cravings.

(**disclaimer-- i'm not pregnant!!  (sorry GoGo))

These are my current cravings:

1) to be physically fit (p90 is helping me with this!!)
2) to find great community
3) to make friends that challenge me and uplift me at the same time
4) to become a member of a church (not just signing a paper, but volunteering, getting involved and BECOMING the church)
5) to host a small group
6) to make magic and be able to call it my job
7) to downsize even more and stop caring about worldly possessions... (I mean, do I honestly need an 8-piece Christmas place setting when we live in a two-bedroom?  I don't think so... please don't tell Brady I am admitting this)
8) to buy my whole wardrobe from Urban Outfitters (totally doesn't go along with number 7-- but I went there yesterday, only to completely understand how un-cool I truly am)
9) to be passionate about marriage again... Don't get me wrong... Brady and I love each other, but I want to have tears in my eyes again when I hear friends are in trouble... I want my stomach to ache when I hear of infidelity and lying in marriage...
10) i want a convertible...  never thought I'd say this... but I do...


Last week I spent some time with a precious girl I grew up with!  She challenged me, listened to me, filled me with confidence and loved on me in the EXACT way I needed it!  (great answer to craving #3)  I'm so thankful she only lives 15 minutes away!!!  We spent the day at Downtown Disney, ate at Rainforest Cafe and ended our magical day with viewing "The Princess and the Frog"  :)  I was in heaven knowing someone loved Mickey Mouse (almost) as much as me!! :)

Yesterday was a treat as I got a tour of the town I was born in! :)  Bridgette will forever by my mom's best friend and hopefully she'll accept me as a close second while we're here!  It was so fun seeing where I went to Kindergarden and the home I was brought to after I was born!!! :)  It's amazing what I remembered considered I left here when I was 6... (I know, I know... genius!!)  I'll post pictures as soon as I get them off my camera...

no news from Disney, I applied last night to work at the Disney Vacation Club kiosk-- we'll see how that goes!  Tomorrow I head to Downtown Disney and beg anyone that's wearing a Disney name-tag to let me be one of their cast members!!!  I'll probably be making a complete fool of myself, but tomorrow is February 1st, so it's my last chance before taco bell...

time for beth moore,
jennafer

P.S. tonight we're having dinner with some friends from Branson!  They moved to LA a few months ago-- so it will be fun to hear of their adventures... I'm supposed to take a dessert-- is it tacky to pick something up at Trader Joe's and take it??  hope not... because that's the plan :)

i am loved

There is nothing better than your doorbell ringing and a mystery box
appears with a tag from a few of your favorite people!!!

Griffins, we LOVE you! :)  you made our week!

blessed a brazillion,
jennafer

P.S.-  how great is that hat??

resolutions

Today I completed my first week of P90x-- I made it.  Right now my abs are burning under this shirt I'm wearing and I might have a few tears in the corner of my eyes, but I MADE it!!!  Here's my chart to keep me accountable... it's on our fridge for all to see :)

I've been waking up early... working out, fixing myself awesome breakfasts (like my current favorite, pictured below...  yogurt and mixed berries from Trader Joe's... YUMMM)

then I head into our bedroom and work on Beth Moore's "believing God" bible study.  This study was a gift to me for my birthday two years ago from Jamie Jo, but I never really did it :(  (surprise surprise)... then my aunt organized a bible study for the girls in our family and picked this exact one... Is God trying to tell me something here?  Anyway, I'm LOVING it and actually am kind of down when I realize I'm on my last question of the day--

No news from Disney yet... I have two calls in (only one message) to the contact I have... but she hasn't called me back yet :(  The title of this week is "patience".

Our Anniversary was FANTASTIC!!!  Brady took me to pinkberry (l.o.v.e.) and then we came home to the best surprise EVER!!!  THANKS MOM AND DAD!!!!!  SEASON THREE OF I LOVE LUCY!!!!!  I was such an I Love Lucy loser... I had my trivia book out and followed along with every episode...  (Brady took a nap during this, I think my crazed I Love Lucy fanness wore him out)

He also let me pick out a bag from my FAVORITE designer!!  Check out these awesome bags and things my friend, Jen, makes!  I'm OBSESSED!  I'll post as soon as I get mine!! (click on AWESOME BAGS to view them)

Time to get in the shower and head to Elaina's... we're going hiking at noon!!!  Kempo and Hiking in the same day, I might not make it to tomorrow.

yes, i hike now i guess,
jennafer

happy anniversary to us

Today we celebrate (actually PARTY) the fact that three years ago we promised to love, honor and cherish each other until death to us part!  GUESS WHAT?  WE'RE DOING IT!!!  (and actually having some fun along the way)  Brady is the coolest thing on the planet...  He was three years ago and probably will still be 68 years from now (please don't die before then)!!  Here's some pictures from our wedding day! :)

love love me do,

disney doosey

So yesterday we went to the Disney casting office to see if I could try to get an interview...  So I went in and there are probably about fifteen computers all in a row and they were ALL taken with people applying online...  so, um, Disney isn't hurting for people that want to work there.  I talk to a nice lady, let's call her "Suzie" and "Suzie" looks up my application and says that everything looks fine and that if someone likes what they see then I will get an e-mail from them.  I then try to woo "Suzie" and ask her if there is anyway that she can flag my ap or at least put a note on it saying that I will do ANYTHING and be so excited about it.  "Suzie" says no, because everyone has to appear exactly the same...  I appreciate the way Disney handles casting... I really do-- but I just want a job so bad!!!!!!!!!!!!  

This job hunt is going to be a lot harder than I thought it was.  February 1st is my deadline that if I don't get a job at Disney then I will pursue something else for the time being... and Feb 1st is coming up :(  I went back to the car and my sweet husband, (who has had to do this WAY too many times in our marriage) consoles me and convinces me that no matter what, I won't have to work at Taco Bell (which, right now, is my greatest fear...)

 I mean, I love Taco Bell... but I want to make magic!!!  He then takes me on an adventure to LA where I try "Pinkberry" for the first time--

LOVE it!  We didn't get anything done on our to-do list, but it is EXACTLY what I needed.  Thankful that he knows me so well and knows exactly how to love me! :)

Today, I have an "interview" (kinda) with the woman in charge of casting for Disneyland.  We have an amazing friend who has been on Broadway in Disney shows and she was willing to stick her neck out for me and give me this connection.  I will FOREVER remember her kindness, humility and love that she has shown me by doing this!  I am blown away every time I think about it!  I called the casting lady this morning and left a message... hopefully I'll hear back from her soon!!!

So that's the update... nothing exciting to report, unfortunately :(  It will happen though!  We are hopeful~

still loving mickey,
jennafer

P.S. for those of you who haven't heard of pinkberry- go to their website and be AMAZED!  www.pinkberry.com it's ice cream that's not bad for you!!  BEST INVENTION EVER!!!!!

so you want to see our apartment?

A-213,
us

moved. in. resolutions.

It's TRUE!  We are moved in!  It looks like people live here!  The pictures are hung, our new couches CAME, every box has been cut and loaded into the dumpster (three cheers for Brady!), and the pursuit to find the perfect Disney job is underway!

*Tune in tomorrow for a VIDEO of our new apartment... we are soooo tech savvy*

Okay... now for the resolutions part.  I know that resolutions usually start on January 1st, but here in California we start them on January 23rd... so here are my new years resolutions...

1) Eat Healthy-- this includes trips to trader joes often :)  (this also means I have to limit my ice cream intake... boo 2010)

2) p90X--  I did p30X summer of 2008 and wish I would have finished... now I'm going to!!  I only have 88 more days to go!!

3) Quiet Time--  I will have a quiet time, every day, no excuses.

4) No more baths-- this was literally stings to type.  I have spent LOTS of time in the bathtub.  I mean, the more pruny I become the happier my life is...  But from now on, it's only showers for this little lady!

5) 8AM alarm... everyday...  yuck yuck yuck

So there ya have it... the new and improved me!!  :)


I'm headed to the Disney casting office tomorrow... hopefully some sweet and magical human will be willing to talk to me for a few minutes and PERHAPS I'll report back tomorrow with a JOB!!!  We'll have to see!!

here we go 2010,
jennafer

my dog has her own bathroom...

That moo is crazy.  I mean seriously crazy.  But perhaps she gets it from Brady and I... because a few days ago we decided that we were too lazy to take her down to the grassy garden area in our high-rise apartment (and by "high-rise" I really mean "second floor")  every time she feels the need to use the restroom...  so we ventured to our local Home Depot and decided to remedy this situation... Brady is more clever than I will ever be, so he's going to be a guest writer on the blog today (he doesn't know this... I illegally stole this from myspace.com/bradywhitemusic... feel free to check out his music and buy some of his songs on iTunes-- we could use some more Trader Joe's money :)  Thank you!)

"Well, as some of you know all too well, I'm not a manly sort of person. I'm a guy and all, but let's put it this way… rarely am I confused with a jock or outdoorsy sort of human. In leu of all of that I get pretty excited when I, in my mind, earn some man points. Well, today I earned a few. Because apparently I'm too lazy to take my dog downstairs to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night or day I decided to build her a little doggy bathroom. I'm extremely aware that none of this thus far earns me more than cellulite, but we're getting to the good part. First of all I went to home depot (that's like 10 points just for being there). Now of course I stick out like a sore thumb and everyone employee I pass obviously thinks I need assistance and forces their help on me. Apparently I look so helpless that a few customers offered their expertise. I snagged a couple of 2x4s and got them custom cut - in half - and then I moved on to the sod. If you're not familiar with what sod is don't feel bad, neither did I. Sod is manly terminology for grass. I'm not sure why you just can't say I want some grass, but you can't. Well, you can but you get laughed at… I got laughed at more than once. Just a word of advice - I think sod is only for those who own a truck. It comes on these 5'x5' wooden crates and is extremely dirty (imagine that, dirt is dirty). In fact, when I saw the sod I kinda panicked and in my mind was like "ABORT, ABORT!" I had already paid for it but had no idea how I would transport it. This part you had to be there for but trust me it was like a circus. I went back in and bought some "contractor strength" black trash bags and proceeded back to my arch nemesis, "sod". Sod comes in like 1 1/2' by 4' sheets and they're heavy! So what I would do (in front of construction workers, gardeners, and manly men and women) is I would lay down a black trash bag on the ground and then put a couple of sod sheets down and then roll it up in the trash bag and then put the whole grass burrito in another black trash bag as to limit the mess in my car. I think I slipped a disc trying to lift that crap into the back of my manly faux SUV. Well, I finally got home to the new apartment and built a little 5'x5' potty for my dog. It took like a million hours and the best part is that she won't even use it. What is wrong with my life?"


I know right now ya'll are thinking... this is made up... no way did they do this-- so I have proof...  Here she is in all her glory in her very own 5x5 lawn :) 

Maybe Disney will hire me to be their lawn-care professional after reading this :)  


dirt under my fingernails, 
jennafer


P.S. the moving company still isn't here...  :(  oh, and she does use it now :)


P.P.S. Our sweet neighbor (well, I don't know if she's sweet... I don't really know if "she's" a "she" even) has a wicked cough... please pray that she gets better soon :) or that our walls magically become thicker... either one... thanks :)

embarrassed...

ya want to know what's embarrassing?????????? when you post a poll on if you should or should not cash a wedding present check you've found three years later, and the one response you get is from the check owner...  sorry Ted and co.  :(

good thing I'm friends with awesome people...

my face is red,

jennafer

curtains? bed?

In case you were doubting my earlier post--  this is that moo... finding herself quite comfortable on our new curtains.

We did get them hung-- this is in our bedroom-- it's getting more homey everyday! :)

We did end up going to LA yesterday.  Where we went to the CRAZY couch place.  I mean, seriously crazy.  We called the guy and he gave us the gate code (which sounds pretty fancy and legit...)  little did we know it was a gate code, to a storage facility.  A public storage place is where we will be purchasing our couch!  CRAZY!  Here is the couch we want from Crate and Barrel...

And they make it EXACTLY!  It's crazy what these guys do!  Here's a picture of the weird storage unit/ shopping center thing...  they had two of these "rooms"...

So weird... we also made it to "THIS IS NOT IKEA" and let me tell you... they aren't lying... I have a lot more fun when I go to Ikea then this place.  Everything in there costs more than it did when it was sold in the first place.  But I still was excited to be there in person!  I'll have to figure out some real flea markets and antique shops and go there.  :)

UPDATE ON THE SWEET FAMILY TRYING TO GO TO DISNEY:  One of my sweet friends has offered them her resort discount and tickets!  God is so good to provide!! :)  I'm so thankful for the great people I met while I worked there... it just makes me so excited to meet new Disney friends! :)

77 degrees here,

jennafer

WE NEED MAGICAL HELP!

Do any of my friends that still work for Disney want to help me get a sweet girl down there? Check out http://cheersforamanda.blogspot.com/ for her story :) let's make some eternal magic for this sweet family! :)

breakfast at the white apartment

So, we have discovered Trader Joes... and we are in LOVE! :)  We went grocery shopping there the day we got here, and before I even had a meal, I already felt more healthy just knowing all that organic goodness was cooling it's way down in my fridge.

Our furniture and things still haven't arrived yet :(  Brady called the moving company yesterday and they said they would be here over the weekend or sometime next week...  So glad we made that call to get all that valuable information!!! haha

Luckily, we found these little gems at ikea and they are serving as our kitchen table...

we're going to look at this couch place today in LA-- you can look at it online... www.customsofadesign.com They take really cool designer couches and make them at half the price-- it almost seems too good to be true, so we're going to go scoop it out and let you know... I'm also hoping Brady's in the mood to check out this store I've been stalking ever since we've decided to move www.thisisnotikea.com -- I can't wait to browse around there!!!

We got curtains too, but right now they are on the ground and Anabelle thinks they are her new bed...  good thing stuff at ikea is so cheep! :)

moving in,
jennafer

we made it

WE ARE HERE!  I'm literally blocks away from Cinderella's castle! :)  I haven't heard the fireworks yet, but tonight I'm going to be listening for them!! :)  We arrived at our apartment yesterday afternoon and unloaded our INCREDIBLY packed car and have been settling in ever since.  We ate dinner at Downtown Disney last night, and I couldn't stop smiling!  I can't wait to be making magic again soon! :)  Please pray that I'm able to get a job very soon... (hopefully before February 1st) :)  Here are some pictures of our apartment!! :)  We can't wait for ya'll to come visit us so soon! :)

This is the view when you walk in the door:

Then look to the left:

This is if you are standing by the sliding glass door:

Down that hallway that you see to the left of the fireplace:

go through that door and look to the right:  BRADY'S STUDIO :)

Brady's studio-  View from the window:

Brady's studio bathroom:

Through that door:

looking out the studio door:

Through that door:

Master bedroom :) Closet:

 

Master bedroom bathroom:

We live in California :)

More pictures to come when it doesn't look so empty :)

92804,

jennafer

i should be packing

Our house is at an all time crazy.  Seriously.  There is stuff EVERYWHERE-- How did we even get all this stuff?  Why did we keep all of it!?  There is no method to the madness right now-- it's simply this-  1) find an empty box.  2) grab anything in site and throw it in. 3) stack it as high as you can so you don't trip over it. 4) repeat.

I'm proud to admit that up until three minutes ago I was EXTREMELY organized...  I mean REALLY organized... but then when I started to get together our Salvation Army pile for Brady to start making trips it was all down hill--  Will it ever end??

Here are our packed boxes--  they will be making their cute little way to California soon! :)

Some HUGE praises to report:
1) We decided on an apartment and are happy with the price that they gave us... it's going to be on the first floor which means Anabelle will have a (extremely tiny) yard to play in!! :) We sign on the dotted line later on today-- Thank you Lord for providing such an amazing place where we will call home for the next year! :)  Check it out and plan a visit:  www.themadisonpark.com

2) We found out that hiring a moving company would be cheaper than moving ourselves!!  YAY!  The moving company will come on Tuesday to pack up all of our things and start taking them out there!!  SO AWESOME!  We are so thankful for this!!  I've been packing the boxes SO light anticipating carrying a trillion boxes up ninety seven flights of stairs... but as soon as I found out we were going with a moving company I am packing them HEAVY-- getting every penny out of these precious people!!! :)

God is so good during these transition times... :)  Thank you for your prayers and support during this time!  We are truly so thankful for each and every one of you!!! :)

back to packing,
jennafer

2009

2009 was awesome! :)  Here's a recap of what we were up to during the '09! :)

In January I learned how to ski! :)  Brady has been skiing/snowboarding since he was 6 months old (practically) so I couldn't have had a better teacher!  We went up to Wisconsin with an AMAZING youth group, made some great friends and only came home with a few bruises!  :)

We celebrated our 2nd Anniversary :)  YAY! :)  (I don't have pictures to prove it... so just take my word... we made it!)

In 2007 on our annual girls trip we went to New York City and I fell in LOVE with the musical Legally Blonde!  I was lucky to have caught the original cast and immediately became a huge fan of Laura Bell Bundy!  In February Brady surprised me with a trip to go see Legally Blonde at the Fox in St. Louis-  the whole ride there I was trying not to get my hopes up because there was no way this Elle Woods would even compare to LBB... so imagine my surprise and excitement when LBB was understudying the part that night!  I can't believe Brady stayed married to me after this occasion-  I cried I loved it so much, sat on the very edge of my seat the whole time, plus he waited out in the freezing cold with me so I could get a picture with her!  GREAT memory from 2009! :)

I then had a Legally Blonde party and turned the log cabin into the Delta Nu sorority house!  My sweet friends Jane and Ashley (who are equally obsessed) came dressed as Paulette and Margot-- we laughed so hard, watched the musical and all we caught singing along the whole time!   (moo made a perfect Bruiser woods don't you think?)

Purple. Hair.

in March my precious and amazing friend, Lauren, took me to see our BFF Jessica in concert!!!!  WE HAD SO MUCH FUN!  Of course we dressed up like her and took about a zillion pictures.  We almost got kicked out for taking videos of her and got escorted to our seats numerous times for trying to make it closer to the stage-- oh so much fun! :)

we seriously waited for over an hour to try to meet her, but it totally didn't happen-- but we did get a shot of Daisy the pup-- which is almost just as good... right?

WE WENT TO DISNEY WORLD!!!!!  I wish I could post every picture on here because my smile is so outrageous in every one-- I LOVE this place!!  We had so much fun with our dear friends, Martin and Amy for two days... then I went with Lauren, Meredith and Melissa and we literally sprinted the entire day!!

I went to Universal for the first time--  it wasn't Disney World.  (we did have an AMAZING tour guide though, thanks Ashley!!!)

Our Niece KATIE was born!! :)

The easter bunny came:

I took my niece Maggie to see Hannah Montana the movie!

We were blessed with the opportunity to serve at Camp Barnabas this summer-- it was absolutely amazing and an experience we will never forget!

Definitely a HIGHLIGHT of our year was heading to Wyoming in July!  Leading worship for this group of people was so humbling and so rewarding!  We had such great community that week!  Just thinking about it makes me smile!  :)

BRAZIL!  There are no words!!!  The friends we made on this trip honestly cross my mind on a daily basis!  The people we met, the things we experienced were so unreal.  Thank you to Gospel for Brazil for letting us be a part of something so spectacular!

My grandparent's celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary with a big party in Quincy!  We love our trips to Quincy! :)

BRADY CUT HIS HAIR!

The Kinney Family Reunion was a huge success this Labor Day weekend! :)  We always have a blast and laugh so hard!

We took our girls trip to Chicago, spent a day at an amazing spa and ate and incredible meal at the Melting Pot!

The Third Annual Cousin's Weekend fell in October of 2009!  This is one of my favorite times of every year!  This year we are hoping to make it to Florida--  I can't wait! :)

Halloween was a little less spooky and a little more sweet :)

Brian. Regan.

Cooper graduated! :)  A great weekend with family to celebrate Cooper's accomplishment!  We are so proud of you!

Christmas Party at Jane, Angela and Katie's... somehow I wound up at Mrs. Clause--  it was so fun :)

CABO!

Writing this blog has completely humbled me at all of the amazing opportunities the Lord provided for us this year!  How blessed are we that we were able to meet so many amazing people and get to go so many beautiful places!  In 2009 we released a full album under the band name wrent and were able to raise money for those less fortunate than us.  Brady released an EP in December that is AMAZING!  If you haven't downloaded it on iTunes yet- you are CRAZY!  None of this would have been possible without His guidance and grace for us on a daily basis!  For that, we are entirely grateful!

Thanks for walking along this journey with us!  Here's to 2010!

love,

brady, jennafer and anabelle