In the midst of the Holiday's

Well what do you know. Before we know it Christmas is going to be here. But before we get to that it's about being thankful for those around us, what we have, and who gave us all of that!

I've taken up running as of recent, and ran my first 5k race on Oct 15, 2011. It was the Fight for Air race on Folly Beach. Ran it in 36 minutes and 10 seconds. Very proud of myself since that was my first run. I followed up on Thanksgiving morning with the Turkey Trot here in Charleston. Ran that around downtown Charleston. Finished that race in 35 minutes and 15 seconds. So I decreased my time by almost a whole minute. Go me!!! After the race was over met up with my friend Tammy (she'd done the race as well) just to celebrate together a little before the rest of the day's activities took place. After a tiny celebration headed towards home to begin preparation of not only the Thanksgiving meal but the arrival of my best friend for the weekend.

My soon to be new roommate, Nikki was gracious enough to pick up Deanna from the airport so I could keep cooking. They arrived at my house at about 1:30. It's been 4 months since Deanna and I had gotten to hang out. So a bestie weekend was WAY overdue. The rest of the day was pretty low key. Nikki, Deanna and I all celebrated Thanksgiving together. We had a pretty awesome spread of food. Later that afternoon we headed to the movies to see Breaking Dawn part 1. Very disappointing by the way. Well as the day was coming to a close we headed back to my place for a little dessert before Nikki had to head home since she was working the next day. I made a Pecan Cheesecake...all I can say was YUM! After a long day Deanna and I settled in for the evening and passed out from exhaustion quickly.

Friday morning was a big day. Deanna's first Starbucks run in a while, then we headed downtown to do some sight seeing and take lots( I mean LOTS) of pictures. It was a beautiful day, couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. Deanna and I walked around the battery. Took lots of pictures. We decided to get a little creative with some of them. I taught her how to "plank" and then we decided to start "Tebowing" as well. As we continued to walk we headed down Waterfront park along the harbor. You never out have guesses that it was almost the end of November considering it was so nice outside. We saw a pod of dolphins swimming and that was pretty cool.

About this time we were getting hungry so we decided to head back to the car. I took her to California Dreaming for lunch, We had Butter Croissants and this amazing pasta dish. Shared of course, and we still have left overs. After lunch we headed back downtown so we could do some sight-seeing. Well this time we decided to hit up the shopping district. Bad idea for parking, it took up the better end of an hour to park, and that was on the very north end of King Street. So we began walking. Didn't do any shopping however took lots and lots of pictures. We were looking for Christmas presents, but ended up empty handed. Well again we were getting hungry and so decided to head to dinner. We stopped in at Hominy Grill where we were lucky enough to get a table only under the stipulation that we be done in 45 minutes since we didn't have a reservation. That was odd because I've never had to have reservations there. Well had an amazing dinner then decided to head to my house and relax for a while as our night wasn't even close to being over yet.

Well after relaxing for a couple hours we decided to head downtown to see what kinda night life Charleston had to offer. (I don't go out much, so I wasn't sure myself) Well considering it was Thanksgiving weekend I think a lot of people were away because downtown wasn't as hopping as I've heard it can be. We still made the best of it though. Found this nice little bar called The Brick, which was playing some pretty good dance music, because we all know how much Deanna and I LOVE to dance. We didn't hand out too long however because the night was young and it was getting very hot in there. Next we headed to a few more places. None of which really had the get up and dance type atmosphere. We did however cross paths with a couple cuties.

Stephen and Houston were there names. Both a couple guys in the Air Force. Out on the town for a fun night as well, there was dancing and talking and even a mini massages going on. I had to see what kinda mad skills these guys possessed. They were actually quite good! lol We did end up hanging out with them for the remainder of the evening but I think they were pretty disappointed when I told them they couldn't come home with us. That however did end our Friday.

Saturday we woke up, got ready and headed to breakfast at Charleston Cafe with Nikki. Had to be kind of quick as she was headed to hang out with our friend Holden so they could go bowling. This was Deanna's and my designated "relaxing" day because after breakfast we headed to the beach. I took her to Sullivans. She still couldn't believe it and the fact that it was warm outside as well and it was almost the end of November. We spent a couple hours here just walking around, talking (cause that's what we do best), and drawing in the sand. A little later I took her to Menchie's for frozen yogurt, which of course she absolutely loved. We then headed to Folly Beach. It was a tad colder and a lot more crowded on this beach. We didn't stay too long but while we were there we ran across a wedding, and a really cool sand castle.

Once we decided to end our beach excursion. We headed back to the house. Talked for the better part of an hour and then decided it was time for dinner. I took Deanna to Home Team. Which by far has the best BBQ in Charleston. I'm going to persuade this girl yet to move to Charleston ASAP, and I'm going to do it with food. Lol

Well the weekend was coming to a close and we were both dreading the next day. Because we knew that that meant the vacation was over. But on the bright side we get to spend a little bit more time together when we're back in Colorado for Christmas.

Sunday morning was hard, had to have Deanna at the airport at 5am. My best friend, and one of the most important people in my life was leaving and having to go back to her life. But while she was out here she has a 5 year plan which involves moving to Charleston by the end of it, if not sooner.

Well that was how November ended. Got lots of exciting things going on in December. I can't believe 2011 is coming to a close, more quickly than is started to boot. I'll be traveling back to Colorado for the Holidays, to get some much needed time in with family and a few friends. Also I'll be celebrating my 27th birthday and then getting ready to move at the end of the month. I can't wait to see what all this new year has to bring!!

It's been a while....

So what better way to start off a new blog with another candle added onto the cake? Well I'm not quite there yet. I'll be 27 in 15 days. But so much has gone on recently that I didn't feel like I should another two weeks to write it all down, especially with it being the last six weeks of the year, and officially three day's before Thanksgiving there is going to be WAY too much stuff going on to add in. Where so start off?

Well I've been in Charleston SC for 10 months now. So much has gone on, from work, to my faith, my kitchen and my relationships, not just romantically but friendships as well. Went out to Indiana in January with my best friend in the entire world, to help her get settled into her new career and life. Upon the trip out there I was offered a job in Charleston, which I took immediately and headed there, instead of back to Denver, to begin the next chapter in my life. My brother Jeff, his wife Ashley, and their son Talen (My nephew) were gracious enough to allow me to stay with them, for about 6 weeks, while I got on my feet and out on my own. Moved down to James Island and have been living in a town house with some pretty easy going girls, who I'd never met before moving in. Well this upcoming January I'll actually be moving to a different part of town with my friend Nikki (more about her later).

Well work has been amazing, I can't believe how much I've learned and accomplished in the short 10 months that I've been here. Center for Therapeutic Massage is the company I moved to Charleston to work with. I was very excited because not only is it no where close to having a spa reputation, but I was also given the opportunity to work with some major athletes in the Woman's Tennis circuit. I've been able to work with other athletes on much smaller scale and then I've been able to grow myself in working independently to help people with anything from every day aches and pains to chronic issues.  I absolutely love what I do to the point that I don't ever feel like I'm actually working which is an amazing thing! Well with the economy not being so great I found myself struggling financially so I decided to look for more work to supplement my income. In July I was offered a management position in a local chiropractors office, where I would be in charge of medical billing and booking patients. this was a saving grace. I've been there almost 4 months now and I love the people I work with and interact with on a regular basis. This kept me a little busier. But being the ambitious woman that I've become decided that I still needed to branch out. Center for Therapeutic Massage is becoming very slow and I don't necessarily think it's the best fit for my anymore. I'm very grateful for all of the opportunities it's given me and it is the reason I was able to come to Charleston in the first place. But again recently I've been on the job hunt. I was offered a position with a different massage company. One which might just down the alley that I'm looking for. Still working for myself but with a lot more marketing and exposure with the company. It's an opportunity I'm excited to take and I hope that I can can succeed in making a name for myself in Charleston.

I've always loved to cook and experiment with food, but ever since moving to Charleston that love has become even more. I've made things like Key Lime Pie, Apple Pie Cheesecake, Chocolate Cheesecake with Peanut Butter Frosting , and Chocolate Covered Banana's on top, Peanut Butter Cookie Stuffed Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting. Well....I guess that's really more a love for baking. I'm trying to make things as healthy as possible, which i know when it comes to desserts isn't always easy, but I enjoy trying :o) I've got a few more recipes on the horizon, for the upcoming holiday's and my birthday. So we'll see how those turn out as well...

Well been in Charleston ten months now. I was single when I got here and I'm still single. Not for lack of trying. I've dated some, but nothing ever seems to be right. Everything ended with the last guy I dated about two weeks ago. All I can say is even though that door closed, I'm glad I found out what I did when I did before things got even more serious. So I decided I'm going to take a break for a while. No more dating, not until I'm a lot more secure in where I am in my life.  I've realized lately with everything that's been going on that the things that we manufacture a lot of things in our lives, especially dating relatiohships. and those manufactured things in our lives are not intended to work out because they are not sent to us from God. So in that case I'm giving it up to Him. When he deems I'm ready that's when I know he'll send the most amazing, wonderful, loving honest man to me. But until that time it's about focusing on God and me. I heard recently that we should treat our dating lives as seriously as we treat marriage. Well in that case I think my future husband (whomever he may be) will be proud of the fact that I took a stand and decided to wait for him.

On that note. I was able to find an amazing church and church family. I've found my relationship with God and I've realized that I'm not the one that made all the good things in my life happen. They only were able to happen because of the grace and mercy of God. He has given me so many great things in my life and has blessed me with so many wonderful people. I finally feel like I have a home and that I'm somewhere I'm able to flourish and grow. I have an amazing group of girls that I don't just call friends, but they are my sisters in Christ. The family that God didn't give us. We spend almost every Monday evening together studying the bible and catching up on what's been going on over the last week. We also are that support system for each other that everyone needs in their lives. I love my girls and I know they are a HUGE reason I'm still in Charleston today. Even though some girls come and some girls go, ever single one of them has stepped into my heart and will forever hold a piece of it.

Things may not always be perfect in my life, because God knows I'm far from perfect. But I finally realize that everything that is happening to me has a rhyme and reason and in the grand scheme of things what I might have to go through will only make me a person I can't wait to be. Only time will tell, but I imagine that since I've been working very hard on putting God first in my life, he will start making sure that everything else falls into place. It's not easy to give up that control, because we all feel as though we know what's best for us. But ya know, most of the time we don't. I am finally able to let go. Give God the things that I can't handle on my own because he will give me those things so I can lean on him for support and understanding. I can't wait to see what comes next and how God is going to bless me because of my thanks, and praise to him!! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

And it begins....

So my journey began on Saturday January 8th 2011. The day that I landed in Charleston, South Carolina. This is the day that I began the next and most recent chapter in my life.

  Back in Colorado nothing seemed to be going for me. Due to a down turn in the economy I was having trouble finding a job and keeping it longer than about 6 months. Well when I, along side my best friend Deanna, was laid of from one of the biggest home builders in America decided to look at the bigger picture. Well we decided that maybe Colorado didn't have to opportunities that we were looking for. Since I was finishing school at the end of the year and the lease on our apartment was up at the same time too, nothing was keeping us in Colorado. So we decided to explore our options else where. Deanna ended up landing a job for one of the biggest cabinet manufacturers in the country and was going to be moving to Indiana. I on the other hand still wasn't quite sure where I was going to end up. I just knew that I didn't want to stay in Colorado. I felt the job market for my career path was overly saturated and I wouldn't be able to do what I really wanted to do which is work with the sports community as a Massage Therapist.

  I traveled to Charleston, South Carolina in December to visit my brother and his family and thought in the mean time I would look for jobs out there and see if I was able to find any decent opportunities. At the same time thinking that I was either going to find a job there or if nothing panned out I would move to Indiana with Deanna and start a new life there. I applied for several jobs and then returned to Colorado for the holidays.

  With no prospects for myself on January 2nd, Deanna, her boyfriend John, and I all set out on a 3 day road trip headed to Jasper, Indiana. We left Denver and one the first night stopped in Kansas City, the second day we traveled to St. Louis, and on our third day we reached Jasper. While Deanna was getting things all worked out for her new apartment I received several phone calls from potential employers.

  One was for a Spa in Evansville, Indiana which is about 45 minutes from where Deanna would be living in Indiana. The second was for a Medical facility in Charleston and the Third was for a Therapeutic Massage Center in Charleston as well. The medical facility in Charleston wasn't willing to do a phone interview, and I wasn't able to just up and fly there without a job offer. I ended up setting up an interview with the Spa in Evansville, but upon arrival realized that the atmosphere wasn't quite what I was looking for. The owner of Center for Therapeutic Massage in Charleston contacted me and we ended up doing several phone interviews while I was in Indiana. I had plans to fly home to Denver on Saturday January 8th, so I could tie up some lose ends and attend my graduation ceremony from my massage school at the end of the month. But I was not planning on staying in Denver. Well upon interviewing over the phone, Alli the owner ended up offering my a job with her company and wondered when I might be able to get to Charleston to start. I told her that I could actually change my plane ticket from Denver to Charleston and hopefully start the very next week.

  So that was it the decision that brought me here to Charleston South Carolina to begin the next Chapter in my life.