no shopping update...

so...my no shopping experiment slash rehab update:

i was going to move the blog over to here...but decided not too...so if you want updates, go to:

http://www.conversantlife.com/alyssalow

or click on the shopping cart icon somewhere on my sidebar on this blog to see updates. i just posted a few, trying to catch up a bit...

hope you are all rested well from this thanksgiving week/weekend. it was a very fun and very full weekend!!

wow...fun vacation...

hey all!! so...the kids have had an awesome vacation!! we went rock climbing at a gym we are thinking of getting a membership to for a family christmas gift...ry took em on a daddy daughter date to the dana point tide pools...i took will on a date to the playground that he has dubbed the spiderweb park b/c of all the places you can climb and ropes that look like spiderwebs...thanksgiving with family and friends...sleeping in each morning, pancakes....and now, we are either stupid or going to have the best family memory to date...we are going to go as a whole young family to a switchfoot concert!! molly and matt gave us tickets to the switchfoot concert tonight that is at downtown disney at the house of blues because they know how much the kids love switchfoot (the kids were their ring bearer and flower girl for their wedding!). william LOVES LOVES LOVES switchfoot and was actually growing his hair out to look like jon foreman until he cut his hair himself! so....here we go!! i'll let you know how it goes!!

praise

so..a bit ago i posted a blog titled,'hard'. well...part of that post i think talked about our transmission in our accord. well...a praise to report (sort of a few weeks late...but....) it wasn't our transmission. our awesome mechanic drove our car around and ran the computer test on it and it wasn't the transmission. although it is still not quite right, he didn't want to put in a $2,000 transmission yet until he ruled out all other possibilities. so, we are driving it around still, but with a new radiator (which was cracked) and oil change it only cost $600!! yeah...thank you lord it wasn't $2000!! so...he will see the car again in 3k miles to check it out and see what it is. yeah!!

also, another praise...we have totally been doing so well adhering to our budget! so much so we actually have money for christmas presents!! i'm so stoked!!!

thank you, lord!! much to be thankful for...what are you thankful for?

christmas 09 preview

hey all! so we have some photos from our christmas photo shoot with Adam kazmierski. He is amazing and has done our fam photos since will was 3 months old. now...he's four! enjoy some of the highlights so far...can't wait to get the whole shoot!! adam, what would we do without you!?!?

Weekend away...

The pool we floated in....and right next to that by the umbrella is the bar where we ate all weekend!!!

MMM....Hot cocoa!

11 years of marriage! Thanks Molly and Matt for giving us a weekend away to celebrate!

MMMM....Coffee!!

For the past few months, we had given pre-marital counseling to this awesome couple, Molly and Matt Lewis. As part of a gift to us, they gave us a weekend away!!! So, last weekend, Ry and I went away!! We went to Palm Springs. It was so great to get away. We didn't bump into anyone we knew...he took me out to dinner as a suprise to Thai food (i was craving Renu Nakorn, the BEST Thai food I know...this place wasn't half bad, a great runner up!) and then we just slept, swam, ate and enjoyed our time away. In light of so much going on in our life with adjusting and working on paying off things and living differently we never expected to have the chance to get away. Molly and Matt-THANK YOU! it was a gift!!!!!!! We had such a great weekend away (then came home and celebrated my sisters engagement! such a great weekend!) and feel rested and connected again.

We have much to be thankful for...God's provision in giving us a weekend away was awesome. Thanks!!!

Engaged!!!!

Em jumping up into "Zia's" arm to celebrate with her

Mom and Marisa

The beautiful ring! It's a gold band with filigree all around and this whole row of awesome diamonds. Perfect!! Just perfect!! very antique-y!!!

My lovely sister, Marisa and her awesome man, Daniel...are now...(finally!) ENGAGED!!! (sorry, forgot to get a photo of him! I was so excited I sort of forgot him....boo!)
He took her to the Magic Castle for brunch last Sunday and during one of the magic shows, the magician did a trick that made the ring box appear and Daniel got on his knee and proposed!! Thatta Boy!! Well done!!

I could not love him more and am so happy for my sister....i'm very much trying NOT to meddle...not asking what she is thinking...invitation...date...flowers....sigh....i'm doing well i think! i've not called her all week to bug and ask!!

Love you both lovely ones!! YEAH!!!

sigh...

the after shots of his hair post ryan fixing it.

Before the hair cut...can you see on the left and right the chunks taken out? it was way more noticable in person.

sigh...

william came out of his rest time today and he had discovered scissors...to his hair! i can't believe that one of my kids finally did this (as so many of friend's kids have already cut their own hair!) i thought i had maybe escaped this delight....NOPE! and family photos are this Sunday!!! boo.... my little man and his long floppy hair is gone. GONE!! i'm sort of mad and grieving right now at the loss of his rock star hair....sigh...sad day...but it was funny! he was so proud of himself and actually ran out of his bedroom to the couch to show me his handiwork. "mom, look! i cut my hair!" it was hard to be mad at the time. but now, as i'm watching him sing around the house and jump around in his new hair-do (care of ryan!), i'm sad ; ( eventful day at our house for sure!

Hard

It has been a hard few days. Life has been fine. But hard in the fact of my whole no shopping, no spending that is not for food or cleaning. It isn't that I really want a bunch of things, but my mind just really goes into a spin of when I do want something, what can I do to get it? Confessing it and getting it out in the open also diminishes a lot of the pull that the desire has. Here is where my thoughts went...

I think it began because we had to take our car into the shop and found out about all these repairs that are in need...new transmission, leak in the coolant/radiator...among other things. I just wanted to sell both cars and get a new one. That wont solve any problems. We would still need to fix both cars to sell and can't take on a car payment...Lord, help me to be content with the cars we have. They are both paid for (although not after the repairs, but still...), they both fit our family...they may not be the most shiny and new cars out there (which again, is hard-that sin of comparison looking at others and what they have and desiring to have that too), but they work and they are a gift. Please provide a way for our car to be fixed and running well.

It's hard to admit when things are hard. I see a lot of blogs out there that are all shiny and pretty and don't really talk about what is hard in life. I'm sure there are blogs out there that do...but it's been hard for me to be honest about where I am at in the past and I so want to break that habit in me...so here I post...it's been hard.

It'd also be nice to have a date with Ryan when we go have fun and don't talk about what is going on and just go have fun!!...no serious talks...no working things out (although, our talks even when they are hard are still amazing...Lord thank you for the husband you gave me who doesn't explode when I open up...who listens and responds calmly...) just some good fun. mini golfing or having my dad sign us into disneyland or something...we need cheap or free fun, any suggestions?

Thank you for listening to the process...I have wanted to bring the other blog of entries about my no shopping process over here but haven't had the chance. If you want to check it out, it's at www.conversantlife.com/alyssalow. I think i'll blog here about it. There was a sense that since it was over there at another site that it was not apart of our life in general, when that is so not the case. I have comparmentalized my life for so long, even here in blogging I sort of hid it over there really not knowing of others were reading it or not. I want to show the shiny happy things that happen in our life-they are a blessing! But i also want to not hide the real stuff that we walk through too...It's life. Life isn't always easy, it can be so hard at times. But the hard times cause me to lean more into Christ and the community He has given me...and this medium of processing and journaling is another place where it is helpful as well.

Blessings on the rest of your week. feel free to comment
aly

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