It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Hey everyone!

<----- Our 1st Christmas Tree!!!

Well, I can't believe that it's already December 14th! Time is flying by. It feels like this year has just passed me by and I can't believe it's already almost 2008! It has been SO cold lately...okay in the 50's...but so cold for us Arizonians who are used to 120! The nights have been in the 30's too! We pulled out our winter clothes and have really enjoyed bundling up and it actually feeling like Christmas! All we need is some snow... :)

Things have been really busy for us lately. Ryan had his College group Christmas program last week and it was absolutely amazing. He has been working on it since this summer and over the past month we hardly saw each other because he was so busy with practices and arranging the music. He put the entire night together, arranged all the music, and performed with about 20 other people in front of a thousand people! Hopefully we will get pictures back from the photographer that night soon so I can share them! Now that that is over, Ryan has a much deserved break from Camber until January. He's been able to spend a lot more time at home, catching up with friends, and working on his own music. Last night I had the Christmas program for the preschool (which was ADORABLE) and am now enjoying my break until January 7th when school starts up again. It is a MUCH needed break and after a really difficult first half of the year, I almost decided not to come back in January. But, after much prayer and consideration, I've decided to finish out the year (school is out the 1st week of May) and then find another place to work after that. I'm really looking forward to the next few weeks of finishing up Christmas shopping, baking, scrapbooking, and just getting to sleep in! I have been sick since October with everything that's gone around, so the sleep and rest will hopefully cure that quickly. Ryan and I are really looking forward to spending much more time together, being intentional about going out on dates, and spending our first Christmas together! Although it's bittersweet (our 1st Christmas without family), we are excited about starting some traditions of our own and continuing to establish ourselves as a family now. It's crazy, but wonderful! :)

This month finds us daily pondering the question, "what do we want to do with our lives?" Because of circumstances at the preschool, and some changes and dear friends leaving Ryan's work, we are trying to decide whether or not we want to stay in Arizona. When I first moved out here I was ready to move home or back to Seattle at the drop of a hat. Now, we are connected with an incredible small group, are getting really close to some people, love that we can afford our own house, and are enjoying the challenge of living on our own. The "cons" of living out here are diminishing. But we also know that once kids come into the picture (not for a few years, people, don't start asking! :) ) we want to be just a few minutes away from family. We want our kids to grow up around their aunts & uncles & grandparents, and we wouldn't mind the free babysitting :) We are at this stage where we have to decide whether or not we want to stay out here for a while longer, or just move back home. They both and pros & cons, so we're trying to decide which place we are supposed to be at. We would greatly appreciate your prayers and we try to figure out where the Lord will lead us!

I've talked to a lot of you about the potential new job at Automatik and the crazy interview process that I've been going through. There's been some updates to this story. Since Ryan and I aren't sure where we will be, I called the owner of the company (who is a friend of ours and an elder at our church) and we had dinner with him a few nights ago. We told him that we just aren't sure where we will be even in 2008 and that I just wasn't sure they would want to hire me. The position at that company requires a year of training before someone is really bringing in money based on their work. Since we aren't sure if we will even be here in a year, I didn't want to have them train me then have to go through the year and a half process of finding someone else. He basically left it up to me and said pray about it and get back to him. Part of me was just looking for him to say, no thanks, so that the decision was made, yet I'm still waivering in what I want to do. Part of me still is excited about working for them and would love the opportunity, yet the other part doesn't want to invest in a company if I'm only going to be there for a few months. So prayer on this would be great too... :)

We are starting to look at 2008 and what we want to do. We are going to Mexico for the weekend sometime in the Spring (we have a free trip!) and we are also talking about going to NY. Ryan has never been there and it would be so much fun to tour the town together, see some plays, eat fabulous food, the whole bit. We want to be really intentional about taking trips together and putting all other things in life aside. It's not always easy, but we've already done it a few times in the short 6 months that we've been married, and it brings us so much closer together and allows us to appreciate each other and our marriage. So fun! :)

2008 also brings many marriages...in February some friends of ours out here are getting married, and have asked me to be their wedding coordinator! I'm SO excited. I may have mentioned in an earlier post that I would love to do that as a career, so it will give me a chance to really test the waters to see if it's really something I'd like to do. Two of my best friends are getting married in May: Aubree (I'm a bridesmaid!) & Laura. Laura came to visit last month and we went dress shopping and spend all weekend talking weddings. It was WAY too much fun :) Nicole, Britt's older sister is getting married in the Spring, and there may be something in her future as well :) Luke, Ryan's college roommate is getting married in June too! Christmas is definitely a time for proposals, so we'll see who else's wedding we will be going to! :) It's so fun to see all our friends getting married, but so crazy that we already have 5 weddings to go to!

I think that's it for now. I'm setting a reminder on my computer to write on here more often because I always forget about it :) Remember that Christmas is not about finding the perfect gift and isn't worth all the stress. It's about Jesus, and God's promise since the beginning that He would bring a Savior to His people. Praise God for the miracle of baby Jesus!!!

Much love to you all!!!

Halloween

Here are some pictures of my class from our Halloween party at school! The morning class is on the top and the afternoon class is on the bottom!

November already??

I can hardly believe that there are only 3 days left in October. Where has the time gone? I just looked back at the last time I posted and it was over a month ago! Unbelievable. Sorry about that!

This last month has been insane. I feel as if I haven't had any time to breathe. My days are jam packed with work, prepping for work, grocery shopping, laundry, house cleaning...oh to live on your own. Sometimes it is so appealing, to have a place of one's own, but then the reality of life sets in and you realize that it is all your own, and you are responsible for it all. It's a good thing that I enjoy it (most of the time :) ) This past week I put in my two week's notice at the cafe at church. I have just been so exhausted and have been spreading myself so thin with too much on my plate. I think having Tuesday and Thursday mornings off I will be able to have so much more time to get housework done, spend a few hours with myself & God, and on some days, just sleep in. I will miss the free coffee though :)

The preschool has been teaching me so much patience lately. Now I understand why they cap each class off at ten kids! It's much different than nannying because I am their teacher and not just their nanny. I have to keep my distance, yet still discipline-and the only way we can really do that is with time outs, which don't always work. Despite the exhaustion of teaching my kids that we don't throw sand, we don't hit, and that yes, I am the boss of them (their favorite line..."but you're not the boss of me, my mom is!"), seeing their smiling faces and receiving such loving hugs and kisses every day makes up for it. Luckily children have short term memories; they could have been put in time out three times the day before, but the next morning they still love you to pieces. It's been a good teaching time for me. I'm learning a lot about other people, to say the least. It's been great in the class but because of certain circumstances, I'm not coming back next year. My passion for design and organization has been on my mind a lot lately, and that fire has definitely be re-ignited with designing my home & planning my wedding. I am looking into pursuing wedding planning. Actually,I have looked into it a bit and have contacted a few planning companies out here, and they have provided me with some great information. However, accreditation programs, supplies, etc are going to be thousands. There's always huge start up costs to everything. So for now, I'm sticking to learning the field through books, the internet, and helping friends who are engaged to plan their weddings. My sister and I would love to start a company together but because of the distance, it's not really possible right now. I think we will just be saving our pennies for now and really pour ourselves into it once Ryan & I are back in California. But for now, I'm not sure what I will do after this school year is done in May. I don't have any leads or direction yet. I've got some time to think about it, but I'm just really praying for direction cause I don't really know what I want. Your prayers for that would be greatly appreciated.

Speaking of Ryan, he left for Belize on Saturday! I am really excited for him. He is going back to the same place that he went last year. One of our dear friends out here just moved down there about a month ago to do a one year mission, so Ryan will get to see him. I think it will be not only a great growing time for him, but it will also give him a chance to just have some time away from the stress of his job here and to have some time alone with the Lord. I miss him already though :)

My mom & brother were out this weekend! It was a blast. But, as always, it was way too short! The weekends we have visitors always go too quickly. It gets easier each time they visit to say goodbye, but I still am not a fan of the fact that I'm not just down the street. I know we are out here for a reason, and I think God is blessing our time out here and it gives us time to work on our marriage alone, but it's still not my 1st choice. I know we will move back to Cali in a few years or so, so I'm trying to enjoy my time out here and not focus on the end point, but invest what I can while I can out here. The more time passes, the easier it gets. Maybe one day it will reach normalcy!

We got our wedding pictures from our photographer in this week! The pictures are amazing. If you'd like to see them, let me know and we can send you the kodakgallery "photo invite." (That's how kodakgallery allows you to share photos.) Now comes the hard part of choosing which pictures to print! It's going to be way too hard because I love them all!

The reason for the flower picture is that, well honestly, I just love peonies :) But also I'm going to make a garden this week! Well, as much of a garden as I can make in my 1'x5' row of dirt around my patio :) The weather is just so beautiful now and my plants won't scorch to death. I need some more flowers in my life! I need something other than cactus around my house! Also, it will be a nice surprise for Ryan to come home to, to see the patio finally finished! I'm on a search for a patio set too... :)

Well, I'm heading to bed. It's been a weekend full of sleepless nights...actually the last month has been! It's finally catching up with me. Better get a good night's sleep before another long week!

Blessings! Danielle

Life in the Axtell home

That's still weird to say...and to think I'm no longer a Snyder! So weird. Any way, just wanted to give a little update for us.
Ryan is super sick (and is currently taking his 2nd nap for the day). I'm starting to feel it too, so I hope I don't get laid out either. He is so busy with work lately too. He's taken on leading worship on Saturday nights for the children's ministry during this series in our church. He also leads Sunday mornings now too for the Jr. High & High school groups. Also, his boss and dear friends of ours just had their baby yesterday! So exciting. We haven't seen them yet since we're both sick, but maybe later this week. But on the other hand, that means that Ryan will have to do more of the load since Ron will be a bit preoccupied with the baby. He's also teaching quite a few guitar students and it seems like daily he is picking up more. Needless to say he's busy! :)

As for me, life doesn't slow down either. I've been working at the preschool MWF, then at the cafe & nannying TR. I'm really not quite sure how much longer I will be able to get up so early on TR (5am). It really throws me for a loop and I just get sick so easy. I'm going to think more about it after this week and make a decision on whether or not I will continue to work there, or even just switch my hours. The preschool has been going well, though the past two days the kids have been so testy and just wild. Sometimes it gets a bit overwhelming with 10 4 year olds all being crazy and demanding your attention, but hopefully it will get easier and easier, and they will learn how to listen! :)

Ryan & I as a couple are doing so well. Although we don't see each other some days until 10pm, the time we do have together is wonderful. We have become such great communicators with each other, and really just enjoy being in each other's company-whether that be reading together before we go to bed, or just relaxing watching movies, etc. It's amazing how you feel like you know everything about a person, then you move in together! :) We really love our house and have enjoyed working on it together. We are daily learning how to love and serve each other better too. It's such a great growing time for us, and we really love the married life!

We have a few prayer requests...first, that Ryan heals quickly and that I don't get any sicker. Second, that Ryan's truck continues to run for a few more years. He's had a lot of trouble with it the past few weeks and for about a week it just didn't run. It's working fine right now, but we just don't know how much longer it will last. And financially we can't afford for it to die on us! Thanks!

Hope ya'll have a great rest of your weekend! :)

Wedding Pictures

For those of you who haven't seen some of our wedding & house pictures, they are up on kodakgallery.com. If you haven't seen them and want to, please send me your email address and I will forward you the invite to see them.
Just passing that along :)

Shopping & Talking

Today I got some time to go shopping by myself after work. I spent about an hour meandering around Target, then the same in Kohls. I got a few new shirts, some scrapbook stuff at Target, and my new favorite Vera Wang purse. I spent 1/3 of that time on the phone with my sis, so it was really great to catch up. It was really good to just have some alone time and to actually be able to enjoy shopping, rather than running in and out of the grocery store.
As for the talking part of the title, I got to talk to two of my best friends this week. Since they are in Seattle, our one on one times consist of phone calls now. It was really good to just be able to talk with them each for a few hours and to really pour out our hearts, share some laughs, and get excited about Aubree's wedding!!! Oh yea, I'm a bridesmaid in her wedding in May!
Tomorrow morning (6am!) I start working out at the gym. Ryan and I got memberships this weekend. I'm really excited to get back into shape and drop these post wedding pounds!
Tomorrow is black & white day at the preschool so I have to go figure that out...
sweet dreams, everyone.

This is going to be a long day...

So I started working at the coffee shop at our church, and this morning was the first morning I opened by myself. I was here at 5:45 and opened the bookstore door (which leads to the coffee shop) and the gate between them wouldn't work! I kept turning the key over and over, then suddenly, I heard the alarm finally sound. So now I'm stuck in the bookstore and can't figure out how to turn the lights on, so I have my cell phone out for light looking for the switch. I called whoever I knew with another key but everyone's phones were off! Finally, 45 minutes later, as the church alarm is blaring, I'm shaking cause I don't know what to do, the maintenance guy comes because the alarm company had called him. So I finally got in and started getting settled, but the register would not recognize my password. So now I'm down to a good ol fashioned calculator. Then, I brought some cereal with me cause I knew I'd get hungry, so I pour cereal, then the milk, then see that there are only knives here for the bagels. I scrounged around the back closet for spoons but didn't find any. So I ended up using the massive spoon that you use to stir lattes. So I look ridiculous with my cereal in my tupperware, spooning it out with what's like a massive serving spoon, and practically pouring it into my mouth cause I can't fit the spoon in. And it's only 7:00am...we'll see what the rest of the day brings. It was crazy and I was freaking out this morning, but as I write it all down now, it's pretty funny. Leave it to me... :)

Teacher! Teacher!

I started my first full day of school today at the preschool. It was so much fun! The kids are so funny and all so different. I have my divas and my shy ones, my barely-english-speakers and my screamers. It took basically holding one kid down for about 10 minutes until he stopped screaming when he got there. My favorite story of the day: we did some easel painting today, and one of the little girls said she was going to paint a picture of her brain with worms on it cause she saw it on Discovery Channel. I was a little creeped out but still thought it was funny. We had our first birthday party of the year today too for one of the boys. All in all it was an awesome day. It was so weird to be the one that the parents took pictures of their kids with for their first day of school. There are some things that I don't really know how to do yet, like some of the songs, or I'll forget the order of how things go, but other than that I think I've already got the hang of it. It is so nice to be starting something that is all my own and to have more consistency to life out here. The days are long and I have about 15 minutes between each class to eat and clean, but nice to be done by 3:30 so I can come home and rest and still make a fabulous dinner :) I'm really looking forward to seeing how these kids grow throughout the year, and it's so nice to have 16 people that adore you around you all day :)

Off to get ready for a friends' birthday party.

Much love,

Mrs. Axtell

life...

So, we have been newlyweds for a month and two days today :) So much has already happened since we've been married and it feels like we've been married forever! We are getting adjusted to life together and I am learning how to live in AZ. Luckily there's only one more month of the heat, and then we can actually use our patio! We've been working on our house, trying to make it our own. Though it's small, it's perfect for us two. I really love it. Ryan has been busier than ever with work and his ever-growing list of guitar students. I have been nannying for a family a few days a week, but next week I will begin working at the preschool. No more sleeping in! :) I have also taken the position of manager of the children's ministry for the Sunday night service at our church. There are hundreds of kids a service, so I will have a lot of responsibility to make sure the dozen or so classes run smoothly!

It's been raining like crazy lately, which has been such a blessing. The rain makes us miss Seattle, but thankful for where we are.

Hope you are all doing well!

Blessings,

Danielle

Keeping you in touch

Hello friends and family!
Ryan & I wanted to start a blog to be able to keep everyone up to date, to post pictures, etc. Though we'd love to talk to everyone on the phone for hours filling ya'll in, it's just not always possible. So...this way you can keep checking back as often as you'd like to see what us newlyweds are doing! Wedding pictures are soon to come!
Love to all,

Ryan & Danielle Axtell