A Short Story (or Pity Party)

I love Charlotte. I love the Christmas-y feeling that I have here. I love the lights in Christmas Town USA (which we've already been to see twice). I love the ice skating rink downtown. I love the decorations on the outsides of all of the shopping stores. I am looking forward to going to the Billy Graham Library for a horse-drawn carriage ride and a live nativity scene. I am excited about everything else we have planned here for the season. However, I miss the snow. I want snow. Blacksburg, Roanoke and Lynchburg are getting snow now. We don't have any forecasted for at least the next ten days. I haven't even seen a flurry. :(

The End

By the way, today we met Mike Huckabee (Jared's all-time favorite candidate), took a brief tour of the decorations in the city, watched Tech win the ACC Championship (Yay Hokies!), and have big plans of snuggling on the couch with hot chocolate to watch a Christmas movie tonight. So, yes, it's been a good day. Guess I can't complain about the lack of snow too much. :)

Grandma Lois

Today is a special day. My wonderful Grandma Lois was born on this day...several years ago. This time of year is always bitter sweet. I love the joy that comes with getting together with family and friends, the happiness of the Christmas season, celebrating the birth of Jesus, shopping, decorating, etc. There is also a certain sadness that comes with the season and I guess forever will. This is the exact day three years ago that I saw my Grandma for the last time. I miss her so much!!!

Yet, with the sadness comes hope. I remember the fears I had when my Grandma died: my family would never be the same, my mom would crumble from losing her stepmom, dad & mom in a time frame of four months, and the holiday season that we always loved would be a time of great sorrow forever. The truth is, we're not the same family - I believe we're stronger. My mom did not crumble - she persevered with grace. The holiday season has its times of sadness, but also its times of great joy. We've learned to cherish time spent with loved ones more, to never take for granted that we'll see someone again, to laugh more, cry more, be "real" more. We rejoice in knowing that Grandma lives on in our family through our crazy antics, Mom's cooking, our laughter, and our cherished memories. And if God allows Grandma Lois to look down on her family from time to time, I know she's proud. Happy Birthday, Grandma!

Ego Maniac

I live with a man who has a slightly large ego at the moment. :)  When you google his name, a link to his blog on his company website comes up first.  Yes, he thinks he's the most popular Jared Turner in the world.  What can I say, I live with the greatest! :)

My Awesome Husband

This weekend, Jared worked very long hours because the races were in Charlotte.  In fact, his day yesterday was so long that he started working around 11:00 am and didn't finish until around 6:00 am this morning.  When he got home and came to bed, we laid there talking about his day and reminiscing about how there were so many times those last couple of months we lived in Blacksburg where we would we talk about our days at odd hours of the night because we rarely saw each other (it still makes me shudder).  Anyway, before we knew it, it was almost 6:45, which is typically the time we get up to go to church.  Instead of choosing to skip church and sleep, he got ready for church and went to service with me.  He had been awake for well over 24 hours before he finally got to sleep.  I am so thankful he loves the Lord and loves our church.  He totally lives up to his name...Mr. Wonderful!!! :)

Kept

Last Sunday our pastor spoke about being "kept" by the Power of God.  It was an amazing, in-depth sermon about God's love and awesome willingness to keep us from the worst of the forces of evil in this world.  Jared and I walked out of the service in complete amazement of God.  Little did we know that the sermon would play over and over again in our minds this week. 

It's been a tough week - the state of the economy is scary and it seems like we've had to deal with it in a weird way...Charlotte and the surrounding areas literally ran out of gas.  I can't begin to explain the unnerving feeling that I experienced this week as I witnessed lines that literally were 60 + cars long waiting to get gas at the only gas station in that area of the city that had any gas and the frustration of dealing with two cars that are on empty and knowing we can't get gas because none of the eight or nine gas stations in the area have any.  I know that people all over the nation are dealing with far worse.  In the grand scheme of things, this really isn't a huge deal. However, this week, it feels like a big deal.  The wonderful news is that in the midst of it all, God cares.  I've never been one to forget God when things are going well.  I recognize all good things come from God and that I am incredibly blessed.  To be honest, (and more open than I am usually willing to be on a blog), I struggle more with knowing God has a great plan for our lives when times are tough.  Wednesday night the pressure became too much for me to handle and I got upset...very upset.  I felt more scared at that moment than I have in a long time.  I tossed and turned a large portion of the night, but somewhere during that time, God spoke to me...or perhaps I finally listened.  Scriptures, last Sunday's sermon and the following song came to my mind:

I have a Maker,

He formed my heart

And before even time began

My life was in His hands

He knows my name

He knows my every thought

He sees each tear that falls 

And hears me when I call

I have a Father

He calls me His own

And He'll never leave me

No matter where I go

He knows my name

He knows my every thought

He sees each tear that falls

And hears me when I call

That's such an incredible reminder of God's grace.  We have an assurance that God will not forsake us...times may get tougher and the economy may crumble before our eyes, but Psalm 139:17 & 18 says, "How precious also are your thoughts to me, O God!  How great is the sum of them!  If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand!"  God thinks wonderful thoughts about us and thinks about us ALL the time!   Think about it, His thoughts about each of us are more in number than every single grain of sand on the earth...can you even imagine how many grains of sand there are?  Never feel like you've been forgotten for even a moment...He loves us too much! :)

And, yes, regardless of the gas shortage...we do still love Charlotte and our lives! :)

We hope all is well with everyone and that you are enjoying the beginning of the fall season! Be sure to watch a Hokie football game sometime this season! :)

Fall is almost here!

When I was growing up, my Mom always made a big deal about it being the start of another month.  It's sort-of carried over and I find myself saying, "Happy (name of the month)" every first.  So, "Happy September!" and "Happy Labor Day!" :)

We had a great weekend, even though the Hokies lost.  They deserved to lose because they played terribly...hopefully they'll get better this season or I'm not sure my wonderful husband will survive.  He actually handled this loss with grace...thankfully he's not the type to get depressed for the rest of the day when his team loses! 

I have lots of pictures that I need to post...hopefully I will do that soon.  Until that time, I will leave you with a cool quote I saw in a store in Lynchburg a few weeks ago that I absolutely love and can't stop thinking about...

"True love is when you can't fall asleep because reality is better than your dreams." - Dr. Seuss

I hope all of you are well!  Have a great week! :)

Life :)

Life is good and busy.  :)  We are still loving it here (and so thankful for that!). :)

Jared and I escaped for a few days and went to the beach! :) It was such a relaxing and fun vacation! We had a blast! :)  

Two weekends ago both of Jared's grandmothers were able to see our apartment and the two of them and Jared's mom camped out in our apartment...and were quite troopers considering a pipe in our air conditioner broke and we couldn't run it much and a large portion of our living room floor was soaked for TWO days until "emergency" maintenance could fix it on Monday morning...urgh.

This past weekend my sister came and stayed with me while Jared was in Bristol covering the race.  Brandy and I acted like typical tourists...took photos of buildings and sculptures downtown, visited the Visitor's Center to get a map of Charlotte and so on.  It was a TON of fun roaming the streets of downtown Charlotte...I don't think I'll ever get tired of it! 

This coming weekend we are looking so forward to seeing lots of orange and maroon as Tech fans come into town for the game against Eastern Carolina!  We REALLY miss seeing Virginia Tech stuff in every store we go into!  Seriously...you should see our reactions when we see someone with a Virginia Tech shirt on...we get a bit excited...picture a nerd winning a chess match...yup, we kind-a act like that.  :)

As always, enjoy your week! :)

Gas Prices and Other Stuff

I felt semi-intellectual today while discussing the recent drop in gas prices with my sister, Brandy. I was telling her my theory about the gas prices going down because a lot of people in China (at least in the Beijing area) have been prohibited from driving until the Olympics are over. So, since there are fewer people driving and less demand in China, it's helping our economy. Not a bad theory and perhaps if I looked online, I could find a few people who have the same idea. However, after hearing me out, Brandy mentioned words like "speculators" (big investor gurus) and some other highly technical things and I realized that I will never quite be as wise as her. But I'll also never be older than her...so I suppose it's fair. :)

In other news...

I went to Lynchburg this past weekend to spend some time with my wonderful family! :) It was so nice to be there especially considering I hadn't been home since Mother's Day. As seems to be the case quite often, Jared was not able to come because of his work schedule...however, we are leaving town Saturday morning and won't be back until Wednesday night! It will be a short, but fabulous beach vacation and we will have 5 whole days together!!! :)

I volunteered last night at a place that provides clothes - free of charge - to people who have very little incomes and/or are homeless. I sorted clothes, straightened the "store" and did a couple of other things while I was there. I worked with about 10 other volunteers and it was a lot of fun and very rewarding. There's something about volunteering that's amazing...for a couple of hours I get my mind off of myself, work, etc. and I am reminded that there are people in our community that really need far more support from those around them. I am so blessed and I am always aware of that...but volunteering always makes me step back and count my blessings even more.

Enough about me...my amazing honey is doing great! He is working hard and really enjoys it! He was able to be a "bachelor" this weekend and hung out with one his friends from Tech. They ate a bunch of pizza and talked sports...I am sure he enjoyed that conversation much more than the "How should we decorate the house?" conversations I sucker him into having far too often! :)

Anyway...we miss all of you and hope you're doing well!!!

Sports Illusatrated

Jared wrote an article this week that was picked up by Sports Illustrated and posted on their website. If Jared keeps it up, in a few years we could be saying goodbye to Charlotte and hello to New York City! :)

Frogs, Santa, Etc.

So, my sister told me yesterday that if I don't update this thing more, people will stop reading (and I know there are so many of you who read this thing...ha!)  Anyway, she has a point. We started this blog to keep people posted and to kind-of have a record of some of the things that happen to us, etc. and we have been a bit negligent about updating. 

So here are some recent events (at least some of the ones I can think of right now):

1. We had ANOTHER frog incident in our apartment.  This one jumped in through the back door.  He was smaller than the first frog and though he hopped behind our couch, I was amazed at how easily he hopped back out...well, Jared helped him a little bit.  My fearless Frog Catcher. :)  Actually, this incident was far less eventful than the first time.  We even managed not to to call my parents for help. :)

2.  We went to a wedding outside of Greensboro a couple of weekends ago.  One of Jared's college roommates got married.  The wedding was beautiful. The couple was happy.  It was blissful.  Except, of course, my car broke down on the way back and we had to leave it in the middle of Nowhere, North Carolina at midnight to get fixed.  Thankfully, due to a schedule conflict, Jared and I drove separately, and so we had a way home.  Hopefully this will be the last of our car issues for a while. 

3.  We ended up staying at this beautiful hotel the night before the wedding.  Much to our surprise, there was a Santa Claus convention at our hotel!  We walked into the lobby and there were all of these Santa and Mrs. Clauses all over the place!  They were so happy!  I told Jared we should travel the Santa circuit when we retire...he's not as convinced as I am...of course watching Christmas movies in July probably isn't helping! :)

4.  Rich and Jenn (some friends from Lynchburg) came this past weekend and we had a great time!!  It was so nice to see people from home!  Friday we spent some time downtown (or uptown as they call it here) and Saturday Jenn and I shopped while Rich and Jared entertained themselves. :)  

5.  Jared has started inserting random political phrases into every day conversations (the election cannot get here soon enough!).  He finds it particularly comical to do this when I ask a question like, "What do you want for dinner?" To which he'll answer, "What about how Michelle Obama said America's a downright mean country?" (Quoting Hannity, of course) Not really something you'll probably find interesting, but I felt like blogging about it! :)

6. Speaking of things that you might not find interesting, Jared and I saw cows tonight! :)  We haven't seen cows since we were in Virginia last! :) I could tell I was missing home when I whipped my cell phone out to take a picture.  

7.  Volunteering is going great.  Church is awesome (our Pastor, the choir/musicians and all of the people who attend there are amazing!).  Our class at church is a lot of fun.  Our jobs are going good.  We love it here and couldn't be happier.  I couldn't help but smile the other night when I overheard Jared tell someone that the past five months have been some of the happiest of our lives.  It's true.  We are so blessed!

We hope all of you have been doing well!  Enjoy your weekend!!! :)

Quick Update

Jared and I were able to spend the entire day together on Saturday. That was the first day since I started working that we were able to have the day to ourselves. His days off are Tuesdays and Wednesdays and mine are Saturdays and Sundays. We had a great day! It rained quite a bit, so we ended up just going to the mall and a few other stores. So nothing too exciting to report about our adventures...but to us it was a perfect day. :) Oh, and then we watched fireworks right outside of our apartment that night. The Whitewater Rafting Center is not far from our house and they had postponed their fireworks for the 4th (yup it rained that day too) until last night. Much to our surprise, we had an excellent view! :)

We hope that everyone had a great 4th and hope all of you have a great week!

It' been a while...

I recently realized that it's been forever since I blogged last! Things here have been going wonderfully wonderful (how's that for redundant?) :)

Our weeknights have been filling up between going to the gym, church, etc. but we love it! :) I attended an orientation session a couple weekends ago to start volunteering. I will be working with disabled children, homeless people, low-income families, etc. I start this Saturday and can't wait! I'm so excited to be giving back to this amazing community!

Work for both of us has been going good. Tomorrow's Friday, so that makes me happy!! :) For Jared, it's only his Tuesday...poor guy. :( At least he's able to work from home on Saturdays and a lot of Sundays...so that's nice.

Last weekend was great!! Some of my family, Jared's family and the Walkups (who we consider family...who says you have to be related to be family?) visited us. We had so much fun!!!! It was so nice to spend time with everyone. And, yes, I hated to see everyone go. I'm all for everyone moving to Charlotte...hint, hint. :)

I hope all of you are doing great Enjoy your weekend!! :)

HOT!!!!!!

So, this heat is a killer.  Usually I like really hot weather.  But today, I have had my fill.  First, sitting in traffic, in 100 degree weather, with a broken air conditioner, is a bit of a bummer.  Second, sitting in your apartment, with a broken air conditioner, is even worse.  Hopefully both will be fixed in the next day or two.  Until then, this hot heat is a nice reminder that it is summer.  I love summer, so I can't complain too much. :)  

Enjoy the weather...and wear sun screen! :)

Look beyond Obama's smooth talk

Hey guys. It's Jared, the less active blogger of the "Turner 2," making a rare but hopefully meaningful post. I felt compelled to write tonight after watching Barack Obama clinch the Democratic nomination for president of the United States.

Engaging and eloquent as the Illinois senator always manages to be, it's baffling to me that so many Americans can be so swayed by such empty rhetoric. I challenge anyone reading this post to pay extra attention the next time Obama appears behind a podium to give a campaign speech.

His words, electrifying as they can be, are so empty at the core. He says he wants to provide healthcare to more Americans but offers no specific way to go about it. He says he wants to unite people, yet his voting record in the U.S. Senate reflects little, if any, evidence of ever reaching across party lines. He bristles at the notion that he is unpatriotic yet sat in the pews of a church for 20 years and listened to a demagogue call America everything but a land of liberty and spew hatred toward those who believe differently. He claims to be tired of the "same old Washington politics" yet refused to denounce his divisive minister until it became politically expedient.

And for what it's worth, Obama's wife has said America is a mean country - the same country in which she has made millions of dollars, mothered two beautiful children and graduated from two of the most elite universities in the entire world!

Do you see the blatant hypocrisy here? Masked behind the smooth talk and the wide smile is a man who openly associates with unrepentant terrorists and has no regard for the protection of the unborn. He also has expressed a desire to meet with leaders of nations that harbor terrorists and want to wipe Israel off the map. It's time for the American people to see beyond the silly "change" buzzword and see the reality of a man who is unqualified and unprepared to inherit the oval office.

Before we go in that voting booth in November may we all remember that one tug of a lever or push of a button could impact the lives of future generations.

I'll be the first to acknowledge that no candidate is perfect. Even Mike Huckabee, the one candidate in this election whose positions come close to aligning with my own, has made gaffes along the way that make me scratch my head and question his preparedness to lead this nation.

But before jumping on the Obama bandwagon, I urge everyone to examine his shocking associations and leftist positions. You'll be surprised, and hopefully disturbed, by what you find.

.... On a lighter note, life is still great for Jennifer and I here in Charlotte. I'm so proud of how quickly Jennifer has adjusted to a new place and new job. In fact, she hasn't just adjusted - she's thrived. I realize a little more everyday how blessed I am to call her my wife. She's witty, hard-working and downright lovable. Oh, to be me :)

Politics

There were three politicians and a ton of commentators speaking on Fox News tonight. My favorite part of all of their comments was when they said, "Good night."

Don't get me wrong, politics intrigue me. They do not intrigue me as much as they do my husband. He gets almost giddy on primary nights and loves watching politcal shows. I am not going to discuss who I think should win the election. Most of you who know us know that Jared and I have strong convictions and opinions that play a huge part in how we vote. While I'm not particularly impressed with either candidate, I do plan to vote and already know who I am voting for.

I must say though, November cannot get here soon enough. I don't say that because I think we need a new president. I am simply tired of hearing about this election. I'm also ready for our country to be a bit more united...does it really matter if you are a Democrat or a Republican? I'm sure the child who is laying in bed hungry, the parents who are stressing over finances, the man sleeping in the park, and the soldier fighting in Iraq would rather you show compassion than hold a sign in a political rally.

That's just my humble opinion. Stepping off my soapbox now. :)

Check out reason #5...we want you to come!!!

More reasons why we love Charlotte:

1. You never know what to expect. Jared and I were getting ready to drive onto the interstate when a random group of college-aged guys stuck their head out of the car window and yelled, "Wewwwwwwww!" I think they were just trying to get funny reactions. It took us back to the nights before a football game in Blacksburg where we would literally hear people shouting "Wewww!" all night. It made us want to yell ,"Go Hokies."

2. The Billy Graham Library. It is absolutely a complete treasure. We only got to spend 45 minutes in it but we definitely plan on going back. It's amazing and a must see for anyone. It's free, too...which speaks volumes about the mission of this ministry.

3. Have I mentioned our church? OK, I know I have, but it's worth repeating. :) We love it and are incredibly blessed to have found it! :)

4. The skyline. There is one road that you can go on and see the skyline in all of it's splendor. It's so great!!! Another must see.

5. The Hokies are playing their first football game here in September. We are planning on getting a bunch of people together, go to the game, and then back to our place for a cook-out (that is if we get a grill this summer!). If you want to come, let us know! The more the merrier :)

My husband thinks I'm hilarious

Jared was laughing his head off tonight at something I said and he thought I should post it here for all the world to see.

We were watching the news (which is always a bit depressing) and there was a blurb about how the rising cost of corn is causing the price of movie popcorn and tickets to go up.  I looked at Jared and said, "Pretty soon all anyone will be able to afford to do is to come home from work and sit around and stare at each other."  

For some reason he thought that was the funniest thing ever.  Perhaps it was the way I said it, or the look on my face...he said I should share, so being the submissive wife that I am, I thought I would.  I know, it's not as funny to all of you as it was to him.

Three more days to the weekend...yay! :) 

3-year Anniversary

Jared and I celebrated our 3-year anniversary this past Wednesday. I can't believe how fast time has gone! I hope the next three years don't go by this fast! Jared spoiled me greatly (as if you guys didn't know that he would!) and it was an awesome day! I don't need an anniversary to realize how blessed I am...Jared is absolutely, without a doubt, the most wonderful, caring, sweetest husband in the world! :) Everyday is a fantastic adventure! Thank you, Jared, for the respect, joy and love that you give me every single day. I love you with every ounce of my being!!!

Have a blessed week!

Traffic

Today was a bad traffic day! This morning the people one the radio spent several minutes telling people about all the traffic delays in the area. While I was sitting in traffic, I laughed for about five minutes when I heard that there was a delay on one of the roads because someone stole a manhole cover. Not sure why someone would do that, but it was not something you would expect to hear. It was so random...it definitely added humor to my morning. :)

Did you know that Relocate America has listed Charlotte as the #1 city to live in? Not surprising considering it is only the greatest place ever (even in the traffic). I learned that tidbit this morning on the radio, too. :)

Hope you all have a great week!

Life in the fast lane

Jared came home tonight and said, "Today was a dream come true!" He then hugged me and said, "Of course, every day's a dream come true with you!"  Isn't that sweet?!?! :)  I love him!!! :)

Anyway, his excitement about the day was because he was able to go to some test day or practice day or something at Lowe's Motor Speedway. He's always dreamed of covering a race there, so getting to work at the track today made his day.  He had a blast and broke a story that  is on the website and will be in the next issue of the magazine.  The next two weekends he will be covering races there, so I'm sure he'll have many more dreams come true in the next few days! :) Oh and this past weekend he went to Darlington, SC for the race and he got to ride in a pace car (he went about 120mph!!!) He loved it!  I'm not a fan of racing, but I would LOVE to do that!! :) I told him that since he did that, I get to go skydiving.  I don't think he's convinced yet. 

So, while Jared was racing around the track, I was spending time in Lynchburg! It was great to spend time with my family and some friends this weekend, and see some of you at TOL on Sunday.  I was a little sadder leaving this time because I'm not really sure when I will be back to Lynchburg.  I'm sure it will be sometime in late June or early July, but it's always nice when I know an exact date.  Oh well, in the mean time I will just enjoy Charlotte some more! :)

Things here are going wonderful!  As I'm sure you can tell from above, Jared loves his job.  I'm enjoying mine and am actually learning some new tasks tomorrow!  I love having more responsibility! :)  

That's pretty much our lives in a nutshell for the last few days.  Hope everyone has a great rest of the week!!!

Prayer Request

I hope everyone is having beautiful, sunny weather now!  We are and are LOVING it!  The temperature today was absolutely perfect and the sky was so blue.  God was definitely smiling on Charlotte today! :)

Tonight, Jared and I had our "date night" for the week because he leaves tomorrow for the race in SC and will be gone until Sunday.  We had some shopping to do, so we grabbed dinner at Moe's.  While we were in line, a woman in front of us started talking about how her husband had recently been killed in a car accident.  The woman was probably in her late 30's at the most. It has really weighed heavy on our hearts tonight.  Here we are, sad that we can't enjoy each other's company for a few days, and this poor woman has lost her love.  We don't know her name, but God does...please pray that God will comfort her.

We hope that all of the moms who read our blog have the greatest Mother's Day yet!!!  We are a bit bummed that Jared (due to his work schedule) will not be able to share in the festivities with his mom, but at least his parents will be here some the next weekend. :)

And to our moms...we love you both!  Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do for us.  You make our world a brighter place!!!!!

Charlotte is AMAZING!!!

Four more reasons why we love living in Charlotte:

1.  So, I know that I am not the most knowledgeable when it comes to politics, but since my wonderful husband insists on watching Fox News almost every night and almost hyperventilates if he misses Sean Hannity's talkshow, I sort-of know that John McCain is the Republican presidential candidate. :) Needless to say, when Jared and I saw a small group of people (and by small, I mean like 5 people) standing on the side of the road holding signs and yelling, "Vote Ron Paul for President," we couldn't help but laugh. I think that's one of the cool things about living in this area...there is always some political event of sorts going on. Obama and Hillary have both visited this area more than once in the last month or two and as one radio show host said this week, "It's always interesting when the circus (aka...the campaign people) come to town."

2. Friday night we drove down a road about 10 minutes away from our house and discovered a wonderful park/boat access area and another lake! :) It is so peaceful and beautiful there!! I have a feeling we will be frequenting that spot a lot! 

3.  We have baby birds!! The eggs in the nest right outside of our back door hatched sometime this week and Saturday we discovered that there are four baby birds in the nest!  They are so cute!!!  I actually saw the mama bird feed one of them yesterday...it was a beautiful sight!

4.  We think we found a church!!!  We went to this church today that is absolutely amazing!! We were so blessed and walked out of the church quite refreshed. The church is huge!  We went to the 8:30 service and there were probably 1,000 or more people there...it was packed!!!  We are going to try to get involved in a class or small group so that we can get to know some people. 

Things here are going well and we are preparing for another busy week at work.  Jared is leaving on Thursday to go to Darlington, SC for the weekend (for the race). It's always bittersweet when he goes to a race...it's great because he loves going, but it's sad because we are apart.

Anyway, we hope everyone has a blessed week!

Tomorrow is FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :) :)

I'm sure you've all heard the saying, "Sometimes you're the windshield and sometimes you're the bug." I felt like the poor bug at work today. I was handed a project that had turned into a mess before I ever received it and I got to have the fun job of making people in China, Mexico and Ohio mad. Me, the one who hates conflict, managed to make people irate globally today. Oh well. Nothing major...just an aggrivating day. Everyone seems ok now and I'm praying for a better day tomorrow. At least my coworker who handed me this project and later smugly said, "I went ahead and gave this to you because I knew it would be difficult to deal with" won't be there tomorrow, or for the next two weeks. Good. :)

As for the rest of life...it remains amazing! :) We cannot say it enough...God is so good!

Oh, and in keeping with our odd nature theme we have going on here...I almost ran over a duck on my way to work the other day. Most people almost hit squirrels or deer, but I somehow manage to just barely miss hitting Daffy less than a mile away from my work (and, as far as I know, there is not a lake, pond, or any body of water that would be inviting to a duck around that area!)

Have a great Friday and weekend!!

Can't think of a creative title...

First and foremost, though he doesn't read my blog, I want to wish my awesome brother a very happy birthday...there ain't no other like my brother!!! ;) (Ashley, you can tell him I posted it on my blog!) :)

Just thought I'd give a quick update. Life is good in the Turner household! This week we went to my first NBA game (Jared went to one when he was 8). We went and saw the Charlotte Bobcats play the Philadelphia 76ers (haha....yeah, definitely not the most popular teams!). But it was fun and I can say that I've been there and done that. There were so many parents with children there, so I'm sure that I'll make it to at least one game with Jared and our children some day. :) We also went to Lake Norman (about 20 minutes away from us) and enjoyed a dinner at a lakeside restaurant last night. We sat outside on the deck that overlooks the lake...it was beautiful and romantic...we loved it! :)

We were both a little sad on the day of the one year anniversary of the VT tragedy. We felt like we should have been in Blacksburg on that day, and yet, we were both a little grateful we weren't there. It was a strange feeling. Our thoughts were definitely in the mountains of Virginia on Wednesday though.

Work is still going well for both of us. Both of our supervisors are on vacation this week, which is nice. We like them both, but it's always nice to have a little bit less pressure at work. :) Jared is going to the races THREE weekends in May (thankfully two weekends he will be at the track in Charlotte!), but we're definitely not going to see each other much on the weekends. So, for all of you who have said, "We'd love to come and visit you and go shopping, etc." May will definitely be a good month for you to come!! Though I'm bummed that I won't get to see my man much on the weekends in May, it's a great opportunity for Jared and I'm so proud of him. :) His schedule is still so much better here than it was the last couple of months in Blacksburg...we are so thankful that God has blessed us so much!

We hope everyone has a great week! I am already counting down the days to the weekend and seeing some of you!!! :) :) I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!! :) :)

Wiper Woes

There is absolutely never a dull moment in the Turner household. Today was no exception. After a weekend excursion to Lynchburg to celebrate my sister, brother and niece's birthdays (which was great fun by the way), I returned home this afternoon to spend some time with my awesome husband (who couldn't come to Lynchburg because he had to work yesterday and part of today....boo!). We decided to go exploring and discovered that the SC state line is less than five minutes away from my work. For some reason I think that is interesting. :) Anyway, we were enjoying our drive and it started raining. The rain was not going to deter us from having fun, so we kept laughing and goofing off until the driver side windshield wiper just quit working! We were able to pull into a parking lot and inspected the wiper to see what the problem was. We are definitely not mechanics but managed to quickly realize that it must be a failed wiper motor (if there is such a thing). After waiting out one storm and pulling into another parking lot to wait out another storm, we finally made it home! Oh and while in the second parking lot, we noticed a beautiful rainbow in the sky! It was so bright and pretty! :)

I just asked Jared if there was anything he wanted to add to the blog and he simply said, "Go Hokies!" Which is code for "Tell everyone hi for me!" :) My man of many words. :)

Everyone enjoy your week!! :)

Happy Birthday Brandy!

Happy Birthday Brandy!!! :) We love you!!!

Thank you for being the best sister ever!!!

Enjoy your day!!!!!

My brilliance amazes me (haha)

Me: (while getting ready to head to the gym tonight)..."Too bad that we have to ride separately to the gym."
Jared: "Why do we have to do that?"
Me: "Because we both have to use the tags on our keyrings to get in."
Jared: .....completely silent.....
Me: (about a minute later , in my "lightbulb moment" tone)..."Oh...we can ride together! I'll just bring my keys, too!"

Enough said. :)

Isn't frog hunting called "gigging" or something?

Saturday night, Jared and I went frog hunting. Before the question, "How can they possibly move to the city and become redneck?" lingers in your mind too long, I will quickly explain. We have struggled quite a bit with cell phone reception in our apartment. So, Saturday night my Mr. Wonderful walked outside to talk to on the phone. When he came back in, a gross looking, brown creature (otherwise known as a frog) jumped in with him. Of course, we didn't realize it right away, but when we were getting ready to head to bed, Jared suddenly said, "Is that frog?" as he pointed to the grimy thing on our dining room floor. We walked a little closer, which made the thing jump - in turn making me jump. Then the frog jumped into our kitchen (yuck, yuck, yuck!). I ran to the closet and got a broom (not sure why I chose to do that) and proceeded to climb on the chair, and then onto the bar that separates our kitchen from our dining room. While kneeling on the bar, I used the broom to point to the frog, so that Jared would know exactly where it was at. After a few minutes of me screaming every time the frog moved and Jared looking completely confused, I suggested that we call someone. I quickly ran down the list of who we could call, and decided Bill (my step-dad) would be our best bet. He grew up in Franklin County, VA so I was sure he had experience in catching frogs. Thankfully, Bill was up and was quite helpful. I put him on speaker phone and he instructed us to get a towel - I instructed Jared to make sure it wasn't a good towel - and then Bill told us to throw it on the frog. The little frog was having nothing of it and jumped behind the fridge. I screamed some more, Jared got mad at the frog, Bill woke mom up, and the two of them proceeded to laugh at the commotion going on four hours away from them (and yes, Bill put their phone on speaker, too!). Finally Jared used the broom to get the thing away from the fridge and by throwing two towels on the frog, we managed to get it cornered! Then we were like, "Now what do we do?" Mom and Bill went into hysterics laughing so hard, but managed to tell us to pick up the frog. So after a moment of hesitation, Jared picked up the two towels with the frog inside of it and ran outside. Though the thing landed with a thud, he did manage to jump away. I was so proud of my frog-hunter-warrior :) and couldn't help but laugh when he said, "That was one of my finest moments!" Other than having to stay up a little bit later to mop the kitchen floor (I didn't want frog germs all over the place), Jared and I were able to get a good night's sleep, knowing that the only critters in our apartment were us (at least we hope!). Of course, now were wondering what we are going to do when we have children...we can't even take care of ourselves without freaking out! :) Anyway, thanks Mom and Bill for your guidance while we were in our completely clueless state of minds! We're glad we could provide you two with some entertainment!! :) Love you both!

Other than the frog incident, all is well in our world. In fact, all is more than well...it's very well! :) Jared is enjoying his job and I am enjoying mine. My supervisor is very nice and has already placed a ton of responsibility on me, which makes me realize that he has a lot of confidence in my ability to get the job done! Jared had a ton of fun at the races in Martinsville, and his boss is planning on sending him to more. He is definitely wowing his supervisors. :)

We pray that all is well for all of you! Enjoy your week!!!

Thoughts

Thought 1.) Saturday my family and I were in the back yard of my apartment. I glanced up (or maybe someone else noticed it first...can't really remember) and saw a nest perched right on the bottom of the deck of the apartment upstairs...which is right outside our back door. I freaked out thinking for sure a wasp - or something worse - had built a nest. All I wanted to do was have Bill get rid of it. It only took a couple glances from Bill for him to realize that it was a bird's nest. Suddenly, the nest turned into a gem from God. Every day when I wake up, when I get home from work, and before I go to bed, I check on the nest. Several times I've watched the nest's owner proudly sit on her eggs...and I love it; it brings me so much joy and once again leaves me in awe of one of God's creations. So, the next time you are faced with something that looks scary, step back and take a second look....it may actually be a blessing from God.

Thought 2.) When I flew out of Ohio Friday, the weather was terrible. The sky had pretty much been cloudy and dreary almost the whole time I was there. No more than ten minutes after the plane took off, we were above the clouds and the sky was blue and sunny. Whenever you feel like you are in a storm (i.e. a huge trial) and the clouds are practically smothering you, just remember that above those clouds is a warm, friendly, blue sky.

Thought 3.) There is a 4-year-old named Coleman who has cancer (and it's pretty severe). At some of his weakest, most vulnerable moments his parents asked for two things: 1. For people to pray hard for Coleman and 2. for people to do random acts of kindness for other's in honor of Coleman. Think of Coleman, do a random act of kindness (or two) and smile knowing that there are parents in this world who have every reason to be upset with life and instead are thinking of others.

Thought 4.) My supervisor moved to Charlotte last week while his wife stayed in Ohio until May. Every morning at work, he calls her and speaks with her briefly. He has been married for over 25 years and speaks to her so lovingly...and giggles with her like they're teenagers. I hope Jared and I are like that when we have been married that long. For some reason, I think we will be. :)

Thought 5.) Animal Foundation commercials irritate me. Why are people trying so hard to get people to donate to animals when there are people trying to figure out how to provide dinner for their family? I love animals, but I love people more. The next time I see an animal foundation commercial, I think I'm going to make a note to buy some food for the local food bank.

Thought 6.) I'm vain. I'm afraid of getting wrinkles. Actually, I'm terrified of them. I study my face for a few minutes each day to see if wrinkles are developing. I've already researched botox injections just in case I feel I need to get them at some point. How can someone who cares about the well-being of others so much be so vain? Maybe the next time I study my face, I'll just smile and make a note to buy some food for the local food bank.

Thought 7.) My wonderful husband is sitting beside me. I always say I never have enough time with him. I think it's time to get off of here and spend time with him.

Goodnight and God Bless.

Easter/Ohio/Family/Jared/Etc. :)

Hello Everyone!

The past week or so have been busy! Jared and I visited Lynchburg/Spout Spring the Saturday night and Sunday of Easter weekend. We loved being able to visit with our families and some of our friends!!! For those of you we missed...we really hope to see you soon! On the way home Sunday night, we were driving on 460 West and Jared suddenly realized we were driving to Blacksburg and not to Charlotte! We probably would have drove to Roanoke before it had registered with me! :)

On Monday I flew out to Ohio for a week of training. The training went really well, but I really missed Jared and our apartment! I think I'm going to like my job a lot. I am quite nervous about actually going to my office in Charlotte tomorrow. I think I am more nervous about dealing with rush-hour traffic! :) I have to be to work at 8:00 am and am not really sure what tim to leave to be sure that I get there on time. So I am going to leave super early just to be safe on the safe side. Please also pray, because right before I left Ohio, I was told that my supervisor can be tough and to "tread lightly." I know that God has it all under control and all I can do is my best and represent myself in a friendly and professional manner...but it does make me nervous. Why would someone tell me that? It certainly makes a person have preconceived ideas of what someone's character is like. For all I know, he'll be great all the time. So, I'm not giving it too much thought, but again, it makes me a bit nervous.

This weekend, my parents and sister came to visit me!!! I took them all over Charlotte and showed them all sorts of things. They were incredibly patient with me as I tried to take them to places that I "thought" I knew I how to get to. We finally wound up at Concord Mills last night and spent a few hours browsing/shopping. Bill LOVED the Bass Pro Shop and he and Mom spent an hour and a half in there!! :) Mom and Brandy also helped me decorate and add color to our living room and Bill hung up all of my pictures! :) The living room looks so bright and wonderful now! I ADORE IT! :)

Speaking of things that I adore, I miss Jared terribly!! :( He will not be home until tomorrow afternoon. I am always keenly aware that I have an incredible relationship with my amazing husband, but it's times like these that I completely understand that we truly are not two...we are one. There has been a huge part of me missing all week. I love that God chose me to be Jared's wife. :) I also love that I am going to see him tomorrow after work!!!! :)

I hope all of you have a great week!! :)

More Fun

Jared had today off so we went to a few small towns around the Charlotte area. We stumbled across a treasure trove called Birkdale Village in Huntersville. It is an amazing area to enjoy the sunny weather, mingle with fellow Charlotonians (is that a word?), browse shops, and have a ton of fun! After spending about three hours there, we went to a park a few miles away and watched the sun set on Lake Norman. We also realized that by taking back roads, we can get to this place in about 20-25 minutes (provided we don't get delayed by a lengthy train that goes right through the middle of our town!).

As for my job, my first day will be this coming Monday! I will be flying out Monday morning to Canton, Ohio for a week of training and will fly back to Charlotte on Friday evening. Jared has to leave Thursday for race weekend in Martinsville and will not be returning until Monday afternoon. Therefore, we will not see each other for an entire week! :( That's the longest we've been away from each other since before we were married! We're both a bit bummed about that, but we are so excited for the opportunities that God is giving us that we can't stay bummed for too long! :)

Jared has to work tomorrow until 6pm, and then we will be headed to Lynchburg!!! :) I am so excited!!

We hope everyone has a blessed Easter!! Remember what it's all about: "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said..." - Matthew 28:6

Ice Cream Truck!

I'll update tomorrow or Tuesday to let you know what's going on about my job. I just had to share an interesting tidbit with everyone...after church today, Jared and I pulled into our apartment complex and there was an ice-cream truck driving through the complex! It was a real, certified ice-cream truck with the music playing and all. :) We live in such a quaint place! :) And, no, it doesn't take much to get Jared and me excited.

Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend!!!

Happy Day!

I got a job! Praise God! :) I am so excited and can't wait to give more details. However, I will not get the offer letter until tomorrow or Monday, so I'll give you more information once I formally accept the position and know all the details. I also got offered another position today, but am going to decline. It just isn't the ideal position for me.

Thank you all for the prayers and encouragement throughout this time. Thank you to those of you who prayed specifically for Jared...he had to put up with my constant worrying and anxiousness and was so sweet and encouraging throughout it all! :)

Sorry that my last blog was quite glum...sometimes life can be hard and it's easy to get overwhelmed and frustrated. I knew all along God was going to help me get a great job and He did! He never lets us down. And now I am feeling just like Billy Graham when he said, "I'm just a spectator standing aside and admiring God at work."

More to come in a couple days... :)

A brief vent

Anyone reading this thing gets to hear (or I guess read) me vent for a moment: I don't like this job search process one bit. I'm completely frustrated. I am 28 years old and career wise have nothing to show for it. :( I know that a person's career doesn't entirely define who they are, but I am a hard, dependable worker and I have a lot to offer a company. I've been on nine interviews (not counting phone interviews) and still don't have a job. Ugh. I'm beginning to think there's something wrong with me.

I miss my old job and miss socializing with my coworkers. :( For any former coworkers reading this...you guys were the greatest.

Post from Jared

It's been a couple weeks since I last posted and life continues to deal us some exciting and insanely interesting curves. It's a bit of an adjustment working all weekend, every weekend but who can complain when you're doing something you love? Of course, when that cuts into spending time with the ONE you love, it does make make one more cognizant of the sacrifices involved in covering NASCAR (or just about any sport for that matter) even if it's mostly from an office cubicle in uptown Charlotte. As would probably be true of any new job worth its salt, it seems that mountains of new information are being hurled my way at a sometimes intimidating rate. The biggest challenge is adapting to the technologically-intense nature of the work. As a self-professed technophobe, I've never considered computer tasks my strength. It's fair to say it's a bit out of my comfort zone. Sometimes you'd never know I graduated from the greatest university in the world for all things technology (heck, everything really), Virginia TECH. But on a brighter note, I am getting to write enough to pretty much quench my thirst. Another month on a copy desk, and I would have been as dried up as a carcass. Jennifer has done incredible things here around the apartment, which for the present time still feels exceptionally spacious. She has another interview tomorrow. Please pray that God gives her a good job in a timely manner. I've found that having a job is an even more essential part of her fabric and self-worth than I ever knew, even though her diligence and desire to climb the corporate ladder was obvious from Day No. 1.

Adventures in Charlotte...

Jared was off on Wednesday so we decided to go to downtown Charlotte and see what we could find. We had a great time! We went to some shops, saw a lot of interesting statues and water fountains, visited the Chamber of Commerce (where we got a ton of brochures on stuff to do around the area!), went to the Bobcats Arena (boring for me...not so boring for Jared), and basically just had a blast together! I have attached a few pictures of our adventure. These were taken with my cell phone because I forgot my camera...again!


This is the view from Jared's work parking lot.


Interesting pieces of art...notice that some of the bricks are maroon and orange. Finding those bricks was like finding a little piece of Hokie heaven! :)


We took this picture because there was some strange man walking behind us and we wanted to get away from him. Don't worry, moms...we are being safe! :)

When we left downtown we went back to Mt. Holly and started taking random roads to see what we could find. And we found this...

The only mountain (though most would consider it a hill) that we have seen since we moved here! Thanks to an error with our GPS device, not only did we see the mountain, we ended up going up most of it. :)

The exciting news of the week...we found a broadway show to go to here in May! I can't wait! Jared's excited because we are going to a Bobcats game in April (most likely). We also have plans to tour museums, a couple historical sites, and take a dinner cruise on Lake Norman in the next couple (or few) months. :)

We are loving the weather here! It's been beautiful for the most part. We are also loving spending more time together. After dinner last night we went on a walk around our complex. It was so nice just laughing and enjoying each other's company. I love that man! :)

Jared is working really hard in his new position and is enjoying it. I am still going on interviews and am praying to have a job soon. I am a bit discouraged because I thought I would have a job by now. The interviews I had this week went wonderful. One has to do a background check before moving forward (which will hopefully be back by Monday) and another company is not making a decision until April 1st. If I have to wait until April 1st to get a job, I may as well check myself into the insane asylum now! I cannot stand to be by myself all day. Even though I'm a bit down about the job thing, I still thank God every day for moving us here. I know He knows what He's doing. :)

Everyone enjoy your weekend! :)

Lots going on

Well, we have been here a week and are adjusting to life in the city quite nicely. My interviews are going well. I have three companies interested in interviewing me next week. All three jobs have various aspects that I would really like. It’s amazing how things are falling into place and once I secure a job, I’ll give more details!

As always, God has been moving in many ways. The other day – in the midst of my agonizing over not having a job – Jared and I saw a church sign that simply said, “Where God guides, He provides.” While I have heard this saying before, and have even said it before, I believe it was God’s polite way of telling me, “Calm down and trust me. Let me do my job; I haven’t failed you this far.” I would like to say that since that moment I have been completely calm, but I am human and fail in some way every day. However, as a whole, I have been much calmer. :) We have been worrying about not having a sub-leaser for our apartment in Blacksburg and just found out that that issue has also worked out! God also helped with what most of us would deem a minor detail: Wednesday night Jared and I were talking about how we were overwhelmed by how much there is to do around here and didn’t even know where to start. The next morning, I opened up my email and had an email from a guy with one of the staffing agencies. It basically said that he knew this city could be overwhelming and offered suggestions on places to visit and avoid in the area. It was very informative and just another way God showed he cares about everything in our lives.

Jared is enjoying his job. Check out http://www.scenedaily.com/ to view some of his work. He really likes his coworkers and I think this job is a great fit for him. I am so proud of him and am so glad to have him home at night!

Jared and I are LOVING exploring!! The other night we drove on I—85 just to view the skyline, which is beautiful. We then decided to take an exit so that we could turn around. We quickly learned to NEVER take that exit at night again. There were bars on the convenient store windows, and it was just not a good area to be in. While my Mr. Wonderful remained calmed, I freaked out until we got back on the interstate, and then I laughed. It’s just like us to find ourselves in those situations.

Speaking of weird situations, yesterday we went to Concord Mills! I LOVE that place! After spending a few hours out and about, Jared decided that he didn’t want the night to end so we drove to downtown Belmont (which is like downtown Mayberry…if it really existed). The downtown area was packed with people…there was a barbershop quartet (literally) in the barbershop playing music and the entire area just seemed alive. We decided to find a place to park, but got a little lost in the process. Suddenly, Barney Fife (well…someone like Barney Fife) pulled us over. Jared wasn’t speeding and didn’t have a taillight out. Instead the guy pulled us over to see where we were coming from and to tell us that he thought we might be lost because he noticed Jared was driving like he was lost.?.? Anyway, at least we know the area we chose to live in is safe and secure and being protected by some of North Carolina’s finest. :)

Update from Jared

Hello, to those who may be reading about our adventures since departing Saturday for the grand ol’ — actually “Queen” — city of Charlotte, N.C. Our new apartment here in nearby Mt. Holly is cozy, roomy and just plain dandy. Though I must admit it’s difficult at times to find time to completely unpack since the numerous errands that come with uprooting are still many, we are settling nicely into our new place — which feels like a castle compared to our apartment in Blacksburg. One of the perks of living here is that we have anything we could ever need it seems without even getting on the Interstate or going into downtown Charlotte. That being said, I still look forward to spending many days and nights with Jennifer exploring a city that is unarguably one of America’s finest. A couple things for anyone who is reading to pray about: We want to find a church that meets our needs and we want to immediately establish connections with 20 and 30-somethings of similar interests. During most of our stay in Blacksburg we lacked in both of these areas. In fact, it was only in our last two months there that we found a church that we felt completely comfortable and satisfied in. Ironically, just about the time that happened, God decided to move us. As for our jobs, Jennifer has amazed me with her ability to snag interviews seemingly at the speed of light. Please pray that God puts her right where he wants her and that He will give her a divine peace in the meantime. My job is going great, inasmuch as it is safe to make inferences from one day — actually less than half of one full day. It looks like I’m going to possibly have more opportunities than previously indicated to actually be out on the road and cover races. It’s going to be very refreshing, I believe, once I settle in enough to really be able to do some writing. I missed writing so much during my last two months at the Roanoke Times when I moved into a position concentrated mostly in copy editing. Well, I can hear my lovely bride singing in the background and that brings a smile to my face. It’s good to know that she, too, is completely at peace with our decision to head south. Until next time, God bless.

I hate goodbyes...

Sad. That’s how I’m feeling right now. I said goodbye to half of my coworkers today and will say goodbye to the rest of them tomorrow. It’s hard to believe that just over three years ago I walked into that place and thought to myself, “I’ll be here for 6 months tops.” Ha. Today I realized that leaving my job is the hardest part of moving.

On to happier news. My job search is going really well! I believe I will have two interviews on Monday. I am really hoping that I get one of the positions. I don’t want to say too much about it right now, but one of the jobs would be amazing! We shall see what happens!

Only two more days till the big move!! Two more days till Jared and I turn the page and start a new chapter of our life. I can’t wait to start writing it!

What a difference a day makes!

Eight days ago, Jared and I were beyond frustration because our job schedules (and my school schedule) were completely clashing. We were only able to eat dinner together six nights the entire month of January. Anyone who knows us, knows that we love to spend time with each other, so to us, this was a huge deal. Seven days ago, we found out that Jared got his dream job in Charlotte - or at least the job that will position him for his dream job. I am so incredibly proud of him and excited for both of us as we start this new adventure! We have dreamed of moving to Charlotte, and to see that dream become a reality is amazing, but admittedly, it is a bit scary, too. When the fears come rolling into my head, I think about the way God has already worked in this situation and I begin to feel better. Jared also helps calm my fears...I have yet to figure out why men are typically so much more level-headed than women!

We both turned our notices in on the day that he found out about his job and both of us will be leaving our jobs on February 20th. I am really sad about leaving. I am going to miss some of my coworkers tremendously, and I have grown so much since I started working there. However, I know that God has the perfect job, with the perfect coworkers, out there for me. I can't help but hope that I land a job on one of the highest floors in a skyscraper! :)

On Saturday my wonderfully patient Mom ventured to Charlotte with Jared and me to help us find a place to live. The first place we looked at was a townhouse in Concord - which would have meant that Jared's commute would have been at least 45 minutes. The second place we looked at was in Belmont. We fell in love with the community (it's actually Belmont/Mount Holly) but did not fall in love with the townhouse. By this time, I had grown anxious because I knew we needed to find a place and Mom and Jared were probably tired of hearing me say that I was anxious! Finally, after much debate between Jared and myself, an argument between me and the GPS device (technology is a little too technical sometimes!), and a prayer (thanks Mom for suggesting and leading it!) we decided to go to an apartment complex in Mount Holly. The apartment complex is AMAZING and I knew as soon as we walked into the apartment that it was where we were meant to be. Thankfully, Jared knew it too and we found out an hour after viewing it that the apartment is ours! :) We will be living in a modern Mayberry type community and Jared's commute during the week will be 20-25 minutes. On weekends we can get to downtown Charlotte in about 10 minutes! There is so much to do there and we are so excited!!! God has truly blessed us with a tremendous opportunity to experience life!!!

If you think about it, please pray for us as we pack, leave our jobs and church here, say goodbye to our friends, etc. We plan on moving on Feb. 23rd. Please also pray that I find a good job there. I am extremely nervous about not having a job yet. I've never left a job without having another one lined up, but this is just another chance to watch God work!