life.

"The Rock!" His work is perfect,
For all His ways are just;
A God of faithfulness and without injustice..."
-Deut. 32:4

God never said it would be easy, but He did say He would be faithful.

engagement. life.

So I've been wedding planning... ish. It's difficult to plan a wedding when:

a)you're not sure when your wedding will be, although it's looking like july... ish.
b)you've really only spent 36 hours... ish with your fiance since the engagement.
c)the thought of a big party focused on my groom and I freaks me out a little.

(sidenote: we do have a wedding website.... although it's currently lacking in specifics. and I will do my best to update)

As you can see we are lacking in specifics, but that's not to say it hasn't been fun.

Lessons learned?
-- I might advise against compiling a gift registry solely online. Why? Because I have, and we have mostly chosen items that are solely available online.... crap....
-- Choosing wedding colors could quite possibly be the worst thing ever. Why? Because it was. (shakes fist at my indecisiveness) Although I am quite happy with them now, so I suppose it was worth it.
-- I would advise in favor of having my friends. Why? Because they are enjoyable and encouraging. I have had numerous bachelorette parties, as my friends have deemed every night/meal/trip to the mall a bachelorette party.

In the midst of wedding shenanigans, working, and being social, I spend much of my time streaming netflix through my wii and eating california pizza kitchen singles. I live a rich, full life... I know. hah.

chillin' with matthew... or m@ as he likes to write.

And apparently this is what Jeremiah has been up to... hahaha...

"new" car.

You know the saying "one man's junk is another man's treasure"?
Well sometimes it's just junk.
Well, sort of.

Remember my "new" car that I briefly mentioned? Although it was an old trusty steed to some elderly woman from Shell Rock, it was new shiny green metal freedom to me. But somehow in the last month it has managed to lose some of it's shiny-ness (literally, it was scraped away).

It all started on a very scheduled and stressful day... the day Jeremiah had a one o'clock flight back to Texas. On this fine day (which it was, it's been a great winter) my trunk lock decided to completely crap out on me, with Jeremiah's sea bag in it. Uniforms. Clothes. Everything. Resulting in our having to hire a locksmith to break into said trunk through the back seat. Consequently, half of my back seat currently remains down, which comes in handy if I ever need to grab anything out of my trunk without actually exiting my car.
I have my very own hatchback. Neat.

Then a mere few weeks later some turd, who will remain anonymous (because I have no clue who did it), ran into my car. At work. In the parking lot. Where it was parked in plain sight. This incredibly talented person managed to completely tear off my driver's side mirror, being kind enough to scrape and furrow the side of my car. Like a true champion.

But God is good.
I have actually made some money in this whole ordeal.
Who's the champion now?

the most wonderful time of the year.

Well, nearly a month ago was... better late than never?

Christmas went by in a whirlwind.
Highlights.

Jeremiah came.
Every bit of my family that lives within a 90 mile radius came.
Jeremiah and Matthew got sick on Christmas Eve. Lame.
Worked.
And oh yeah, I got engaged. Yes, to be married.
No bigs.
It was pretty eventful and wonderful (aside from the plague that beseiged the house). This was the fist Christmas Jeremiah and I have spent together... but being as we were so excited that we actually were able to see each other's faces, we neglected to take many pictures of said faces. Here's a couple...

Precious out.

in the navy.

Jeremiah officially graduated from Navy bootcamp on Friday.
It was all very official and ceremonial; they all looked very sharp and austere... do you see him?

He only had a few hours of liberty... so we attempted to party it up as much as possible.
(mostly at the Sprint store trying to set up a new phone and at the airport... exciting, I know)

 Proud of that kid....

recap.

My last month in a flashback.

1. Wedding in Kansas City.

2. Got a car.
"Schwaat?! Layla got a car?!" (you may be thinking)
"Yes, yes I did blogperson" (what I'm probably thinking back at you)
 sidenote: yes, we did just communicate telepathically.

      (car is not pictured... mostly because I had not deemed in necessary to have a picture of my car)

3. Saw my dad.

Dad was taking the picture, but here are his dashing children.

 4. Went to Iowa City.

5. Twice.

Also, this weekend is my magical adventure to Chicago for Jeremiah's graduation. I get to see Jeremiah (who I have not seen in two months), eat Persian food, and go to Ikea... the perfect storm... of greatness, that is.

remember remember...

the 5th of November
gunpowder, treason, and plot.