A new site:)

web.mac.com/brandy_mp/site/welcome.html

I hope you enjoy!

At Long Last

So I have been hearing from a lot of people about my lack of blogging ability over the last little while, Okay 8 months, but who is counting? So for the faithful few who check every so often to see if I have updated, today my friends, yes today...you will receive some blogage update from me:)

I am continually amazed at how pervasive and unconditionally unwavering God's hand is in my life. If you would have asked me when I graduated from College (Go Utes) where I would be in 2 years, I would never in a million years have pictured myself where I am today. Here is a picture of my office..you can kind of see downtown Dallas through the windows. It is such a small thing in light of all that I am blessed with, but reminds me everyday how privileged I am and how hard I should work to keep it up.

I have added some furniture in my life:) I got a dining room set and an armoir for my TV. My poor mom had to go to 25 furniture stores over the period of a few months in order to find the most perfect pieces...which incidentally were the very first ones I saw, but there is nothing wrong with being thorough...is there? I believe some call it OCD...I prefer thorough:) Sean and Rachael came all the way from Utah to help me with my first MAJOR purchase though. I bought a Acura TSX...ugh...I love that car! Sorry to all of those that will be morning the Teal Mobile...there will be a service held on Tuesday at 11 am in its honor...it has gone to a better home:)

There are so many more pictures I could add! But for now I will just give you all a quick update in all things Texas. My mom and Doug finally got sick of me and packed up and moved to California. They have a beautiful home in Hunington Beach and mom works out of LA, while Doug is some big wig helecopter man. I am really proud of them and miss them like crazy. There have been a few times in my life where I have been stripped of my comforts. This being another. Everytime God has done something so amazing, from complete life changes to simple heart changes. I have begun to look forward to times such as these, because I cannot wait to see what His plans are. Though a lot of people's first question is...so when are you moving to California? Let me assure you..I have no plans of shedding my southern abode anytime in the next say 80 years.:)

In other news, Daisy is still singing, still digging and still a huge love in my life. We have taken to hiking (if you can call it hiking) the trails that are not still flooded out from our summer storms. It has been a lot of fun getting to explore Texas a little bit more. I am sure she would be a great Mountain dog as well. But then I think she is perfect..so of course I would think she would be wonderful!

Instead of boring you all with a blog that takes 30 minutes to read, I promise that I will do better at posting more often. So if anyone is still checking...thanks for hanging in there. I love you and miss those of you that I don't have the good fortune of visiting everyday. And heres to a 2007 Yankee's World Series....I had to mention the Yanks at some point right?:)

Disclaimer

Blogger is being weird. On my posting page Holiday is spelled correctly...hmmm...

Holidays and Stuff

I got criticized for my lack of postage lately..so here we go:)

Christmas was wonderful. I was able to see my family and friends in Utah. This included SEAN and Rachael, Dad and Teresa, The Robbins Clan, Various Church friends and Matt Whitehead. There is a quiz at the end of this paragraph, so read it carefully. Which of the above mentioned people forgot to mention seeing me over Christmas in their blog? All joking aside, it was a great time. I very much enjoyed our family Christmas part in which the actions of Paris Hilton and Darth Vader will go down in history:)

Though Christmas was wonderful...my traveling to and from Salt Lake was filled with mishap and adventure..aka I will never be flying Delta again, or at least until their fares are way cheaper than the others. :) My luggage was lost on the way into SLC. While frustrating, I was pretty cool about it considering that the people in Denver were going through much worse! I was able to get my luggage the following night. Nothing was damaged so I was happy. On my way home we were told the flight would be delayed by 20 minutes...which in airplane talk is 1 hr. We were on the tiniest plane I have ever flown on and landed at the time when my flight was supposed to take off. I jumped out of my seat and booked it to the next terminal. I have never run that far that fast! I missed my connection by 5 minutes. I HAD to be back at work the next day for several reasons...ugh! So I went to the airline and the only flight they could confirm me on was the next day at 12 which would have put me into DFW at 5:00 pm...not ideal. So I went to the Delta counter and they agreed to purchase an airline ticket for me since it was not my fault that I missed my connection. They booked me on a flight that left at 11:00 and would get into DFW at 3:30 am, which again was not ideal but better than the last. So I booked that flight but still had to check in with that airline. When I got over there they had an even earlier flight. Which would put me in at DFW at 1:30. I was so excited! So I got up to security and they decided to check everything out about me, my shoes, my baggage, etc. They blew air all over me to get any explosive particles off of me, then made me go through two different metal detectors and scan my baggage twice as well as do a physical search. All of this took a little while, which made me almost miss my new flight! Oh wait I am not done yet...I get into DFW and it is 1:30 and wait at the baggage claim which doesn't begin to spew luggage for the next hour due to mechanical difficulties. And guess what wasn't on the conveyor belt? Thats right...my luggage!! So I filed a claim and went home to shower and go into work, no sleep. So then I called to check the status of my luggage and it turns out the lady had me fill out a damaged luggage claim and not a missing luggage claim...ahh!! Doug had his son in town, so when he took him to the airport to drop him off, they found my luggage, which was at DFW for the last two days. Needless to say I am a little worried about traveling again:)

In other news, Joselyn is moving in on Friday Lord willing. Please pray for her if you all get a chance. Her licensure is taking longer than expected and making for a stressful situation! I can't wait to have her here:)

And finally, I bought an armoir! While this may not be a huge deal to some..it is the biggest purchase I have ever made and I LOVE it! I will take pictures and post next time with them. For now I am trying to figure out all of the wires..in fact I have had to call reinforcements. For which reason I had better run, because I promised to feed them for their efforts.

I hope all of you were as blessed as I was this Holiday Season. God has truly provided and been more to me than I could have ever imagined possible. I am so honored to be a part of His family. May your new year be filled to the point of overflowing with His grace.

Grown Up..Sort Of

Here are some of the pictures from the new living room. Though it is remarkably like the old one...the walls are now a fashionable tan instead of white..and I have curtains.:)

It is a weird feeling when you realize you are finally grown up. I am in my profession, paying bills and making plans for the future. All of which seemed a million years away while I was in college.

Everything here is going well. I was just promoted again and while it has kept me very busy, there is a great sense of statisfaction that I get from doing a good job. I really love it. I think I almost feel guilty for loving it so much, because I was supposed to be a teacher after all...and when comparing the two one does seem more noble. Which led me to look at what I was basing my decisions off of..whether the Lord was pleased with me or whether I looked good to other people. So often in my narrow mind people are the ones I am concerned with and not the One that matters. I have been supported in my decision to make a career out of my current job, and to that all I can say is how good God is.

Taking a lead from the Umbriacos I researched some Acts 29 churches in my area. I found a church that meets in an elementary school and is solid in the Word. It is a really new church, and it has a great heart for the Lord. I really love it, and look forward to getting more involved in it!

In other news, an old friend of the family is moving to Texas in January. She is going to be staying with me for awhile. I am really excited about her coming! When talking to her on the phone, I had to laugh at how unbelievably similar we are. I am sure we will get along great...I just can't wait for her to get here. She might even get a friend for Daisy to tool around with.

Well...that is all I have for right now!

Too Long!

It has been way too long since I have posted! I just got my home computer working again, so here we go...

Work has been great. I love what I am doing. I have even been able to get a few new clients. I redid my living room. It is such a great change from white only. Inspite of some sore muscles and one broken window, I really like how it turned out.:)

My Dad got married a couple of weeks ago. It was a great time to see the family! The wedding was beautiful. I got to see the kids too. They are almost as tall as I am...I know..that is unbelievable because I am so tall:).

Ummm

Okay so...when I went to give my notice at my current job, my office counter offered. Which was very encouraging, because it made me feel like I had done a really good job where I was. With a lot of prayer, sleepless nights, and a lot of conversations with my favorite people, I have decided to stay at my current job for one more year before pursuing my teaching career. This may seem totally strange because you all know how much I love to teach. However the offer that was given by my company will set me up for a successful teaching career. There is so much involved that going into it on a blog would take you all like 30 minutes to read. Please know that this decision was not entered into lightly. I am very excited about this opportunity and pray that in it God will be glorified.

Miss Patrick

I am OFFICIALLY a teacher! I was hired at Johnston Elementary school today to be a 4th grade bilingual teacher. It was totally a God thing from the moment I got the call for the interview, to the moment the principal hugged me as I left.

I got the call for the interview around 9:30 am today. I quickly manuevered my way out of my currant job for the afternoon and headed to the interview. The principal met with me and it felt like speaking with an old friend. She talked as if I had the job from the moment I sat down. When she asked me three things that described myself, I told her I was a postive person, I loved Jesus with all of my heart, and that I am very loyal to the things I am committed to. She told me that I would work well with the teacher that would supervise me because she was a Christian as well. She then took me on a tour of the school. I got to see my classroom...My first classroom! I cannot tell you truly how much that moment meant to me! God is so good..despite my faithlessness. She then showed me the rest of the school and asked me if I wanted a position on their team. Having prayed for God's will to be done prior to the interview, I felt confident in accepting the job!

My first day is August 1, 2006 for some inservice training. I will have a few days off between that and the start of the school year (August 23, 2006), but mostly I will be preparing for my..(he he he) MY students!!

Thank you all for all of your prayers and support during my testing and job search! God is truly good, He is good All of the time!