22 years down... How many to go?

Growing up I couldn't wait to be the next age, 13 meant I was FINALLY a teenager! 15 meant I could FINALLY get braces! (Yes, you can ask my mom, I begged for braces for years!) 16 meant I could FINALLY have that "Sweet 16" birthday like everyone else had. 18 was when I could FINALLY call myself a legal adult and I felt I could get away with more than usual (yes, I was THAT teenager. A pain in my parent's butt for sure..) And of course graduation meant I was FINALLY out of school. 19 meant I was FINALLY only 1 year away from not being a teenager anymore. 

And then...

20...

21...

22...

What happened!? Where's the excitement!? I got married, and life went on. Now I'm at the point where I'm realizing that life isn't about those silly little goals. It's about life itself. 

Today, on my 22nd birthday, I find myself with different goals, different dreams, different needs, different wants, and more life experience under my belt than I did at 13 for sure. I don't claim to know a lot. I still have a lifetime ahead of me.

There's one thing that I know for sure. Life isn't what you expect it to be. You take what you get, and you try really hard not to throw a fit! If I could tell my younger self 1 thing it would be this:

Enjoy the moment you are in! STOP trying to make life go faster, STOP wanting more than what you have in this moment because LIFE happens!! It will steal your time, it will steal your age, it will steal those precious moments away from you and you won't even realize it until it's too late to enjoy them. 

Today I had lunch with my wonderful husband and I am grateful! After almost 3 years of being together this is the first birthday I've had the pleasure of physically spending with him! Life had its way of making sure he was far away for work every year around my birthday so I relish these moments. He came home this morning at 1:30 am with a cake in hand and candles, woke me up and celebrated me, this tangled curly headed, sleepy faced, surprised self. He took the time to stop at Walmart for the numbers "22" candles (how he found them I have no idea..he can't find a bag of chips in front of his nose!😜)  and a cake at 1 in the morning. The man never stops on his way home, even if it means he misses dinner because he just didn't want to stop in the drive through to get it. He did this for me! In those moments I realize just how much he loves me. He loves me more than I love myself!! I find myself sober today in the fact that yes, I may be sitting in my car alone, I may not have any family here, my sister may not be able to go birthday shopping with me, there will be no celebratory dinner with all of my family singing the Young version of Happy Birthday in loud and off tones but I find myself moved to tears at how GRATEFUL I am for family and friends and this beautiful Spring day to celebrate life itself! I thank God for this day. For another chance to strive for my life. Another day to become a better me. Another day to love harder, laugh longer, and just be thankful!

Life is precious, don't take advantage of it. Live positive lives. Negativity never made anyone's life better. 

I will put a smile on my face and thank God for the chance to live through another beautiful birthday! 

Who knows if I'll see another one...

Mrs.G🌸

3/24/2016

For the Better or For Worse?

So this thought has been plaguing me for a while. Why do we choose to have all this social media and electronics? Why have we made it the center of our lives? 

Here's my opinion, if you care to keep reading..

In the past 20 years the world has evolved into an electronically driven society. Everything we do connects us to the Internet somehow or another. First it was making our jobs easier, communication easier, education became easier, and overall has made our entire lives almost too easy. 

Technology allows us to find a job without leaving our couch, it allows us to meet new people from all over the world from the comfort of your own home, it's allows us to expand our knowledge in anything you wish to know without having to check out a book at a library, you can have a new recipe to try in mere seconds, you can buy clothes online and have it sent right to your door, you can even use a website that tailors what clothes you like to your size! They send you clothes matching your preferences and send a return package with it to return what you don't care for and At the convenience of PayPal you can purchase the items you did like. We could literally live life without leaving our home! 

Don't get me wrong, it is extremely convenient to have anything you want or need at your thump-tips! (Get it? Finger-tips?😂) anyway...

I lay in bed every night and listen to my husband wind down to some YouTube videos. Now I don't have a problem with that, for the most part. Everyone winds down in the evenings in their own ways wether it's reading a book (on your kindle or iPad I might add) or a long soak in a bubble bath. These are great, but when I lay in bed I think about a time before electronics. What was it like? Well, you couldn't get a job without dressing your very best and showing up with a smile on your face and a resume in hand. First impressions were key to getting a good job. Now you can send a resume through email and even have your first interview via the Internet.  What happened to first impressions? Well, As long as you look good on paper...... That could branch into a whole other post! But I will refrain. 

Continuing..

You couldn't learn about historical Presidents or the lives of missionaries (my favorite!) or facts about your favorite animal or how to build a homemade rocket without going to the library and checking out a book! A real book, with pages that you turn in anticipation of the next chapter! Now you can buy the book on your phone and read it right then and there without having that experience of going to the library every Thursday to check out the next book in that AMAZING series you're reading! You won't even need mom's help this week because you learned the Dewey Decimal System in school last week!

Raise your hand if you know the Dewey Decimal System... Anyone?? Anybody??

I'm at fault myself, I applied for a job at the library a few years ago and didn't get it because I couldn't remember the DDS. I realized at that moment that I had turned to the new library computers to find where the book I wanted was. It would tell me the numbers or letters and which section and floor it was on. How sad!! The computer made it SO much easier but caused me to forget the basic system of the books! I crippled my own knowledge by using a computer. 

What other vital experiences and knowledge do we lose by using electronics and Internet?

Well, used to, you couldn't have new clothes unless you went to the mall and tried them on, but who likes to do that alone? You would go with friends! Have lunch and shop and just make a whole day of it. Now, you can order it online. You can see people daily on FaceBook or Instagram or SnapChat and have entire conversations without even seeing the person in real life. But what did you actually do with that person? Did you make a memory with this conversation?:

"Hi bff! Chillin @ school..Selfie!!!😘💗😜😍"

Did you grow closer in your relationship with that person?

"Lol! Gorgeous!😍 I luv ur hair! It's 2 cute!"

Seriously? Is it easier for you not to use the right spelling?!

What do we gain from this!? 

Yes, I totally understand that it is awesome to be able to see and communicate much easier with family and friends who live far away. I'm not judging. But wouldn't that be even more of a good reason to plan a trip and go see them in person? There's another life experience and memories missed because you sent an instant message and a picture instead of going on a road trip! You could tell your future kids about "that one time we went to see...this happened.... And we did this.... And then she... And we laughed and laughed all night!"

These stories will stay with you for a lifetime! But will you remember that time when you sent them a cute picture of yourself because they missed you?

Just sayin'. 

I wish that this world would see that when it comes down to it, we lose more than we gain by using technology. 

But at this point, I don't think our world would be able to disconnect from all the technology. I think it's as vital as breathing these days. I only hope by writing this that I can cause you to consider... and persuade you to CHOOSE real life interaction over technology any chance you get! 

Memories are made in person, not on a screen. 

P.S. I mean no offense in this post! I am simply stating an opinion and my own thoughts. Feel free to give your thoughts on the matter! I'd love to hear them!

Signing off my iPhone Blogger App! 😜

😘 Mrs.G

My Crazy Life

I know I haven't posted in a while. My life has been crazy, per the usual, and I just haven't sat down to blog. Luckily, I found an app that lets me blog from my phone, how convenient! 

My lovely cousin (hi cuz!!) recently started a blog and it inspired me to write again. For me, writing is like a stress relief. I get to spill my feelings and thoughts (well, most of them... I'm sure no one wants to read ALLLL my thoughts😋) onto paper and it mentally lightens a load. 

I think this is because I am such a social person living a secluded life and writing is my way of releasing all that pent up social energy. I live in the southern area of Texas with the hubs and we have no friends or family here. 

Luckily, we visit Houston about once a month and see friends and family! But like I said, only once a month if even that

:(

Anyway,

Recently I've been trying to seek God's will for my life even more than usual. I found myself at a crossroad and after the Houston Meeting and I became so determined to do something with my life! Something fulfilling. 

So I sought out a new job, the one I have currently just couldn't give me the hours I needed so I start a new one this weekend! 

What do I do? I babysit.. 

Yes yes I know, "isn't babysitting a job you get during high school?"

Sure! But who says you can't babysit for a living?! 

I see it this way:

1. It's flexible! You can pick and choose the best job for you and your schedule. When I first started working, The Hubs and I only had 1 vehicle. He works a 12 hour shift so I would drop him off and go to work all afternoon and then pick him up at the end of his shift. It was crazy and not easy. We put 100 miles on his truck DAILY. But it was a life saver. I needed something to fill my time and it did!! I felt deserving of my sleep each night:)

2. It pays!!! People won't let some creep sit in their home with their babies or drive them to and from school, so they pay for the best! The income is about $10-$15 per hour or more if you find a particularly wealthy family. Where can you find a job that pays that?!  

3. Job security! If you don't like the job or it just doesn't work for you anymore, you can get another one without cutting your income in half. People are always looking for sitters, especially working parents and new parents. You'll replace your old job lickity-split!

So back to my life story, I recently got a new (to me) car! It's a 2014 black Ford Explorer! I've always wanted a Ford Explorer and there it was sitting on a lot with my name on it! (Not literally, but that would've been awesome!)

It had been on the lot for 90 days so the price dropped to the dealer's cost! These cars run from 23k-45k and ours was listed at $19,900! Wow! Even the dealer was shocked! It's kinda a long story, but we were at the dealership til 2 hours after they closed. It was a fluke that we had gone anyway and so when we found this car it was already 30 minutes til closing. We had to go to a sister dealership to find it, then we were told that it was locked up in the shop pending a liquid refill of some sort, then back to the original dealership where we found out that the car was actually on the first lot all along. Around 8pm we test drove it... I was in love! It only had 35k miles on it!!!! After price haggling and paperwork we walked out with the keys to a new car! The price we paid? $19,500. Amazing! Even better? The interest rate was 3%!!!! God really knows what he's doing when you wait on Him to provide your needs(and wants)!

Anyways! With a new car comes a new bill, so I got a new job that pays twice what I was making before. (Told you! Babysitting is Awesome!)

This new job starts soon!

Well, I have many more upcoming events that I would like to share but I think I'll wait a bit 

;) 

Thanks for reading about my wild and crazy life! 

😘 Mrs. G

Once Upon A Time...

When I was a kid, I remember my mom always taking the senior's graduation pictures at our school. Every year she made that her gift to each of the graduates. That's really the only thing I remember about my husband, Enrique Gamboa. He was just a guy that was WAY older than me getting his pictures done. I was probably there when my mom took the pictures! But I really don't remember him. He graduated... and life went on. I was 12 at the time.

7 years later...

I was 19. I had graduated high school the year before (2012) and I had traveled! In the year 2012 I went to New York City, Washington DC, Benton Arizona, Kentucky 2-3 times, Disney World (Florida), and many little trips in between. I loved it! 

After Arizona for New Years I came home.

March rolled around and I turned 19! My family arranged for friends and family to join us at Olive Garden for my birthday celebration! Across from me was this guy that I hadn't seen since I was 12. I never remembered him being this cute... He quickly started conversation with me. What were my goals? What were my hobbies? What did I want to do with my life? 

So I showed him a list. I guess he was impressed because a few weeks later I went to Houston for a week and I received a Facebook message.. "Where are you?" Excuse me? I hardly know you, I thought. " Um, I am in Houston..."

Dot, Dot, Dot. From then on, we messaged off and on.

One evening I was home babysitting and I get a message. 

"My family and I are going to Fire Mountain to ride go carts and stuff. Does your family want to join us?" 

I was stunned. We never really talked and now he's asking me out? with my family of course... haha! Well, I called my mom. Mom and Dad were on a date and I was babysitting. So Mom said I could go by myself. 

BY MYSELF?! I wanted to puke! I didn't know this guy but he was obviously interested and I was a ball of nerves!

So I went. 

He and his parents greeted me with hugs and lots of chatter. I don't understand a word they said because I don't know Spanish... so I was even more nervous! So, guided me to the golf course where his parents disappeared. I was constantly searching for them with my eyes but apparently he had told them that he wanted to play the game alone with me. I must have missed that in the blur of Spanish conversation when I got there. But here I was, really bad at putt-putt and having the time of my life! 

That is where it all began. 

Starbucks and hours and hours of conversation entailed for about a month. We sat under the Andy's Frozen Custard sign almost nightly just talking about everything under the sun and moon! I had never had such a close friend. I started college classes and we saw each other constantly. I couldn't focus on my classes and he honestly only had a class so he could see me after my class!

The moment we had our first kiss, I knew. He was the one. He was challenging. He challenged me to be a better me. He encouraged me in every way. He would accidentally catch himself saying " I Lov.... I Like you..." and I knew he loved me too. 4 weeks of conversations and butterflies and I told him he should ask my dad if he could officially date me. 

I had never seen him so nervous! We invited his family over and my dad started grilling steaks. Now, if you know my dad, you'll know he is 6'3 and quite intimidating! Enrique on the other had is 5'5 and and a ball of nerves, He would sit by me at the table and then walk outside to the grill where my dad had large tongs and a hot grill at his fingertips. In and out he went. "Did you ask?" I'd ask. "No..." and out he went. It was pure torture for us both! 

My dad said yes, of course, and we proceeded to dinner.

Later that night as I walked him to his truck my parents walked with us. Enrique promised he would never do anything to harm me and that he would have the utmost respect for me and my parents. It was the sweetest talk! I cried. Lol. I was so in love with him.

The next day he was very happy to call me his girlfriend! I then told him he had yet to ask me if I wanted to be his girlfriend... ( I was messing with him :P) so he was nervous yet again!! That night at church he sent me a text. "Circle Yes or No if you will be my girlfriend!"

Um, you can't circle a text.

:'D I was laughing so hard!! Poor guy.

Of course I said yes! 

This was September 1st.

In the following months he went to family Thanksgiving with me and my family in Houston and I went to his parent's house weekly for AWESOME Mexican food dinners!

In the meantime, we knew we wanted to get married. But complications at his job caused him to have to move on. With no job and me in school, a wedding looked impossible :(

He was frustrated and spent hours on Indeed.com and spent weeks on end looking for a job. With Christmas around the corner, no one was really hiring and he was so down. 

December 24th, Christmas Eve I went to his parents house for dinner and presents!

Low and behold, he gave me a promise ring!!

"I promise, that someday soon... we will be married. even though we can't right now, I promise we will soon."

It was so sweet! I knew I could wait, I got this!

Christmas day came and went with family, food, and fun! Yay! Our first Christmas together!

Day after Christmas, he calls me. "I'm coming over! I have something to tell you! I'll be there in an hour." I had no time to reply before he hung up. I was worried of course!!

I was standing on the porch when he drove up. He walked up and told me... "I got a job!"

I was elated! Until he said the next words.. "Its in the oilfield! I leave tomorrow for Pennsylvania."

I couldn't speak. I couldn't explain my feelings. Tears rolled down my cheeks. He was leaving. 

I cried for days and probably weeks. He was gone. He worked 17-20 hour shifts. No cell service, and all he wanted to do was sleep when he got off. Many nights when he called he would start snoring in the middle of a conversation. I missed him. It was like he disappeared on December 27th.

4 Months passed.

In April, my Papaw passed away. As we planned for a trip to Houston, I get a text from Enrique saying that he was coming home! I was so excited!!! I was able to pick him up from the airport and then I had to say goodbye for a whole day while I went to the funeral. It was a horrible day! I had to say goodbye to my grandfather and I lost a precious day with the love of my life whom I hadn't seen in 4 months!

I finally made it home and we spent every moment together!

On May 3rd, 7 days after he had arrived and 2 days before he left, he expressed that he wanted us to be engaged before he left again. We had a wonderful breakfast out with my parents where he found a perfect moment to ask my dad for my hand in marriage. He said yes!

I knew it was coming. Yes, it was not a surprise. I knew he would propose to me the next night after church. Sunday night, May 4th  he arranged for his parents, my family, and my grandparents to join us at Olive Garden for dinner after church. Everyone was full of anticipation, especially me! 

After salad, drinks, and ordering food, he couldn't stand it anymore!

He asked for everyone's attention. 

"I have something to say, Morgan and I have grown very close over the past few months, and I want to ask her a question."

He turned to me, got down on one knee, and popped the question.

YES! 

The one surprise was that the ring was one I had never seen! After months of ring shopping together, it was a total surprise! It was a 3 carat set with princess cut diamonds  across both the engagement and wedding bands! WOW! He outdid himself!

Monday morning he left again. Between May 4th and January 24th, we saw each other 6 times.

These are the most exciting and trying times of my life so far! I will save the wedding day for my next post. 

I hope you enjoy our story!!

The best is yet to come!

Morgan G.

A New Beginning

  As much as I love to write, I have not blogged in 3 years! Crazy right? Well, I have redesigned my page, uploaded pictures of me that are not from when I was 15 and have started this new post. I really don't know where to start, I consider this my "new beginning". I think I will start with the reason behind me starting this hobby again.

In recent days I have come to ask myself this one question.
"What is my purpose?"

Then I looked up the definition of purpose.
"The reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists."

What was I created for? For what do I exist?

I recently got married, (that is a subject for a different post!) and my life consists of me, my husband, 1 truck, a 24x8 travel trailer, and no kids. I am "living the life"! Or so I thought. After a month in a new place in a new trailer with a new husband, I came to question myself. I began to evaluate myself. I was bored to death and I was blaming my hard working husband! I knew in my heart that I was wrong to do that. I knew the problem was in me. I was frustrated and I began to list my "duties", as I saw them. I wake up, I make coffee, I make food, I kiss my husband good-bye, I shut the door to our trailer, and then, I am alone.

Utterly, completely, alone.

I am hours away from my family, I have friends, but my friend's all live elsewhere and they all have lives that don't include me. Which is completely normal! So I find myself slowly becoming more and more depressed and frustrated. All I do is cook and clean which takes all of 10 minutes in this trailer. That concludes my day. By 10 am, I am alone in a perfectly clean home with a TV to stare at for the rest of the day. After a month of the novelty of TV, (never had one growing up) It got old. Really old!

So I began to think... Is that all I am worth? Is all I am supposed to do is cook and clean and sit til my hubby gets home? I thought I was worth more!
I am prone to depression. I admit it. Admitting it is the first step to fixing it, right?
I know I am worth more! I have a husband that loves me more than anything in the world. I have 2 homes! I have great parents and amazing siblings. I just need to find my amazingness. I need to find my greatness. I need to find my PURPOSE.
So, I am blogging. Maybe letting my thoughts and feelings flow onto a computer screen will help me to keep my thoughts straight. You can read this, or not. I really don't care either way. But this is my journey to find my true purpose. I hope I can be of some inspiration to someone. I hope someone who has struggled and succeeded in finding their purpose can comment words of wisdom!

Well, this post is at a close.
More posts to come about our wedding, our journey in a travel trailer, and everything in between!

Signing off with a purpose to find my purpose!

Goodnight to all!

Morgan G.