ONE HUNDOS

Folks, we are officially in the 100's! 

199 days until I get to marry this guy:

^hahah love this pic

I can't believe we are already at 199 days and before we know it'll we will be in double digits! 

I haven't talked about much wedding stuff lately so I thought we would talk about what we havedone and what we still need to do! 

Things we had completed so far:

--We have booked the ceremony and reception places! We will be spending January 11th at Chandler Baptist Church and the reception at Heritage Hall in the town over.

--Our DJ ad bartenders are taken care of through the reception place so that was easy. CHECK

-- Our bridal party has been set and there is a TON of us. Just the way we like it. Conrad and I really value friendships and we are just lucky that our best friends will surround us in 199 days.

--The save the dates have been sent and received.

-- THE wedding dress is bought and hanging in my closet. and yes I do try it on all the time.

-- Conrad's outfit is all put together!!! Gonna look so handsome. 

-- Our photographer is booked!

-- Flowers are taken care of. (I don't love flowers). We just did as few as possible. This is an area that is definitely helping our budget.

-- Catering is taken care of and will be booked soon! BREAKFAST FOR DINNER YA'LL

--We have done our registries. We registered at Target- Bed, bath, and beyond- and our dinnerware at Macy's

-The girls have their bridesmaids dresses and we picked out groomsman attire this weekend. They are gonna be looking beautiful (the gals) and sharp (the guys).

Things we haven't done:

-- We are writing our own ceremony, so we haven't started on that yet.

-- Wedding bands!

-- The day of schedule. (in progress)

-- Picked out desserts.

-Girls shoes. (I change my mind every week and I annoy myself)

-- Invitations.

-Dress fittings, duh

-- Music playlists for the DJ

I am sure I am forgetting a few things. But all I know is I AM SO EXCITED TO MARRY THIS MAN! At the end of the day it won't matter what our cake looked like or what style the invitations were. This is all about bringing us together and starting a marriage built on Christ and honoring him in all we do!

Cara's box exchange from Dawn at www.thankyougreatspirit.blogspot.com

I had just arrived home for the weekend and not even an hour later the doorbell rang. I knew it had to be the UPS guy. lets be honest- who else rings the doorbell. I ran out there and saw a beautiful cardboard box sitting there. 

Okay obvi it didn't look beautiful on the outside, but it said 'Cara Box' so I knew the inside would hold the most wonderful things. 

like i had mentioned in an earlier post, this is my first month experimenting in Cara's box swap! and it was so pleasant. 

The theme was carnivals and fairs, which was hard to think of ideas, but it became easier as we kept learning about each other. 

^So I open this glorious box and the first thing I see is COTTON CANDY. I'm like OKAY let's open this sucker up I love me some cotton candy. It was a beautiful light pink candle that smelled exactly like cotton candy. Actually, my sweet fiancé'a words were even, 'Literally I want to eat that!'  But even better than that was the cinnamon mini donuts candles. It immediately was lit and made the house smell so amazing. 

I continued to go through my box and find some awesome things! 

^Some awesome craft paint! 

^Some of the cutest paper straws. What?! You haven't bought into this trend? You're missing out. Also Dawn had written me such a cute and encouraging card and provides me with a brand new empty journal that will be sure to be filled. I am thinking this will be my journal I start writing in right after I am married! 

^Of course you can't think about summer and without your basic necessities: Candy, nail polish, some ribbon for your hair (softball player probz) and an ADORABLE pink bubble necklace. 

^Althogh, if I am being honest one of my favorite items was this beautiful scarf.  Dawn made this herself and I just loved that she thought about doing that for me! If is so soft and the picture does it no justice, it sparkles too! It is going to become a staple item when I move to the Windy City, and even this winter during student teaching. 

So thank you Dawn, for brightening my week and giving me a new friend. 

Really, check out her blog! She is up to some really awesome things over there! 

www.thankyougreatspirit.blogspot.com

She likes to blog about her children, gardening, nature (LOVE), knitting, reading, running, and SO much more! She is an awesome well rounded lady and she is so sweet! Get to reading!

And thank you Cara's box exchange for providing us something like this to so every month! 

Weekend catch up!

This weekend = pure joy 

^Not even an hour after I got home the UPS guy rang out doorbell and I recieved an amazing and encouraging package. I just keep going through it and loving it. More on that in the next post. 

^Saturday was the first day in a while I have been able to just hang out with this handsome fiance I have. He is just the sweetest and greeted me at the door with a rose. SWOON. We then tried out a new sushi place in the town over, which we devoured. We even tried the raw kind and liked it, even though we are mostly fried sushi people.

^See those two adorbs people? YEP! That is Bridesmaid Emily and my handsome friend Jeremy! These are my high school friends, and I am SO thankful that we have continued to stay friends through life. I love seeing Jeremy, it always feels like no time has passed. Conrad and I got to meet a group of hs friends this weekend to celebrate a friend that passed away two years ago. It is so cool to see how brings everyone together and I was so humbled to be able to catch up with them. I also got to see one of my friends, who is moving in August to explore an awesome grad school and try life out of Missouri, it was so awesome to see her before she leaves. 

^ SEE THAT? That is the beauty tux we rented for Conrad and his groomsman this weekend. Each guy will be sporting the colored tie that the gal next to them will have on.  I had so much fun picking out the guys attire with Conrad and it just made me even more excited to walk down the aisle in 200 days to this stud groom!

^Last but not least, got to see this beautiful niece of mine for a little bit before heading back to Des Moines. I cannot believe she is almost 5 months old!

Hey June...

Hello June! or actually I should say goodbye.

Dearest June,

You flew by. Between coaching, nannying, and tutoring you have been a blur. I am thankful for the time I got to spend with my family at my cousins baby shower, a weekend at the lake, a weekend at home celebrating a dear friend, and multiple weekends in my hometown.  Knowing this is my last summer around these parts has me yearning for some home life, and you provided well.  

So long June, until next year. 

Trying new things in the blogworld

I recently followed this blog called Wifessionals. What drew me to this page was the box exchange that they put on. details here- http://www.wifessionals.com/p/cara-box-exchange.html

To make a long post short:

- They assign a theme for the month.

-You sign up.

-They pair you with another blogger.

-You get to know each other.

-Send a box to your partner based on the theme and what she would like.

This has been such an awesome experience. You actually get to get to know TWO people in a month. I was  assigned to send a box to Aislinn. She is the sweetest 20 year old college student. She was the best first match because we are very similar! 

This is her blog- http://www.wheniwearthisdress.blogspot.com/

Then I got the chance to talk to Dawn! She is the blogger who will send me my box later this month and I am so excited. I just can't wait to receive some awesome snail mail. More on her later ;) But for now visit her blog and check it out. She is so awesome!

 http://www.thankyougreatspirit.blogspot.com

It's not about the $$$

Lately, Jesus has just been so on point with me. He always is, but I am actually listening, learning, and growing and that is so encouraging. 

This past weekend I had a talk with my dad about moving to Illinois and the concerns I have with our finances. I found myself asking 'Are we going to make it financially?' Monday morning I wake up to this lovely verse in my email. 

WOW.WOW. WOW. 

I mean just speechless. Jesus is incredible. I immediately prayed for forgiveness for such worldy feelings and not relying on him and I felt immediate relief. It's so nice to be reassured that Jesus has better plans for Conrad and I. I need to remember how much He has already done for us financially and how money is NOT everything. 

I then began to wonder- What does 'make it' really mean. I mean in terms of money and the world it means to me just being comfortable and being able to afford what we want. what WE want. which isn't always what Jesus wants. 

I have so much peace now knowing that even if we head to Illinois and what we have planned doesn't go right, Jesus has us there for a reason. Illinois is where the future Schottel's are being called to and that's where we will go. To do what? Follow Jesus. Where will we work? Wherever Jesus provides. Who doesn't wanna do that?!? It is going to be so fun- cuz His plan is the best. 

Jeremiah 29:11 

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Can't wait to see where His plan leads us. 

Dear MAY

Dear May,

-- you brought the end of my collegiate softball career. 

-- you have shown me that teammates really do become life long friends even when my time on the field is over. 

-- you have shown me that moving is hard, and moving to Chicago will be even harder. 

-- you have shown me how Kearney will always be 'home' in my heart. 

-- you proved that spending every night in the library is rewarded with a 4.0. 

-- you have shown me that softball will forever be a part of my life through coaching. 

-- you are the month where I started #sweatingforthewedding. 

- you were a month filled with joy, but can't wait for a summer month of June!