What if Your Blessings Come through Raindrops

A new blog post is way over due, but things have been kind of hectic for us (or me at least) since we moved into our new house. We have enjoyed being in our new place so much and being so close to everything. It's been a lot of fun making it our own and making it feel like home. We also received a very cute, four-legged housewarming gift, Dixie. She's a 4 month old Basset Hound who has stolen our hearts and has become a big part of our little family. However, the responsibilities of homeownership have been quite overwhelming during our first month.  It all started Easter Sunday (of all days!). The night before while I was taking a shower, I noticed water started to stand in the shower, but I didn't think anything of it. I just thought it was a clogged drain. I get out and see about an inch of water standing in our tub. Now, I'm no plumber, but I knew THAT wasn't normal. Cody got the help of one of our neighbors, and they snaked the drains in our master bath and got them unclogged. (Here is where it all starts going downhill.) When they got those drains unclogged, water began to seep out from the base of the toilet in the guest bathroom, which signified a major backup issue in our plumbing somewhere that wasn't going to be an easy fix. On Sunday, Cody called some guys from the water and sewage department in town to see if they could come solve the problem. When I got home from church, Cody met me at the car and warned me not to go in. Well, hello, with him making a statement like that I HAD to go inside, but after going in, I wished I wouldn't have!  When the guys from the city tried to unclog the blockage by blowing out the pipes, they had their blower turned on high which did successfully unclog the pipes but caused all of the nastiness to flow back through the pipes and come out of the drains into our house. There was so much force behind it that water and sewage had splattered all over the counters and floor in our kitchen and come over onto the carpet in our living room on the other side of the counter. Our guest bathroom had junk splattered all over the walls and floor. Our house smelled like.... well I'll let you figure that one out. Thankfully the blockage was on the city's end of the pipe, so they did pay for the cleaners to come sanitize and clean our house. After all of that, I just needed to get away. Cody had Dixie outside to keep her out of the mess, and I knew she was miserable being outside so long. I decided I would just go to my parents' house and take Dixie with me. On the way, I got a speeding ticket (69 mph in a 55  mph zone- if you're going to speed might as well speed big!).  Since then, our refrigerator went out, and we had to buy a new one. I had to get all 4 new tires on my car. My mom has been having some health issues that have yet to be solved. Dixie got sick with Parvo and had to be hospitalized for 2 days. When it rains, it definitely pours! I have been stressed to say the least- financially, emotionally, and physically, and I admit I haven't had a very positive attitude about it the majority of the time. However, in the midst of all of this madness, I have been reminded that God provides and not always in big, miraculous ways like we tend to expect but in small, subtle ways, too. He reminded me that He takes care of us and gives us what we need when we need it through my remembering I got new insurance that went into effect in April and decreased the cost of my medication by $50. We totally needed that extra $50 at the time, too! God is great, and I'm so glad He never forsakes His children, even when we forsake Him. Thank you, Father, for Your perfect plan You have for our lives and for Your love and grace! Thank you for blessing us and providing for us at just the right times. 

Living Life with God as My Guide

I decided it's about time for another blog post. Just an update on our house, we close on the 15th of this month (only 1 more day! Yay!) and move in on the 26th. I've already begun to pack up here and there; Cody and I are so ready to get in our new home and finally get everything under one roof and in its designated place. 

Speaking of "place." Here lately I've had on my heart where I am in my life and how the Lord has led me to where I am today. It seems to me that the older I get the easier it is to look back on my life, see where I've been, and how God has led me throughout all of those years, even if I never fully realized He was leading me. 

My senior year of high school when it came time to apply for college, I only applied for one college, Mississippi University for Women, mainly because it was the only public college in the state that offered music therapy. I honestly did not decide that I even wanted to major in music therapy until my senior year of high school. I partially filled out applications to two other colleges but never submitted them. You may think that I was foolish to only apply for one college, but I just felt an assurance that the W was where I needed to be. 

Fast forward to college, I got involved in the Lockheart Social Club which introduced me to girls who are still some of my closest friends today. One of those girls in particular, my friend Leslie, was the very person who would introduce me to my husband. By my senior year of college,  I was applying for music therapy internships, and just like my college applications, I only applied for one internship. Again, that may not have been very wise on my part, but The Baddour Center was where I felt I belonged. I had visited Baddour a few times prior to applying for the internship, and each time I visited, I felt like that was where I needed to intern. 

Well, I got accepted, and little did I know that interning would develop into a job opportunity to become the new music therapist. During my internship, I also rented from a very sweet lady who has been like another grandmother to me. She got me involved at FBC Senatobia, which is now Cody's and my church home, and we've made some really great friends there who have made Senatobia feel more like home for us. She also allowed Cody and I to continue renting from her after we got married until we bought a house. We are excited to now have our own place but truly sad to leave her.

I can see how the hand of God has led me in my life and allowed me to feel assured and at peace along the way. It amazes me how He placed people in my life and used them to direct me in the way He would have me to go and how He led me to places I never thought I would go, all unbeknownst to me. He has blessed me beyond measure, and I can never thank Him enough. I know that the Lord continues to lead my life, and I am so thankful He does. Who knows where I'd be if it weren't for Him. 

L-O-V-E

With Valentines Day less than a few hours away, I've been reflecting on, what else- love. I fully believe that love, TRUE, CHRIST-CENTERED love, is everything described in 1 Corinthians 13.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Corinthians 13:4-8 NIV)

As I consider my own relationship with my husband, I know beyond a doubt that my love for him is comprised with all of those things, but it's no small task to love him as described in the previous verses at all times... not for this girl anyway. Patience is a virtue that I do not have a lot of the time, and there are days when my pride drives me to selfishness. Both Cody and I have our imperfections that I believe God uses to perfect our love for each other as well as for Him. 

I believe that love has to be built on a foundation that is secure, allows it to grow and prosper, and is strong enough to resist temptations and persevere through problems in order for it to be successful. Cody and I have our foundation for our marriage built upon the Lord who has blessed us beyond measure and has provided for us every step of the way in our relationship. He has provided for us and blessed us yet again; we now have a foundation that is built of concrete and occupies an acre lot. 

Yep, you read that last sentence correctly; Cody and I are now proud homeowners! Happy Valentines Day to us! We are extremely excited to now have a place of our own, a place to begin a family (one day in the not-so-near future), and a place to make memories. We will be moving in around March 26. There will be a post to come later on details about the house, so this post is going to be short and sweet. Thanks to all who have prayed for us and for our finding a home. God's plans are perfect and much better than what we could've ever planned for ourselves. This house is definitely perfect for us. Love is what makes a house a home. I know our home will be filled with lots of love, and I hope your's will be, too, on this Valentines Day. 

 "But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15 NIV)

Home is Where the Heart is

A week ago, I was on my way to work and got a call from Cody. He told me he had found us a house and had emailed it to me. He needed me to look at it and call him back ASAP. It was a great deal; it was a foreclosed home located by the country club, had 4 bedrooms/2 bathrooms, and was priced at $96,500. Now, if you are from the Senatobia area, you know that homes this size cost much more. So to find this nice of a home for such a low price was a deal we could not pass up considering everything that Cody and I have found in our price range  is either too small, in a bad area, or needs a lot of updating. By the time I called Cody to let him know I liked the house, he had already contacted the realtor and was on his way to meet her to look at it. Good thing I liked the house!

He called me after touring the house and said that it was nice and would only need new paint in some of the rooms, new floor in the kitchen, and the carpet would need to be cleaned. He asked if I could meet the realtor during my lunch break and look at it myself. So at lunch, Cody took me to see the house. I REALLY liked it! It was just the right size and had some great features. The fact that little work needed to be done to update it was a perk, too. 

That afternoon, the ball started rolling. Cody got us approved for a loan. We discussed how much we wanted to bid on the home ($105,000) and placed the bid that afternoon. (For those of you who aren't familiar with the process of buying a foreclosed home, you have to make a bid on it. Then the company who owns the house accepts a bid that they like; if they don't like any of the bids, they open up the bidding again.) The bidding closed on Sunday, so we had to wait until the bids were reviewed on Monday to find out if we had gotten the house. That weekend was the longest weekend ever! Cody kept getting on the website every few minutes to check the countdown on the bidding; I swear he was like a kid waiting on Christmas! I was excited, nervous, and anxious, too, but not to the extent he was. Besides, I had no reason to check on the house anyway; he kept me updated enough that I didn't have to look. 

Well, Monday came. That morning Cody had seen where the posting had been removed, which meant someone's bid had been accepted. (Hopefully our's.) It was difficult to stay focused on anything that morning.  Cody called our realtor to ask her to check the results...and...we didn't get the house.

I had given myself a pep talk that morning by quoting Romans 8:28, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose," and praying and asking the Lord for His Will to be done. Both devotions I read were about God having our best interest in mind amidst pain, hardships, etc. I have to admit that it was rather hard to apply what I had read and find comfort from God's Word. I was torn between being satisfied in knowing that God has something better for us and being bitter and upset that we still did not have a house of our own. In the midst of my disappointment and questioning, God decided to show me why we did not need the house. A registered sex offender lives in the neighborhood where we would've been living, and his offense was child molestation. Cody found out this information the afternoon right after we made the bid. The house would've been where we started our family, and now that I know who lives in the neighborhood, I definitely would not have felt that my children were safe living there. 

I know this has been a lengthy post, but I hope that my story will remind you of how awesome God is and how He works things out for the good of His children, even if we don't see it or understand it at first. God absolutely has the best in mind for His children. He knows how our stories end and sees the details of the bigger picture that were are not capable of seeing. This song says it perfectly:

If You say go, we will go
If You say wait, we will wait
If You say step out on the water
And they say it can't be done
We'll fix our eyes on You and we will come

Your ways are higher than our ways
And the plans that You have laid
Are good and true
If You call us to the fire
You will not withdraw Your hand
We'll gaze into the flames and look for You.

For Better... or for Worse

So Cody has been working at his new job now for almost two weeks. He has been the sweetest husband since he's been home, too. When he gets up at 5:30 in the mornings for work, he is so quiet and lets me sleep in a while longer. He's had my coffee made for me when I get up every morning... well mostly every morning. The other morning I had a headache, so he got medicine for me and cuddled with me on the couch for a few minutes before he had to leave. Also, I came home that night to a vacuumed floor and dishes that had been washed. I've come home to him starting the laundry several times. I mean, am I dreaming? Surely this type of behavior doesn't last forever, but don't get me wrong, I appreciate everything he does to help out! We're probably still in the "honeymoon" phase... better not get my hopes up. 

Over these past two weeks, I have learned a few of things... especially about men. My husband may be a sweetheart, but he is still your typical guy. Here are 3 things I've learned about the male population: 

1) Guys are NOT observant- We have 2 hampers, one for towels and one for clothes, and it's quite obvious which is which. Cody gets out of the shower and throws his dirty clothes in the towel hamper and his towel in the clothes hamper. I was thinking, "He really just did that?" Yep, he did. So then I had to explain to him which hamper was which when I thought he could tell by simply looking. Oh, and don't EVER clean up and organize a guy's things and put them in their PROPER place because he won't take the time to look for them. He'll just quiz you to death, and you'll just have to find it for him... at least that's what my husband does. If only I wasn't so OCD this wouldn't be and issue.

2) Guys take LONGER than girls to get ready- It takes me maybe 10 minutes to shower (that's with shaving and washing my hair). Cody takes 20 minutes. We had to be at church the other morning by 8:15 at the latest; we needed to be leaving our house by 7:50 to make it on time. I'm dressed and ready to go. Guess who is standing in the living room, ironing his khakis in his underwear at 7:40! I politely asked him if he was going to get ready any time soon. He then asks for the time (again, NOT observant); I tell him 7:40. "Oh crap," he says. Well, we made it by 8:15 by the grace of God... and Cody's lead foot. :)

3) Guys have a hierarchy of loves that compete for their attention, and unfortunately, women are most always at the bottom- Cody's loves are as follows: football, hunting, CSI and NCIS (and any shows similar to those), his PlayStation 3, his iPhone 4S (Siri is his other woman; I definitely can't compete with a robot), and then... I think it's me. If you are higher on your man's list, then I applaud you! Please share how you got to be his first priority; I would love to know! I do get attention from Cody, and no, I don't have to be the center of it all the time. I want him to enjoy his guy time just like I enjoy my girl time, but it's nice to beat out football or TV once in awhile. 

I know I probably shouldn't make generalized statements about guys. They really aren't all the same, and we girls sure don't like it when guys make stereotypical comments about us.  We both have quirks and annoying behaviors that get on each others' nerves. At least, I know I can be annoying. I'm a newbie at this whole marriage thing, but to me, the beauty of marriage is how God brings two different people, sometimes very different, together in love. He knows them before they are even born and creates them specially for each other. 

Psalm 139:13-14 are familiar verses that praise God for our uniqueness: 13) For You created my inmost being; You knit me in my mother's womb. 14) I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 

Marriage is an ongoing learning process; it's an adventure, hopefully a fun one. I know Cody's and my marriage has been fun... so far. Yes, we get annoyed and frustrated at each other at times, but God uses those annoyances and quirks to grow our patience and help us learn more about each other. Those quirky and annoying habits are just part of our uniqueness that we have to learn to embrace. Besides, I did vow to love Cody for better or for worse. :) 

Welcome to Our "Rossy" Life

Today starts a whole new year and a new experience for my husband and I, hence the reason I began this blog. Cody and I got married in May, so we've only been married almost eight months. We are still very much the newlywed couple. For our entire dating years, engagement, and seven months or our marriage, Cody and I spent the majority of our time apart due to Cody's job as a surveyor for a construction company. He has been all over the southeast from Tennessee to Louisianna to Arkansas. We've been praying for a job opportunity to come along since we got married, and just recently God chose to bless Cody with an opportunity to move home and work for MDOT.

The call for the interview came out of the blue at a very convenient time. Cody was coming home for the week due to not being able to work because of rain, and he got a call from MDOT saying they had been looking through old applications and came across Cody's. They had a few job openings Cody was eligble for and wanted to know if he would be interested in coming for an interview. Cody asked me my thoughts, and I told him just to go see what they had available but to not commit to anything, especially if it was a huge pay cut. I knew that working for the state offered great benefits, but the salary was not too wonderful. So he interviewed, then met me at Waffle House for breakfast (We love breakfast dates.); he told me he was very interested in the job but wanted me to agree for him to accept the position before he called the company and gave them his answer. He had to let them know his decision by the next day, and as I suspected, the job came along with a pay cut, or so it seemed by what he made working for the construction company. When he sat down and deducted his overtime and per diem from his actual salary, there really was not a difference. After praying about it and feeling nothing but peace, the next morning he called and told them he wanted to take the job. I was happy but still felt a little hesitant, so I prayed that if we made a rash, misunderstood decision that God would not allow the job to work out. I admit, I questioned our financial situation with this new job. I wondered if this was the ONLY opportunity God had for Cody to move home, and if it wasn't, would he have had Cody a job opportunity with a better salary. I felt guilty for these questions, and I soon came to grips with myself. Our marriage and success in life is not based on money or material things but on our relationship with the Lord. If we put our faith and trust in Him and obey His Word, He will provide, maybe not when we think is the right time but in his perfect timing. I concluded that I would rather have Cody at home making memories that lasted a lifetime than have him miles away making "millions."

Well, the job situation has more than worked out, and we have been assured through various situations that this is what the Lord wanted for us. As Cody finished up his last week with the construction company this past week, he learned that 50% of the company was getting laid off. That 50% consisted of mostly hourly employees (Cody was) and all of the employees working at the Arkansas job (where Cody worked). Boy, were we ever thankful to the Lord for the blessing of this new job. Cody had no idea layoffs were coming, and God protected us and provided. As I shared this news with my mom, she reminded me of how numbers have meaning in the Bible. The number 7 means complete; Cody and I have been married for 7 months, so we have "completed" our time apart. The number 8 means a new beginning; on January 14, we will have been married for 8 months, and January is bringing us "a new beginning."

We have NO idea what it is even like to be together for more than a weekend, so married life is about to get interesting. I named this blog Our "Rossy" Life for a couple of reasons. 1) Our last name is Ross, and I have always called Cody, "Rossy." He now calls me that as well. And 2) "Rossy" kind of sounds like "rosey," but our life by no means is a bed of roses. It has its share of ups and downs as does everyone's life, but it is very interesting to say the least. So I wanted to start this blog as a means to document and share joyous occasions, funny happenings, and vent on frustrations that occur in mine and Cody's life together. Well, here's to 2012 and our "Rossy" life adventures! :)