art of a deal.

i have a love/hate relationship with yardsaling.

fact of love is:. a & i really enjoy going to yardsales together and who wouldn't? talk about a cheap way to spend quality time together!

now i realize yardsales might not sound exciting but really... it is.  we enjoy the initial 'hunt' scouring through newspapers and craigslist all to create the best route we will take in the morning; always starting with a trip to dunkin donuts for my coffee! we enjoy digging through and looking at lots of 'junk' to find the few items that we want.  we enjoy the drives.  we enjoy the conversation.

fact of hate is: i hate waking up early.  pathetic, i know.

being a serious yardsaler is not for those who stroll out of their home at 10am hoping to find something amazing.  o no. to really yardsale we are up and out the door no later than 6:30a. which frankly, is dreadful. painful. awful. especially for me!

even when the thought of waking up early makes tired, it is truly one of my favorite things to do with a. on a saturday morning.  this season we actually found a bunch of gifts that were virtually brand new.  unfortunately we have already given some away before i took a picture of them! oops!

however.. .some other great finds we found:

 i hate a lot of vases. this was perfect for me!

the texture gives it a great look where

you can't see all the ugly stems or dirty water.

paid: $2.00

 you can't go wrong with a Vera Bradley ID case. 

this is now the keeper of my lipgloss and chapstick

paid: $1.00

my lovely hubby accidentally ordered me 2 sets of season 5

but never-fear.. yardsaling brought me my missing season

paid: $10.00

even though i love my sleep, i really can't wait til next year!

MAY?!

well. poo.
i started off on this adventure of blogging and only made it to May... and even then i didn't exactly post on a sort of regular schedule.
shame. shame. shame. on me.

so it's the start of 2012... and perhaps this year, i will write more consistently!

its 1am and i am supposed to be sleeping.
in fact, my hubby just woke up and reminded me that i should most definitely be sleeping. i know he's right. i am not going to want to wake up at 7am... but he's going to torture (i mean, lovingly urge me out of bed) in the morning once that wretched alarm goes off.

perhaps i'll update the world on what has happened since May... or maybe I'll just start fresh.
who knows.

let me think on this.. and i'll keep you posted! ha.

for now, thank you for reading my mindless post about not posting.
but if you want to read something with more value read this. i have read it a few times lately. just to ponder the simplicity, the truth and sometimes, the challenge, that are captured in those few sentences.
enjoy.

creating.

i have a new love.
etsy.

i could spend hours on etsy and over time.. i know i have.
i enjoy plowing through the thousands of items for sale, reading articles, and just delving into this wonderful site.

so i've been on a mission: to launch my very own etsy shop.
which is now open!

i currently have been working on some crochet projects to build my repertoire. i have a small collection of items on my new shop and am excited to post more. i am in need of a 'model' to help me--i have some projects that need to be worn.

in the meantime, my mother-in-law came up with the cutest name for me! "Shoppe Elle" will be my etsy shop name. Adorable? i think so.

it's all rather exciting and i am enjoying the process so far.

i am dying to post more items but starting a new job has significantly slowed down my progress.
just thought i'd share what's going on in my life:)

'i don't like change.'


okay, okay... i know people don't like carrying around pockets full of change, but that's not what i meant! but it's my blog, so i can post whatever picture i want!

but really... how many times have you ever thought that? or said that? or heard other people say that?

'i don't like change.'

i know i have.
there have definitely been times when i have settled into my routine or gotten the hang of a particular task and simply have liked the way things are.

however, change has become a definitive part of my life recently!

my hubby and i moved almost a month ago and it's been fun! but, it's also brought about change!

i used to enjoy getting a kiss and a goodbye every morning before he heads out to work.
now, i need to wake up at the same time, if not earlier, than he does so i can get to school!

i used to be able to go rest on our couch or work on many projects during the day.
now, i need to plan for everything i might want/need to get done before i leave. and certainly, no more naps!

i used to be able to prep dinner or have dinner ready at a decent time.
now, he needs to cook or start the prep or we wait until about 7 or 8pm!

some things are fun...
like...

i used to have 1 tiny sink.
now, i have a double sink!

i used to be able to talk to my hubby from anywhere in the apartment.
now, i have to actually project my voice for him to be able to hear me!

i used to dread having people over.
now, i want people to come over!

our home is not the only change that is entering our lives. (no, i am not pregnant.) but, i am about to graduate too! i have started an extensive job hunt and am sending out too many resume's to count! i am looking forward to all the changes that occur with graduation! i can't wait to get rid of homework, to have a steady paycheck, to be able to be more involved at church! i am ready to move on, ready to 'walk', and ready to start this next journey in our life!

this change. i like.
so for now, i can't quite say, "i don't like change."

the latest project.

i finished a project i have been wanting to tackle for the past few months.

one day, i was walking through the hallway of our apartment building and noticed two end tables with a 'free' sign above them. they were wooden tables with glass tops. they caught my attention because of their glass tops, but honestly, the wood was pretty worn.



so i picked them up.
i had to rearrange a little big in our apartment so i could keep them. aaron seemed skeptical. they were two additional pieces of furniture in our apartment.

but i knew they could be restored.

and i did it.

it was a fun project and i am pleased with how they came out.


restoration is just a cool thing.

the apartment life

i must admit i was never the kid, teenager, or college kid who was desperate to get out of their parents house. well. maybe when my brother was driving me nuts. i didn't dream of growing to age 40 in their house either... i knew i'd be on my own shortly after college and looked forward to my very first apartment--they idea of living with a husband never really occurred to me. .

but i am!
now that i am married. and have since, moved out.
we've been living on our college campus for about 8 months.

we live in an apartment that is 293 square feet. it is tiny.
we can't have a kitchen table. so we use tv trays.
we can't have a dresser. so our closets are unique to say the least.
we don't have kitchen counter space. so i have learned how to balance on my head.
ok. so that might not be true....
but our apartment has required a unique sort of balancing act.

it's interesting.

we are excited to say we are moving in less than two weeks into an apartment 2.5x bigger than our current one. we are looking forward to actual counter space, using the kitchen table that has been waiting for us, assembling the dresser that is in a box under our bed!

there has been something about packing up our apartment together that has allowed me to feel incredibly blessed to be married to my husband. when we moved in we had packed up separately, in two separate states, and threw it all in this tiny apartment. we are now, spending time together, listening to dave ramsey--yes! and packing up. its our first move as a married couple and god's hand has completely guided us to our new apartment.

we have truly enjoyed our time together in our tiny apartment and are looking forward to enjoying our new home, as well. we are blessed to have a home, to have each other, and to have the guidance of our savior.

2010 to 2011.

christmas cards are sent around overwhelmingly during the holiday season. i have to tell you--i love them! i love hearing from people i don't always get to see. i love hearing what happened in their year, especially in their own words--not just from facebook status updates. i love seeing the photos too!

i really wanted to send out our very first ever mr. & mrs. aaron schappell christmas card this year. well, the ending of my semester was entirely too hectic, chaotic, and stressful for me to even dream about writing, labeling, and mailing letters.

so sadly, no letter or cards came out of our house. i truly hope people understand! however, now i am on christmas break and i have time to write so our 'christmas letter' will be our 'christmas blog'.

this past year has been an exciting one for us.
the beginning of the year was typical for us college students. i finished up my final semester as an RA and was, of course, very busy. aaron and my brother, thomas, both graduated from VFCC in may. it was exciting to watch them graduate, but i had a hard time surviving the day without crying as i was happy for them but it was hard to know i was not graduating and they would not be in school with me the following year.


during the summer i worked at driver's village in cicero for my business internship and sincerely loved it. i had a great job that allowed to me to learn a lot, enjoy work and still have my evenings and saturday's free. the joys of not being the runt high-schooler! in my 'spare-time' i was planning our wedding with mom & dad and going to the gym to go to zumba classes.

aaron spent his summer working, officially full-time, as the children's pastor at the bridge church in hamburg, pa. he loves his job and is so wonderful with kids. he is so creative and is able to communicate so effectively to 'his kids' and he thoroughly enjoys writing his own curriculum. (i'm allowed to brag since i'm writing this!) he is learning a lot about the administrative end of ministry and is always looking to improve the effectiveness of his ministry especially within the limited amount of time he can spend with the kids. here is a picture of him on the way home after surviving a week of kid's camp!



our summer was so wonderfully ended with our wedding! july 31, 2010 we were married in north syracuse, ny by both of our pastors. it was a beautiful day, a beautiful wedding, and a wonderful day to celebrate with our families and friends! i previously, posted a wedding blog. there are also photo's on my facebook page. we also were a bit silly and a creative dance.


we spent our honeymoon in cozumel, mexico after a few plane hiccups that left us back at my parents house the day after the wedding. mexico was beautiful and we enjoyed having our very first vacation together. it was also aaron's first time flying on a commerical airplane and out of the country.


following our honeymoon we moved into our very first and very tiny (under 300 sq. feet) apartment. we really do like it though! of course, a little roomier will be a blessing in our future, but we do feel like it is 'our home.' valley forge has a dorm building that is designated for married couples, families, and independent students. aaron has been so sacrificial to let me live right on campus. he commutes to work, an hour drive each way, so i can live and walk to my classes. living on campus also allows me to contribute to our family and babysit 12 hours a week which works out great for us. here's our little kitchen and living room.



as promised, i chopped my hair off after the wedding. but it was incredibly long! it was actually longer than this... but i don't have a good picture.


we were able to spend our christmas holidays everywhere! we spent christmas morning together, then spent the rest of the day with his family, and joined my family in syracuse the following day. i also got to see many close friends that i haven't seen since our wedding. we concluded the rest of our holiday celebrations in harrisburg with more of my family. we are so blessed and had a great time everywhere we went.


so, i am finishing up my last week of christmas break before classes begin. aaron is busy at work and i am enjoying quiet mornings at home and a few hours of baby-sitting in the afternoons. this will be final semester at valley forge--woohoo! i will graduate in may with a bachelors of arts degree in children's ministry and a bachelors of science degree in business administration. my double major is the reason i did not graduate with aaron and thomas.

we are looking forward to this 2011 year. we need to move by the end of may and are hoping to find a reasonable apartment in the hamburg area. i also will be looking for a full-time job in the same area. we are open to any suggestions or connections:) we are looking forward to be closer to the church and i am looking forward to not having to do homework at night so i can be more involved at the church than i currently am.

we pray you have had a great year and will have a wonderful year this year!