That's a WRAP

Ya know, for a short week, this one was pretty stuffed!

Today was Dave's last day as active franchise owner for my office. It's a bittersweet thing to recognize, given the near two years of ebb-and-flow progression and digression that has led us to this point. My heart is happy to see him step into full retirement, and to know that our business will no longer serve as an added distraction to the things he hopes to accomplish from here on out. I do have some admitted sadness to see him go; there are so many things about Dave that we have come to love, and he has certainly been a part of our small office family. 

Dave, we wish you the best in your next ventures. Thank you for all that you've given us through your LLC and of course, for lunch today! What an excellent way to celebrate YOU! 

elisa with the mexican guac
cori with the thai chicken
..... typical 

It seemed as though our final farewell was far less ceremonial than we'd originally envisioned, but the time came and went, and that was that. It was a typical Friday on all other cylinders, with the weekend finally in our hands. 

pop... pop.. pop pop pop popppp....

Dinner plans took a spontaneous turn, and we found ourselves with bellies full at Los Cazadores. We enjoyed our casual family dinner date before heading back here to enjoy an otherwise uneventful night with each other :).

Here's to the weekend! 

xo | cmd

Boots & Music

Gooood Monday morning! I hope your weekends were incredible, and that you're off to a blazing start for the week like we were. My day started off alongside Carri & Dave, with a client facility tour, complete with the required on-site gear.

Oversized steel toed boots + leggings, anyone? ;)

ow ow!

Some desk-bound folks would see this as a burden in the middle of their day, but I embrace these things and probably have more fun than I should walking around warehouses and factories with my clodhopper feet and safety glasses awkwardly parked on the bridge of a nose that on my face doesn't even exist [#pinoyproblems]. Yay!

The rest of the day took something of a musical turn: I stumbled across this video by Steffany Gretzinger, an acoustic outpouring of her soul that moved me to share it with a few other people and listen to it multiple times.


^ So. Gorgeous!

Here's the part where I remind all of you that I'm heading to Panama in 2015 for the purpose of missions, and am starting NOW on the prayer part of that. There will be more details to follow on that, but for the time being, just... listen to that song and try to absorb it in the moment. Thank you, Steffany for sharing your gift with us! [#SonRisePanama2015]

Rob and I took a step into a new restaurant tonight and tried the Mexican place down the street from us [recommended!] before heading back home to let the ACC Awards carry us into the last part of the evening.

I had to share this, too, since Reba is not just an icon in country music, but truly a legend. I love the lady and realized that we're privileged to see these moments unfold; Sydni will grow up and hear stories of legends like this, but won't be able to experience them the same way we do now.

Congratulations to Reba, with love and gratitude for what you've contributed to the world of one of my favorite genres!


That's a rap here, folks. I've got Fancy stuck in my head like a broken record, so on that note, I'll call this one and pick up where we left off tomorrow!

G'Nite!

xo | cmd

Fellowship Fiesta

Switchin' it up! [Primarily because I was off 30 minutes earlier than I usually am and my house is already set up for small group.. planning ahead - BOOYAH]

Today was awesome because...

It's Friday! I don't work tomorrow, my husband is actually in the state of Illinois for small group this week, and I've got a handful of my favorite people coming over in about an hour :)

done.. and done.

I'd stay and chat, but uhhh.. we're about to grub and dig into some Bible study.
Bring on the enchiladas, salsa, and fellowship.

¡Olé!

xo | cmd

Fellowship, Mexican Style

If you don't know by now, I love our church and the family it holds. I love our pastor and his family; I love the dynamic of our congregation, and I love the relationships we've already begun forging in the short 7 months we've been here. I have to confess that this is the closest I've ever been to the heart of a church, and I attribute that to the fact that the heart of the church is so genuinely broad and willing to embrace on impact, and unconditionally.

Today was another one of those weekly gatherings with said church family; the message was on point, and our fellowship made its way from the pews to a nearby Mexican restaurant. It wasn't anything extraordinarily spectacular; it wasn't a celebration of anyone's birthday; it wasn't for any special announcements. It was however, another small event that served not only some delicious food, but some casual conversation, funny stories, and hearty laughs. It was a chance for fellowship, and even in its simple, impromptu form, we took full advantage of it.

the motherload of enchiladas

Oh, and for the record, I can't for the life of me remember what the restaurant itself is called, but this sucker came out steaming on its plate and settled right in front of Joe. I have no idea how he finished it off, but I definitely give him kudos for that. We thought we'd photo-document this for the sake of remembering the accomplishment, but also in case we would need to explain to a doctor later on what it was that knocked him out. :)

Luckily, we're still stomachache free, at the end of the day.

Meagan and Rob made their way over after lunch to finally see our new digs, and experience the hybrid indoor cornhole set up in our basement. Once they left, it was naptime for the rest of the afternoon, and that puts us here now.

What a great weekend. :) We are truly, truly blessed.

xo | cmd  

Let's Celebrate!

I've been at my new Express office for just about 2 months now, and so far so good. It's certainly been an adjustment, but I am finally in the phase where acclimating feels a bit more natural, and I'm no longer finding myself completely lost in trying to follow the flow of this office.


marc | nancy | karen | diana | meagan | cori

We are an office of Christians who believe that God gives, takes, and surprises on a daily basis. The first thing He did [since I came into the picture] was to open an avenue for Susie, my predecessor, that granted her a much better schedule, lighter commute, and better compensation. That created my opening here, and I'm so grateful for that. The next big adjustment came when Karen [an SC here] announced that, while she hadn't been looking, an impassible opportunity had presented itself to her as well. She would get the hours she needed, the flexibility to spend more time with her kids, and the chance to work with some close, familiar former co-workers. That announcement blossomed into our bringing Meagan on board, and my climbing up a couple rungs on the internal ladder. I love when I can recognize even just a glimpse of the plan God lays out for us.

So, that being said, we thought we should absolutely celebrate the concept of radical transition that's occurring here in our office. We seem to do well with Mexican restaurants, so we opted for another round a Mexican dig nearby. It definitely worked. :)

Congratulations, Karen, on this new opportunity..
Congratulations, Meagan, on joining the EEP Edwardsville family..

and THANK YOU, to the heads of our office for trusting me with this promotion. :)

xo | cmd

El Maguey's

I don't think I ever mentioned that the girl training me for my position at the Edwardsville office is leaving at the end of this week. As an office, send-off dinner's aren't uncommon, but they are more interesting when it's held at a place to which I've never been. Although El Maguey's turned out to be your standard Mexican restaurant, it was still good, and I appreciated the opportunity to sit down in a more casual environment with the people I see for 8 hours a day every Monday through Friday.

el maguey mexican restaurant

I honestly miss the staff from the office back in Cinci. There isn't much I can do about that, so I'm determined to make the very best of and keep an open mind to this new staff; ironically, aside from the owners, I would technically be considered the senior staff member if ranked by longevity with the company. I have high hopes for my run here, and I do wish my departing predecessor all the best luck in her new job!

¡Adiós, y hasta mañana!

xo | cmd

¡El sexto día está en ruinas!

Well, not entirely. Sticking to day 6 of the Moreno breakfast and lunch was a breeze.. but in case you missed it, yesterday was Cinco De Mayo, a day which Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati college students apparently celebrate by drinking cheap margaritas and eating burritos. [Hello, Rio Grande]

So umm... we opted to partake of the festivities, although I must admit I wasn't even a tiny fan of the margarita. Sorry. Dinner was served. Dinner was not on the Moreno Menu. BUT.. It was dinner, it was Mexican, and it was g-double o-d.



enchilada | refried beans | rice



I'm a huge proponent of honesty, especially when I've screwed up. I'll be the first to admit I'm not being a saint with this diet -- training thing, but I think that out of 21 meals, I'm averaging 17-18 on point each week. Sure, it's not perfect, but neither am I, and eating plain greek yogurt every day is a couple marks short of an awesome time.

^That's me justifying myself when I stray. I know, I know. Shame on me. Oh well.

Here's proof of the dieatry debauchery that was... Cinco De Mayo, 2011.



kalyn | rio grande | maaaass food
[[& no, she didn't eat all that]]

Tomorrow's another day of redemption. Mark my words.

♥ | cmd