Where are we going

Today i got a sad call... while i was at the store at 10am Brock called me. He lost his job. WOW. What a blow! I guess i never really thought that was a possibility. Never planed for that. Never thought i could happen. I went straight home and talked with him. It seems unfair. So now were waiting on God. Where do we go from here? It is a slightly scary place to be. But i know God will provide. This may even be the kick in the pants we need to get a move on. But while this is a blessing for Brock to look for a new job, its a hard time. Were signed in to our lease for at least 6 more months... so i keep praying and asking, "Where do you want us God? where are you taking us?"

Dinner @ Buca di Bepo

For our Anniversary we decided to go to Buca. It's one of my favorite restaurants! They have great food, fun atmosphere = fun memories, and we don't got that often. So we decided to head on over after work last night. When Krista, the lady i work for, heard where we were going she gave me a gift card that she said they would never use, so dinner on them! SWEET! How awesome is that? 

Anyway, we had reservations and got there. After sitting down the table in the room behind us had a large party. No big deal. However, there were a lot of young kids, and they were very loud! I'm not talking babies. They were like 8-12. And it was annoying. Not like they were just talking, they were screaming. They wanted this or that, they didn't like this or that, etc... Our food was really great, and we had a nice time in spite of screaming kids. But i just kind of wonder, I'm paying to go out to this nice place to eat. Maybe it's not the most romantic, but it's nice! Why do people bring their team load of kids there and ruin it for the rest of us? Seheesh!

Anyway, it was still great food. And leftovers for lunch are always a plus!

1 year... and going strong

Today is our our One Year Wedding Aniv! It has been a great year. It seems like we have been married forever, but then this last year has gone by pretty quickly. Anyway, marriage is awesome. Whiel there are a lot of time when it is hard, its also rewarding. And i love Brock and that he is my husband. =) 

Reciple Blog - Slow Coocker Fajitas

So i saw that some other people have Reciple Blogs and i thought that it might be fun! 

1 1/2 Lbs Flank Steak cut into 6 pieces (Or try Chicken!) 

1 Cup Forzen/Fresh onion

1 Green Bell Pepper sliced

1 Jalapeno Peppered sliced

1 Tablespoon minced garlic (gan used bottled, fresh, or peeled)

2 teaspoons salt-free Mexican seasoning

1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, drained (i only partially drain for good juice!)

Placed flank steak in bottom of slow cooker, top with onion and other ingredients.

Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low/medium  for 6-7 hours until meat is tender. Remove meat and tear apart. Return meant to pot and add corn to pot. (Frozen if you have time for it to thaw, or microwave before)

Yeilds: 6 servings

Add your recipes too and lable them "Recipes"

Other Old married peoples...

Tonight we went over to our friend's Sara & Ryan's house for a BBQ. This was a get together for our Young Marrieds Class from Church. At first i didn't think i was going to like going to this class (we started going about a year ago). But i have really come to like all the couples in this class! I didn't really feel like i "fit in" in the Calvary scene until college when i got really involved. So i was sad to leave and have to move on. I didn't think i'd fit in here either. But it has been a really great experience for us! We have met some incredible people and we really enjoy spending time with these couples. We may not get together with everyone weekly outside of church, but when we do we have a great time. And all these people are people we can look to, to encourage us in our relationship and realize were not the only ones going thru this or that. So many times we have laughed to ourselves about "Wow! They fight about that too??" things! (anyone esle do that?) Anyway, it's always nice to know were not the only ones! We have friends in this with us too! (Even blogging--Jennie!!!) 

So Anyway, i love our couples class and the people that make it up! I look forward to Sundays and sharing in everyones lives!!! 

Nashville...

So I'm pretty excited. My sister told me about this company that builds homes and they are very reasonably priced. So of course i hoped on-line and looked them up! This company is so fabulous! There called Americas Home Place. So anyway, it has been really fun to look at house floor plans and see what we like and what we don't. I'm so excited about this possibility. I mean, a BRAND spankin' new house on land we love, it's just all awesome! But sometimes it's hard not to get a head of your self and want more than you can have. I'm trying not to get carried away with wanting all the biggest, best, and newest things. I want to be content!! =) Anyway!!! 

Brock and i had a fun evening out tonight! We were going to go to a little Italian place we always go by at Laguna Beach on our way to BJ's. But traffic was horrible and no places to park. We kept driving. Went to Javier's in Crystal Cove. 2hour wait? Kept driving... Tommy Bahamas? No parking... So we ended up at Ruby's in Corona Del Mar. It was great. I hadn't been there for a while. We had fun driving around looking at the beach and taking in the sights! Sadly though, just like in Switchfoot's song: Gone...

"Like Summer break is gone,
Like Saturday is gone..."

The weekend will be gone and over before we know it so i will enjoy Friday nights as they come. Thankfully...

"Bono I’m glad you asked
Life is still worth living, life is still worth living..."

Life sometimes...

Sometimes life is hard. It's hot outside. Like really HOT. It's hot INSIDE. Really HOT! It makes me crabby. It makes me tired. It makes me frustrated. I'm so hot. So sticky. It's just gross! The fan is my best friend. =)

It's funny watching the news with all these headlines... "Tomatoes", "Gas Prices", "Floods", "Record Breaking Heat", "Kids Caught Cheating in High School", Etc... Crazy what is going on in our world isn't it? 

Also, We are excited to welcome  our newest nephew Justus Aaron Knizley to our family!!! He finally arrived early this morning. Congrats Venessa, Aaron & Aloria!!! 

Working Out... it's always hard to do!

Today i got up at 5:45am. I'm pretty sure i haven't gotten up this early in over a month. Since i quit Starbucks i have slept in until 6:45 or 7am most every day. I love it. BUT i have been trying to get back into shape. New diet & going to the gym are what i am working on. So, this morning i got up and made my lunch and headed to the Spectrum 24hr Fitness Gym. I'm not sure if you have ever been here, but it is rated the top gym (or one of them) In Orange County. Every tredmill has it's own TV attached! My sister is a personal trainer there so i figured having someone keep me accountable is good. She worked me hard. 45 min of non-stop hard workout/cardio.... AHHHHH! By the end i was so ready for a shower it was bad. Anyway, I'm getting motivated to be healthier and get back in shape. If watching Goodmorning America on my own tredmill at 6am is the way im going to have to do it, so bed it!!!However... i have to go back tomorrow... (6am appointment with my Personal Trainer = great =-/) And do it all again and keep this up. That's what suck about not getting/being fat. You have to eat "RIGHT" and work out ALL THE FREAKIN time! Good thing i already cut out Starbucks. Next is soda =(

Following up with other news on the Buoniconti front... Mom & Dad B got to CO just fine this weekend and no baby had arrived yet. Venessa still hasn't had Justus. She is now 1 day overdue and can't be induced yet because the hospital is full (how can that be? It's not like Grand Junctions all the big -- is it?). So she is going to have to wait until Friday to be induced unless she goes into labor before then--which we are praying.

358 Days

Tonight is a special night! We are celebrating our one year aniversary with the Wakelings. I feel blessed that Eric (who married us) and Bea Wakeling have been our mentor couple this past year. It's been awesome to meet with them and talk to a couple who is like us in a lot of ways and giving us advice and prayer along the way. We've learned some great things from these great people!!!

Brock and i have been married for 358 days now. 8 more days until our 1 year wedding anniversary. 2 years and 10 days since we started dating. It seems like the past year has flow by! Marriage is definitely very challenging. But also amazing. I love that every day i get to come home and spend time with my best friend - Brock. We've learned a lot about commitment and working things out. It's fun to be on a new journey and growing with someone else who loves and cares for you. I'm glad that God has given me such a wonderful husband. 

 

Happy Father's Day

I'm pretty sure not that many Fathers will read my blogg. But even so I just have to give an ode to my Dad. My dad is pretty much the greatest and coolest dad ever. My mom and dad adopted me when I was born. So kudos #1 for him! But really, ever since I was little I have admired my dad because he's a great man. Not just a great person, but dad too. He's done so many things that I look up to him for and respect about him. He's a great leader in our church. He's very humble about everything he does. He's a successful business man. Wise, Caring, Loving, Passionate and Personal. Most kids think of their dad as being indestructible. But I think I first realized that he wasn't when I was a teenager and he fell off his motorcycle in front me and my brother and broke some ribs. I honestly thought he had died. But he bounced back up (painful as that must have been!!!). A couple years later when I was in college I was sitting in class and I kept getting phone calls from my mom. Finally I answered and she said that my dad was hurt and in the hospital. He had broken every limb in his body, bloody and bruised.

This is another thing I love about him. Months later he got back on his motorcycle and has been riding ever since.


So I think that we don't appreciate out dad's enough. They are awesome! And I love my dad because he is the best!!!

Tomatoes...

So i was extremely disappointed today when i hurried over to In-N-Out and was about to order my Cheeseburger, no onions, and extra tomatoes. OH WAIT... No Tomatoes???? It's everywhere! OR Nowhere... I have been sad to not have any tomatoes in my salad. This is driving me crazy. When will they figure out this problem? When will we get tomatoes back? 

Books...

So at my new job, Brady (the little boy i am watching) takes multiple naps (or at least i put him down to sleep!) a day. So i have been reading a lot of books. I'm really enjoying it. However, i started running out of books to read and just hadn't gotten to the library at church. So i was investing a small fortune in books to read. I got caught up in a Christian author name Deeann Ghist. She was really good and i like Historical Fiction. Then however, Brady's mom has been giving me contemporary novels that she has finished. She gave me one called The Other Women that i really like. When i finished she gave me a stack! I really like this British author and there different than what i normally read. However, a lot of them are about single women and use a lot of British language and humor. I don't get all of it, but its kind of funny i guess. However, i realized how empty and sad people's lives can be without God and something to live FOR.  

Anyway, on other Buoniconti news fronts,  Venessa, Brock's sister is due to have their baby anyday now. I think 4 days and counting? Surprisingly she's lasted this long! When they were out in February, was it?, poor Venessa was already ready to be done. So we hope we will being hearing about the arrival of our new nephew soon! (Even though i'm sure we'll be the last to know! *haha*) 

In the Storm...

So i was listening to Lifehouse's new CD with their song "Storm"... I was thinking about a line it it. Jason sings "If i could just see you, then it'd be alright, then this storm would turn to light." I was thinking about this when i was having a hard day today. Why do we pray? (From Brent Dedmon's sermon a couple weeks ago!) Brent made an awesome point. Why pray to a god, or THE GOD when he already knows? Why can't we see Him? Why can't He be "real" and physical?  Would that totally change our lives? Radically?  For the better? In some ways i think not. I mean i hope it would. But i really don't think it would. Why shouldn't our lives be OK, we can get thru everything will be alright even tho i can't see my Savior because i know He is real anyway. He must know that us not being able to see Him and not being physical is the best for us. And i will rest in that =) 

Storm : Lifehouse (Who We Are)

How long have I 
been in this storm 
so overwhelmed by the ocean's shapeless form 
water's getting harder to tread 
with these waves crashing over my head 

if I could just see you 
everything will be alright 
if I'd see you 
the storminess will turn to light 

and I will walk on water 
and you will catch me if I fall 
and I will get lost into your eyes 
and everything will be alright 
and everything will be alright 

I know you didn't 
bring me out here to drown 
so why am I 10 feet under and upside down 
barely surviving has become my purpose 
cause I'm so used to living underneath the surface 

if I could just see you 
everything will be alright 
if I see you 
the storminess will turn to light 

and I will walk on water 
and you will catch me if I fall 
and I will get lost into your eyes 
and everything will be alright 

and I will walk on water 
you will catch me if I fall 
and I will get lost into your eyes 
and everything will be alright 
I know everything is alright 
everything's alright 

Another Day and a few more dollars..

This morning i got up a realized that pretty much every day i do the same thing. I wake up at the same time (about) go to the bathroom and wash my face, turn my flat iron on. Check my e-mail, do my hair, get dressed, make my lunch and leave for work. When I'm baby-sitting Brady our day is very scheduled as well. When i get home i do dishes or clean up something. Check my e-mail and wait for Brock to get home. We watch TV and having dinner. Go to bed between 9 -10pm and then do it again. Is that boring or what?   Oh well... at least tonight we are going to Joe's Crab Shack with our good friends Brandon and Andrea tonight! Thats fun =)

Tenn...

So I'm not on the countdown to when we leave for Tenn. I'm really excited about our trip and it'll be fun. But it also is kind of stressful. I mean, i know God is in control and everything is in His time. But after i quit Starbucks i felt s California. o free. I felt like God was helping me get over that hurdle of feeling tied down to a store in My new job the couple knows we want to move. But it feels strange the were going out there now (to see the weather) and i know I'm going to get anxious to get a house and just move. But I'm trying to enjoy the time here in California and everything that is here while we wait of God. 

One thing i am really excited about is seeing my sister, Sharyl. I miss her so much. She is my role model (in more ways then one), my mentor, and my best friend. Ever since i was little i thought she was the coolest person ever. I miss having her around and one reason i am so excited about moving to Tenn. She'll never read this, so i can brag a little without getting in trouble. But she's just one of those people that i never have enough time to spend with. The weeks i've spent at her house are never long enough and i feel like she's lived so much and has advice and a wealth of knowledge to impart to me. She always knows what mood im in by the first min we are talking on the phone. She always listens first, and gives me Godly advice. I just feel so blessed to have not only an awesome sister but a best friend in my sister. 

However, as the time draws near, i think of all the things i will miss here in Cali. My parents and younger siblings. In-n-Out (although i can live without it, it's nice to know its here!). 70*  winters and "floods" that produce a couple inches of rain that demand parkas. Ducks & Angels games. Disneyland. Our Church, Lifegroup, and married friends that we have made here. But then i think the thing i will miss is that this marks a growing up chapter. As i talk with my best friend Laura about married life, buying houses, timing of children, careers or no careers, etc... i think of all the memories that i will leave behind to make new ones. Sometimes those plans we made in our dorm room and apartment about being best couple-friends, having someone to share our marriage ups and downs with, having kids together and them growing up, makes me sad that it wont happen. With us moving to Tenn and Laura & Shawn being in Murietta, CA or Seattle, WA, it makes me sad.

But God is in control. God knows my heart. and I know He has everything in His perfect plan and time.  Isn't that awesome that even though i think about these things, and they might worry me a little now, i know i don't have to worry about it. Jobs. Houses. Families. Miles separating Friends. God is in Control.

Blogging...

I decided that i wanted to start a blog to keep in touch with people and keep up on everyone's life. Life seems to change so fast. Just a couple years ago i was living with my best friends. We were single, working at starbucks, hanging out eating taco bell at 2am. But now things are different. Some of us are married, we live hours apart, are moving all over the country, buying houses, jobs and career changes. How do things change so fast and i can't even keep up. =)