Life is Beautiful

Remember when we bought a house, moved in, and never looked back? Well that last part was totally an accident. I had no idea that my last post was three (gulp!) months ago. In that time, we...

• painted our kitchen (bluegreengray?), Cade's office (navy), and the front door (teal). apparently we like our blues and greens
• learned how to cook (tonight included Triple A Spinach Pasta and the leftover homemade caramel from these Salted Caramel Chocolate Shortbread Bars, which was worth the 45 minutes it took to make)
• hosted both sides of the family (Cade's dad and Gram at the beginning of July, my family at the end; Kelli even came at the end of June)
• got a promotion (Cade) and found a job (Kara)- and we both love what we're doing
• found a new church that we really like (big ups to Tab UMC)
• did an overhaul on our yard which will include putting a fence up in the coming weeks
• continued to plan a wedding and separate party in two states that aren't Virginia

So naturally, our time has been a bit preoccupied. But life has been totally incredible, and we absolutely love taking the world on together. There have been so many funny moments (fact: bacon grease will melt a red solo cup), so many happy moments, and so many moments where we've been able to learn more about each other and ourselves, and it's been such a blessing to share life with Cade (and Cleo).

Hopefully I can get back in the routine of blogging, but for right now, we can just let it be a pleasant surprise whenever one of my posts shows up! Hope you're all doing well :)

The Many Adventures of Team P

It goes without saying that some amazing things have happened in the past year, and the next year is shaping up to be even more incredible. We close on the house next Tuesday, move next Saturday, and in a little over a year, we'll be saying "I do." Pretty big stuff, my friends.

With family and friends all over the place, we figured it'd be easier to share house/life updates on a blog than bombard people with emails or facebook notifications, which is why we started cadeandkara.blogspot.com (don't worry- it'll be easier to access after the wedding, when it'll become the new cadeandkara.com). We'll post pictures of home shenanigans, life happenings, and all the other excitement taking place at 6707, even some DIY projects that we try to tackle. Of course, Gigitastic will live on, but it'll continue to revolve about my thoughts on life with Jesus rather than updates on the homefront.

Hope you guys are enjoying this crazy start to summer- seriously, 90 degrees one day and 67 the next? It's like im still in Indiana! Keep your fingers crossed that it's not 90 degrees on the 9th when we move. I will straight up die.

Another May 31

Tomorrow is my last day as Youth Pastor (in Pennsylvania; my choice).

A year ago tomorrow was also my last day as Youth Pastor (in Indiana; their choice).

Transitions are never easy, but- and I had a friend tell me this last year- these kids and this congregation have gleaned what they needed to from me, and there are others out there who need me now. At the same time, there's another youth pastor out there with a calling in these kids' lives, in this church's life- God's been preparing them for that role, and they're ready. It's time.

In college, I remembered writing in a paper that you knew the health of your ministry by whether or not it could survive without you. If it can't, it's not pointing to the right person. If it can, to God be the glory.

Pack it Up, Pack it In, Let me Begin.

I've officially hit the packing schlump that always comes with moving. I go hard in the paint for like, 3 days, and then I waive a white flag and pray for Mary Poppins to float herself on in here and sing a song to make everything pack itself. The worst part is that all that's left are kitchen-y things and the good old odds and ends- stuff I don't know what to do with but can't bear to part with.

The goal is to have my apartment totally ready (sans painting, unless I can manage to squeeze that in, too) by June 5. Thirteen days to wrap up life in PA. That seems kind of crazy to me, especially since a year ago, I was still at my job in Indiana. But life keeps rolling, and we've got big dreams for life in Virginia that keep me awake at night because I'm so excited :)

Unrelated: I'm headed to the dentist soon. Not my favorite thing, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. Let's hope he doesn't look anything like this guy:

Products I love: Birchbox

I'm very vocal about my love for the company Birchbox- you fill out a beauty profile, and for $10 a month, they send you a box full of all sorts of goodies, usually valued around $30. I held off for over a year when it came to signing up- I was afraid I'd get stuff I'd never use- but after coveting what other people were getting month after month, I gave it a shot.

Let me tell you this: I would eat ramen for every meal before giving up my Birchbox subscription. Not only have I received some awesome nail polish from them (you know I'm a junkie), but I've also discovered products that I'd otherwise be oblivious to. Take my new best friend, Miss Jessie: I received Miss Jessie's Quick Curl cream in my March box and I've never looked back- it's that good. The same is true for this month's Color Club polish- called "Disco Nap," it's very similar to Chanel's Gold Friction- my favorite polish in the history of Gigi, which I used exclusively for a summer before running out (saddest day of my life).

Anyway, here's a sneak peek into this month's box, along with a list of the contents. If you like beauty products but hate spending an arm and a leg just to find out you don't really like what you bought, Birchbox is the way to go.div style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">

May's Gossip Girl Themed Box/ "Chic Sunday Brunch" edition: Dr. Jart +’s Waterfuse BB Cream, Atelier Cologne’s Vanille Insensée, Color Club Nail Polish in Disco Nap, fresh’s Sugar Rosé Tinted Lip Treatment, and a copper hair tie from twistband®