hours before I go back into work driving around looking at Christmas lights (and collecting Waze points). Don't ask about the second part. Some houses weren't decorated, some were nicely decorated. And others were just plum obnoxious! I'm gonna start looking at my friends & predicting what kind of Christmas decorator they are...don't think I'm kidding!!! Can you guess what kind of decorator I am?! 😉
The best part of Christmas wasn't the awesome pink ribbon rain boots I got. The years worth of Omaha Steaks. The money/gift cards. The thermos that looks like a camera lens. My brand new Keurig. The "baby Benadryl". Or the countless other heart-felt gifts. The best gift was being around family. Not bickering. Not being scorned (or as they call it, "loving you enough to want the best for you"). Not being told I'm fat (hey, dodo, I look in the mirror EVERY day...I know what I look like). Watching "brothers" smile. Watching the kids (big & small) play with a brand new train set.
Your health is a blessing. Tomorrow is not guaranteed. Love the ones that make you crazy.

Birthday Week 2012

Had a great week with family, friends & the dentist. Yes, the dentist. I'm pretty sure I'm paying his way to Haiti. Seriously! Anyway. My favorite part of the week was bringing Christmas a couple weeks early to kids at Big Creek Elementary School.

There was a few guidelines for the gifts. They had to fit in a shoebox (and not rain boot size shoe box). Toothbrush, toothpaste, soap & washcloths needed to go in the box. And then we put toys in the box. Oh. And only spend $30.

Joey & I picked preschool age boy & girl. Being the pink loving princess that I am, I go all out with a tiara, princess skirt, princess wand, makeup & lipgloss. Got some other small toys. And managed to stay pretty close to that $30 limit. Although I had followed the rules, I felt like I was jipping my girl! All she was getting was a few small toys!

Fast forward a couple weeks...

I had the privilege of going to the preschool room to deliver presents. As I was playing with some kids, my group starts to pass out gifts. I look up & there's this cute little girl with my box. She LOVES everything in the box! She was a mini Diva! :) She definitely got the box she was supposed to! Seriously brought tears to me eyes to see this little doll, going through a shoebox with toiletries & small toys and finding sincere delight in all of it!

All the kids were thrilled with their gifts! Even the girl that got a boy box. Even the girls who had to wait 5-10 min to open their boxes because we didn't have enough originally. Me, I'm in the corner balling my eyes out.

For most of us, we will get several boxes of gifts. And they will most likely be more than $30 in value. And I'm gonna go out on a limb and bet you won't get toiletries in your boxes, either (unless you have a DD that puts soap on a rope in your stocking along with a SpinBrush).

For most of us, we have everything we need. And we have a lot of what we want. We have more stuff in our homes than we know what to do with.

Bringing love & joy to others was the highlight of my holiday season. I will give & receive gifts next week but what I will remember months from now is my experience just a couple hours away from home.