Red, White & Blue

Well, over the 4th of July weekend, we were quite busy. Friday afternoon we left to travel to Missouri to see Eric's family for a few days. It was Bella's first car trip too. And she did pretty good, actually. We only made one stop on our way there, and that was for me. (to get some chocolate) Ha! We made it late afternoon and was welcomed by Brenda, Eric's mom, so lovingly and open-armed. We caught up with her for a little then went up about 45 minutes to Cape Girardeau to meet his brother, Ryan, for dinner. he had just gotten off work. We ate dinner at Logan's Steakhouse and then went to Target and back home. When we got home, Keith, Eric's dad, had just arrived shortly before us from traveling for work all week. It was nice to have the whole family under one roof, even for just a minute.

Saturday morning we got up bright and early with little Bell. We all just kind of laid around. Keith cooked his usual yummy breakfast then we got ready to head out. We traveled to Poplar Bluff for the afternoon to visit Eric's grandmother. She was just recently placed in a nursing home after falling and breaking her leg. She had surgery a few weeks back but just hasn't been doing well since. It was the first time I had met her and that Eric had seen her since we were dating. She was such a sweet little lady. She seemed so pitiful, but still had a good bit of wit to her :) Eric showed his love to her with hugs and I love you's. It just broke my heart. He truly is a family man and loves his family dearly. Made me think back years ago when my Cokie, my grandmother, passed away. I never really got to say goodbye to her and I so wish I could have. We came back for the evening and hung out again at the house. The boys helped their dad mow the yard and Brenda and I began to watch 'Steel Magnolia's', prior to me falling asleep. We ate pizza and watched TV for the rest of the night. Just chilling and relaxing.

Sunday, we got up and went and got some breakfast at a place called 'Jay's.' Then we were off and on the highway, headed to Blytheville, AR for the day. We went and visited with The Long's and the rest of the crew at their pool for the 4th of July get together. We had some good food- dips and chips, ribs, corn, wings... Yummy! We only ended up staying the day and came back late that night. It was fun and good to see close friends.

Monday was the actual holiday. We slept in and lounged around for the morning. We did some chores around the house and got a few things done. We had El Porton for dinner and yummy Yogurt Mountain for dessert. I know, not a typical July 4th dinner, but ours was the night before. Needless to say, we enjoyed our relaxing holiday.

(No pictures from our weekend getaway, unfortunately. I just wasn't too "picture happy." Ha!! I will do better next time!) :)

Last weekend...

Well, this past weekend we were pretty busy, but it was a good and fun busy! Eric surprised me at the beginning of the week with Beauty and the Beast tickets to The Orpheum for friday night! I had been nagging him, I guess for a couple of weeks and he finally gave in :) Such a sweetie! Before the show, we went to dinner at Texas de Brazil, one of Eric's faves!! It is pretty good, I will admit. The show was great, and I think he really secretly enjoyed it too.




Then, the next night, we had another wedding to go to! We have been to so many weddings in the last few months, it's crazy. We attended Scottie Fleming's and Daniel Christian's wedding. Scottie is sister's with Eric's good friend Matt's wifr, Stephanie. It was beautiful. The wedding was held at our church and the reception was at Memphis National Golf Club.

Here we are at the reception...

Puddin's Hitched!

Well this weekend, Eric's good friend, Jay Reese finally got married! I haven't known Jay too long, he says we met back 5 years or so ago, but I don't recall that. Ha! Jay had been waiting a while for the perfect girl to come his way and finally, last February, he met Rachel Cooper as she was determined to find a man, in "Find a Man February." They met through some mutal friends and have been inseperable since. They really are perfect for one another and truly show God's love through one another. We couldn't be any happier for them! I know Eric was honored to be a part of their special day and I was honored to be there to share. The wedding was ABSOLUTELY beautiful! CONGRATS you two! We love you!


This was the night before the wedding, after their rehearsal dinner, they had a party filled with music, dancing and fun!





WEDDING DAY!!!


The BEAUTIFUL Bride and Groom




The beautiful Bride and her FUN shoes for her special day!


Me with the most handsome groomsman! :)

Update....

Well, I don't know how good I am with this whole blogging thing. Apparently not good. Ha! But I really am going to try and get a little better, now that wedding planning is over and we are somewhat settled. Life has been busy since...

March has come and gone, got my best friend, Lauren, married to David Nugent. Their wedding was beautiful and perfect. I couldn't be any happier for you two... we can't wait to grow our friendship and future together as couples and famalies.


Lauren and I before getting dressed for the ceremony




The beautiful Bride and Groom

Then just 3 short weeks later, came our wedding! Everything was just perfect and so FUN! The wedding day was beautiful and couldn't have gone any better! We were so thankful and blessed to have so many close family and friends come share with us, however, we did miss those who were unable to come. It was truly the best day of my life so far! The ceremony was so special and it was most definitely a week we will never forget! Since then, we have been home, adjusting to married life, which is great!









We are getting settled into the apartment and continuing to move things from my house over. We still have my house up for sale and haven't had many "lookers." We know that God is going to provide and send us the perfect buyer when it
is His time, the hard part is waiting... it could be a LONG wait!

We are also trying to get use to our busy schedules too. With me working 3-4 different days a week, and the days always being different, to Eric always having a different schedule between rotations, classes and now light duty, it just seems to have been somewhat hectic! Speaking of Eric being on light duty... the day before Good Friday, Eric was playing in his first softball game of the season and broke his thumb. He finally went to the doctor once I made him an appointment on Monday, and sure 'nuff, it was broke! So, needless to say, he has been in a temporary/removable cast now for over 4 weeks. He hasn't been able to work in the sqad car, so he's been on light duty, taking calls, filing reports and running errands. Which he is sick of... I know he's ready to get back to normal work!

Another new to our norm...
Meet Bella Faye!




Bella is our new baby! She was born March 31 and was 7 weeks when we picked her up. I have been bugging Eric for quite some time now about a dog, more specifically, a puppy, and a lab at that. But he just kept saying no. Then just a couple of weeks ago, I was really "talking it up." Also, my good friend Shannon, had a chocolate lab of 11 years and had to put her to sleep a couple of weeks ago. She has 3 girls and of course they were dying for a new dog soon! So, we both kind of got to looking and came across Big Muddy Creek Labs in Fayette Co. We both ended up getting sisters, on the same day! I can't believe Eric finally let me get a dog! I think it's going to be special that we know her sister will be around if they want to play!
It's been a little crazy with a new little pup running around the house. Always having to remember to close the doors and pick up shoes, watching her EVERY move and cleaning up pee spots all the time, not to mention, ALL the potty breaks we have to take outside and the waking up in the middle of the night to puppy cries. It's fun though, and I know will get better with time and her aging. We are so excited to have a new little addition.... I just told Eric, "it's just prep for a REAL baby!" :)

It really is well...

As I sit here and ponder life, I am convicted by our gracious Lord that all is well. As I am scurrying with my daily schedule of work, attempting to make it to the gym, fitting in a tanning session, planning my wedding, and making sure I make it to this event and this appointment, I tend to get lost in life. With my wedding approaching quickly, I have had a few glitches occur in my plans. When I find myself getting so caught up in MY plans and what I want, I am then convicted and reminded that it's not always about ME. There are so many other things in life and in this world going on, that my stupid, petty, little glitches don't even matter or measure up to other things. My family is going through a rough patch now and we just take life, day by day. Then I am reminded of all the world's disasters, such as the tsuamni that took place in Japan this past weekend, and so many innocent people who lost everything they had and ever knew as well as the many lives that were lost. I look at the sweet, little 5 year old girl, Lucy, in Memphis, who is fighting for her LIFE, battling a horrible cancer disease, traveling from one hospital to another. Everyday I read her mother's blog and I am reassured that my life really is ok. I have also found that once all is said and done, the plans I had didn't matter, because what ended up was a better plan anyway. So, as you read this, I challenge you to just sit back and think about your life. Be still (as I wrote on in a previous post) before the Lord and take it all in. You will be blessed.

PS- to follow sweet little Lucy's progress, go to http://erikandkatekrull.blogspot.com/

Be Still...

So, I have been involved in a Bible study over the past few weeks, with a great new bunch of gals. I am excited for the new study and can't wait to see what the Lord will do for each of us through this new study. We meet every Tuesday night. We start off by reviewing the previous week's lesson and devotionals. Then we watch a video in preparation for the upcoming week. The study is entitled, "He Speaks to Me," by Priscilla Shirer. Tonight's video really spoke to me. After all, I am a labor and delivery nurse and she began the sermon with a story about being in labor. She talked about how some women have plans of going "natural" and don't even consider the convience of epidural meds. However, on the other hand, some walk in and say "give me my pain meds!" Which, is how I want to be! Ha! She talked about how when women are in true pain and are to the point of sitting up for the epidural, the anesthesia professional goes to perform the procedure and so many times women can not sit still because of the pain and the last words to come out of the CRNA or anesthesiologist's mouth is "be still."

Essentially, that is what our great anesthesiologist is saying to us, our Mighty, Lord and Savior, is just saying, "sit down and be still." (See John 6:10)Be in my presence and be calm. Sometimes it's so hard to do just that. With our busy lives and daily schedules, it is so hard to find that quiet time to spend with our Lord, our Creator! If you are reading this, I challenge you, as I challenge myself, to take just a moment from reading this and be still in the presence of God, He will bless you! Thanks for taking the time to read! :)
Psalm 46: 10

Just 60 more days!!!

Check out the wedding website I created. Yes, I know it's not long before the big day, but better later than never! Check it out!


http://www.theknot.com/ourwedding/laciwhite&ericshirkey