i need some advice...

so we're moving on saturday. and besides being worried about not having nearly enough packed yet, the water and electric, the fence not being fixed and not having much man power for the move, i have to figure out a way to move my piano!

its an OLD upright...its sooooo heavy. and while i know its moved several several times with my family, this will be the first time i've had to think about it. so any advice i can have regarding this difficult item's move would be much appreciated, along with prayers for everything else to run smoothly....thanks in advance!

great is His faithfulness...

upon finding out that we needed to find a new place to live, justin immediately set out applying for jobs. he'd been delivering pizzas on weekends and going to school very full time. unfortunately, with our money situation about to get much worse, he had to make the difficult transition into full time work AND school. he applied for about nine positions in one evening after completing his resume.

his first interview was scheduled for the following monday and then two more were scheduled for the next week. the first interview went extremely well. it was a real job with real benefits and salary. grownup stuff. scary. and as scary as it seemed, he wanted it anyway.

everything was discussed in the interview except for pay. the interviewer (head of the applications development team) simply told justin that he and his wife needed to discuss it, pray about it, whatever we needed to do to figure out how much money we needed.

that gave me a good feeling. that he would even mention praying about it sounded promising. and we did pray. all we needed was enough to get by. pay bills, get out of the hole, owe no man anything.

as part of the interview process, justin was given a project to complete and turn in as evidence of his experience in the programming languages being used. he completed it and turned it in the night before his second interview.

the second interview was with a placement agency strictly for programmers. the interviewer said that currently there were no positions available but if justin had no luck with the first job choice, he'd keep justin in queue for something.

just as justin got home, he received an email from jamie at the first place requesting a second interview.

i'd been praying that the Lord would simply let His will be done. I had no idea what would be good in this situation, only He did. justin called me and told me about the next interview and that he was going in straightaway. i starting praying and praying and praying. i wanted him to get this job. but i only wanted it if it was the Lords will...

he got the job!!!!! i'm soooooooooo excited. God is so good to us. this is above and beyond what we could have hoped for. all i asked the Lord for was what i needed. He is so good to provide things that are extra. i couldn't help but sing the song "great is thy faithfulness" in my head all evening after i got the call. I am continually amazed at the nature of my Heavenly Father. i know i shouldn't be, but its difficult considering my nature. even as i was trusting him in the job situation i was simultaneously worrying about the money for groceries once our rent went up.

i am such a silly one to worry about these things. i am worth more than sparrows to Him. they have everything they need. shouldn't i know i have much more than i need and i don't have to worry? its against Him in every way to worry as it is doubting his sovereignty. but such is my human nature. He is gracious, however, in teaching me slowly (as i am slow to learn) that He will provide. and that He has.

and while i know that i'm just trading some old problems in for new ones, my new prayer is one of thankfulness. also for wisdom and stewardship of what He's given me. i would hate to throw what He's given me in His face by going crazy.

last night in the car on the way home from buying shirts and slacks and work necessities i told justin i was scared for him. he asked me why.... "now you're going to have to pretend to be grown up."

random thoughts

so last night justin and i sat down to watch a movie together. this hardly ever happens anymore with his hectic school/homework/work schedule. he had borrowed the new version of halloween from his friend.

now, i LOVE scary movies. i'm a big fan of the original halloween. i thought that this would be a great twist. but holy cow, was this not something i needed to sit through. there was so much language i found myself not being able to focus on the movie but only on how horrible it was. apparently i was saying so too, because justin asked me, very annoyed, if i wanted to just turn it off. it was so, well, raunchy. man i sound like my mom. i told him no. i didn't want to miss out on this chance to cuddle on the couch with my husband.

but really, the best thing would have been to turn it off. i gained nothing from it. it did no justice to the original. it didn't even make me jump. and i should have known it was going to be as crude as it was because rob zombie directed it. the main reason i should have turned it off is because i could have been an example and i wasn't. i was selfish. i wanted to cuddle. i also didn't want to annoy justin by turning it off.

hopefully i won't be in that position again. we tend to be very lax on what we watch simply because we don't have any children in the house. but that's not really a great excuse. my dad used to talk about how you always remember the bad things you see on tv, and how they come back into your mind when you least want them to. of course i thought he was being a controlling mean dad, but he was right. that's the whole reason i'm writing this out. i was sitting reading someone's blog and suddenly a scene from that wretched movie popped into my head. there was no catalyst, it just happened. the devil knows what he's doing. why let me concentrate on Bible verses when i could be distracted by filth.

i tend to watch a lot of cartoons simply for this reason. they're not dirty or depressing and they rarely, if ever, have a storyline that is necessary to follow along with. also a lot of cooking shows are good, and nature shows. i really just need to cut down on tv altogether.

so this is a bunch of rambling...sorry. just sorta talking to myself about what an idiot i can be. i'm gonna go turn on some cartoons.

riley

i promised better pictures of riley, and here are some...he's a very good model and attack kitten.







notice pierre has already given him a scratch on the nose!






check out the teeth! i love how much he'll tolerate me taking his picture.


fred was on the chair above us getting very annoyed with the camera.



we're keeping riley, if you can't tell...pierre and riley are such great pals.

if by chance anyone wants to see more pictures of riley or to see more of fred telling us how mad she is, just hop on over to my flickr page... www.flickr.com/thealmightybetherson
fred is in the "babies" set and riley has a set of his own. plus you can check out my unedited pics from my recent nyc trip. i haven't even organized them yet!

also, please keep justin and i in your prayers as we're looking for a new residence. my mom has decided to sell, and has given us a months time to vacate. also pray for justin as he's going through interviews with possible new jobs in his field of programming.. this is a very volatile time for us and its definitly pointing me to the Lord's grace as i need it more and more. thank goodness He shows me His mercy in all of this. i'm so glad that i have Him...i don't know how those who are unsaved and know nothing of His grace can handle situations like this. if i didn't have Him to lean on, i'd be crazy! well, crazier than i already am, you know.

michelle did it

michelle filled out this survey and forced me with her mind powers to fill it out as well. since she did it to me, i think calista and christina should be the next... do it or i will find you.......

I give you money and send you into the grocery store to pick up 5 items. You can only pick one thing from the following departments. What is it?
1. Produce: artichokes
2. Bakery: the frosting from cupcakes. i don't care about the cake...
3. Meat: salmon
4. Frozen: edemame
5. Dry goods: holy cow...this is very broad. aren't most things dry? should i pick toilet paper? hmmm no, i think i'll pick kitty litter. you know why.

Let's say we're heading out for a weekend getaway. You're only allowed to bring 3 articles of CLOTHING with you. So, what's in your bag?
1. comfy pants
2. TShirt
3. underwear. thank me in advance.

1 task you wish you were better at doing?
1. putting up my makeup when i'm done with it!

1 Celebrity you wish you looked like (silly, I know:))
1. sophie marceau

If I was to listen in on one of your conversations throughout the day, what 5 phrases or words would I be most likely to hear?
1. how old are these contacts?
2. i need a couple of invoices faxed to me
3. i need to place an order for contacts
4. i'm playing dr.
5. would you please clean the litter pan this time?

So, what 3 things do you find yourself doing every single day, and if you didn't get to do, you probably wouldn't be in the best mood?
1. watch cartoons
2. love on my babies
3. have a bit of chocolate

What 5 places do you visit roughly every week?
1. walmart (i know, i'm not proud)
2. ug. the mall. but i work there.
3. the gas station
4. home
5. that's it. i'm so boring.

If you were to shop at three stores for a whole year to supply your wardrobe and money was not an issue, which 3 would it be?
1.
2. i've been wearing scrubs so long that i don't remember the last time i had a particular place i liked to shop. i actually hate clothes shopping right now. talk to me later when i've possibly lost some weight.
3.

You just scored tickets to the taping of any show that comes on t.v. of your choice. You can pick between 4, so what are you deciding between?
1. conan o'brien
2. spongebob squarepants
3. family guy
4. futurama
okay, so conan o'brien is the only show i could even think of that i liked that was not a cartoon...and i don't actually watch it...

You're hungry for ice cream. I'll give you a triple dipper ice cream cone. What 3 flavors can I pile on for ya?
1. cookies and cream (finally one i have answers for!)
2. chocolate chip cookie dough
3. reeses peanut butter cup. man now i actually want one. stupid questionnaire!

Somebody stole your purse… in order to get it back, you have to name 5 things you know are inside to claim it. So, what's in there?
1. mini purple brush
2. tampon case (courtesy of jill) that says "moody diva"
3. five thousand pens
4. old lady checkbook
5. wallet with no money

If you could go back and talk to the old you, when you were in high school, and inform yourself of 4 things, what would you say?
1. the act is not an accurate gage of intelligence
2. pot does not cure depression, its a freaking downer.
3. real cream is a horrible idea for slapstick skits. it will smell HORRIBLE later.
4. you look better with makeup. sorry.