It's about time for an update. . .

THIS BLOG IS FROM FOREVER AGO!!!

I never actually posted this blog... it's from September 12, 2008.



So it's been forever since I last wrote in my blog. I've had a great summer filled with lots of time with my family, and lots of relaxation. Also, got a lot of stuff done for the wedding which I will have NO time to do starting Monday! This summer I was able to revitalize my spirit and get my head back on straight. (haha)






I so enjoyed my time with my friends at Austin & Angie's wedding in Ohio. It was the most fantastic time I've had in SUCH a long time. It was so great for all of us to be together again! Here's a pic of all of the girls with the beautiful bride!





I went to Minnesota after my trip to Ohio and was able to spend some time with my family. I was sad that Rob couldn't go, but I promised him that he could go next time! It was a great time and I am excited for those who can make it to the wedding... it's going to be great to see everyone again!



We go to go down to Elfrida in July to see Great-Granny Ruby and Tom. It was such a great visit and we drove home in the worst storm I think I've ever been in (in Tucson)!



Michelle also had her baby in July. Ryder is just a lil guy but is getting so big! Congrats to Seth & Michelle!



We spent Labor Day in Pinetop. I kinda wish we went to San Diego to see Timmy, but it was still a great time. It's so peaceful up there and I LOVE the weather. I must also say that I won all the games (well, most of them).






I've been watching Isabella the last few Wednesdays. It's great to reconnect with her... we haven't had much time with her due to all the Monica drama and I'm so glad that David sees how much she misses our family. She's so sassy!






One of the things I've been most greatful for this summer is being close to Andi & Joe & Caleb. He is getting soooooo big and I love that I get to see him so much! He's such a love & Andi tells everyone he loves his Aunt B the most! (he really does) :)






I started a daily devotional where I open my Bible to a random page and write down a verse, try to define it in my own words, and then apply it to my life. It will be great to get my thoughts and prayers on paper. I know it will help me to keep my faith a priority and focus on it more.






Well, I leave for LA on Sunday to start a new chapter. Deloitte is going to be a great company to work for and I am excited for my future with them. I planned out my school schedule, CPA study schedule and exams. It's going to take me the next year (straight) to get all of it done. It will be so rewarding to have it all done (especially the awesome bonus) and to be able to start my MBA/graudate studies (hopefully by January 2010).






Well, I think that's it for now. I hope everyone is doing well, I hope to hear from all of you soon!






Bible Verse to think about:

Your beginnings will seem humble, so prosperous will your future be.
-Job 8:7






xo






b

Summer is Here!

Oh my, has life been busy, Busy, BUSY!

I finally got settled here in Scottsdale. I absolutely LOVE it! It's great to finally be living with Rob, I'm close to Tay & Kris, and Sis & Bebe Caleb!

Caleb was born on 4.15.08 @ 11:25am @ the West Valley Medical Center. He was only 5 lbs. 12 oz! He is just such a joy and so, so, so cute! I am so blessed to have my lil Squishy [as I call him] in my life... Here's a pic of him in his bouncy:

Here he is at graduation [smiling for Aunt B!]:

Speaking of graduation... it was amazing. It was like a flicker and it was over with. Oh, and did I mention it was soooo long? Here's a pic of me and my new friend Jenny [jschisse!]:

We're going to be working together, both of us start @ Deloitte in the Fall [so excited!]

And this was after grad:

I'm studying for the CPA Exam [Financial Portion]. It's only day two and I am exhausted. haha only like 36 more weeks of studying and test-taking left!

We are making progress on the wedding. . . I will get my wedding website together [finally] and post the link once it's ready!

Not much else going on here... haha finally updated this thing after Riles gave me a hard time[Thx, buddy]!

Hope all is well!

xoxoxo

b

NYC Pics and such. . .

K so I promised some pictures... here are a few.

Don't have much time but will keep posting more as I find time!

The Financial District

Bein' Silly in Philly
Deleware River with my l.o.v.e.

Gabe being... Gabe. [at the Rock]

A Park in Philly...

Deleware River again

El Parque Central

Meet me on top of the Empire State!

Brooklyn Bridge Walk. . .

The Rock.

Me... at the Rock.

I believe,

That Love is the greatest thing in the world.

That it alone can overcome hate, that right

can and will triumph over might.

-Rockefeller, Jr.

In Central Park

Le Met

Typical NYC

I hope everyone is doing well . . . I'm terribly sorry school has consumed me lately.

A little scripture before I hit the hay:

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

John 15:13

I have a friend in Jesus. . . do you?

39 more days until I get the most expensive piece of paper of my life!

xoxo

b

we went to NYC, NJ, & PA...

it was awesome.

great to get away.

lots of drama, lots of good times, most of all great to see our buddy gabriel.

he seems to be doing well...

i have some pics posted on my myspace: myspace.bom/briana_bunch

i hope you all enjoy them.

we're lovin that DSLR of ours!

rob moves to phx next weekend.

53 days til im a college grad.

trekkin here...

thats it!

Bible Verse:

"Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control."
Proverbs 25:28

Live by it.

xo

b

Bleh . . .

Not much new to report... life is just -ok- right now.

Michelle's Wedding was Saturday. She looked absolutely stunning and made me cry all day long. She's **Mrs.** Hopkins now! Oh geeze!

Dad came home for a few days and left for Bolivia today. I don't get to see him until the baby is born in May and for graduation. I miss him already!

I sent out Sissy's Baby Shower invites today . . . all 130 of them. We're having **3** Baby Showers for her... ohhh that girl - she makes me laugh. They've decided to name him Caleb John Wilhem, so they can name him "CJ". Not my favorite name... Sissy really liked the name Brady and I liked that one a lot more.

Looks like Rob will be moving to Phoenix soon - he starts his new job on March 31. I'm really excited for him. Cintas has been a really tough place for him to be. Let's just say Sales is a tough industry. We've got to figure out this housing thing . . . what to do with his house, whether we're going to rent or buy in Phoenix, etc . . . I wanna be young again so I don't have to worry about all this crap!

School sucks more and more each day... I've never had so many condesending teachers in my life, and I am surely struggling this semester. Oh well, ** Only 66 Days Left** - [Praise the Lord!!!!]

We joined an ABF @ Casas . . . the group is so dynamic and fun. I'm so sad we're going to have to leave our church. We love it so much! We'll figure something out, I guess! I've really been feeling more and more about going on a mission this summer. I've been feeling a calling since January and it's really time to decide if I will go or not . . . I'm leaving it in God's hands to help me decide and figure it out!

I haven't had too much time lately to work on my photography. Riley suggested a book to us and we're getting better! Here's a pretty decent [definitely not perfect] shot [not photoshopped - we haven't bought it yet!]:

These were some flowers Rob bought me - absolutely beautiful! We're going to buy photoshop soon. It's a must - to enhance and perfect our photos!

I think that's it . . . kind of a boring blog, I know. I'm taking a break from studying for my two tests that I have on Wednesday!

**NYC in 2 Days, 5 Hours, and 38 Minutes**

And, of course:

**354 Days until I am Mrs. Robert Rader**

Bible Verse to think about:

"All things are possible with God"

Mark 10:27

much love to all - i hope you are having a blessed week.

b

God doesn't give you more than you can handle...

WOW. This has been quite a week . . .

This is going to be really long, but bare with me . . . you will learn a lot from it.

There are things that happen in my life that I just cannot understand, and do not know why they happen. But let me start off by saying... I love my life. I love my family. I love my friends. Most importantly, I love my LORD JESUS CHRIST.

Sunday morning I had the hardest time waking up for church. I don't know why . . . but Sundays are really hard to get up for, and it really is the best [and my favorite] day of the week. I go to church, we worship, receive amazing sermons/messages from Roger, Glenn, and Jack, and then take in God's love to improve our lives. It's just amazing.

Back to my story. This week, the sermon was about how we shouldn't mourn or have guilt about our past, and worry about the future. It's about living in today and living for God's glory. I am a WORRY WART. I worry about anything and everything. I started throwing those worries away and started living in today. It feels so great to have that lifted off my chest. Each and every day that my relationship strengthens with God I feel more and more rejuvenated and like a new person.

So . . . I left church with amazing thoughts and just felt like my life couldn't be better. Then, we see Tom, Allyson, and Ally's family. I tried saying hello to Ally and her family several times and no response . . . yet Rob and I had a coversation with Tom for nearly 30 minutes . . . it's so great to see he is doing better things with his life and seems really happy. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to see that. The unfortunate thing is that we had this wonderful sermon about forgetting about the past and living in God's glory today, and it was like as soon as that family hit those church doors and set into the world, they completely disregarded the message and I could just feel the hatred being portrayed toward me. I unfortunate and disappointing. My dad has always said, since I was little . . . pray for your enemies. Well, I will definitely be praying for that family. How sad... I hope one day, when I am 50 something years old, I am not standing on my church grounds glaring at a 21-year-old with hatred and an unforgiving heart. Pray for them for me . . .

Cooper graduated from obedience training on Monday. I am so glad . . . he was becoming such a great dog. Here's a pic of us with the cutie:


I say that he "was" becoming a good dog because he died yesterday. Coop, Penny, and I were driving on River, getting ready to turn into my complex, and Coop saw a dog being walked on the side of the road. I tried to roll the window up, but he squeezed through. He jumped out of the window, dodged one car, but got hit by another, flew through the air, and died immediately. YES... I watched all of this. To make matters worse, the man walking the dog that Coop was going after just walked away, no regard for the situation. Then, nobody stopped to help me. I stood, at River Road, bawling my eyes out, staring at my dead dog as nearly 30 cars just slowed down and swerved around him. One nice lady stopped to see if I was alright, and then two very nice ladies stopped their car, stopped traffic, took me aside, and picked Coop up off the road. Another lady stopped to see if we needed a blanket to put him in my car. The lady that hit him was the sweetest thing and I am so sad that it had to be her. She hadn't ever gotten a ticket, been in an accident, or harmed an animal. I tried to convince her it wasn't her fault. How sad . . . To make matters worse, the man that was walking the dog came back, only to hide on the other side of the wall between some bushes to videotape all of us and the commotion. I swear . . . there are some sick people out there.

We are okay with what happened. Dogs die. I loved Coop. He made me so happy. He brought Rob and I so much closer. Am I okay with the fact that I witnessed all of that yesterday? No . . . but am I going to be alright? YES! God loves me and has been comforting me through all of this. BUT . . . this whole situation makes me despise Tucson even more. Makes me realize why I am getting out of this town. **ugh**

I'm praying for my family. I'm praying for my friends. I'm praying for those 5 nice ladies that helped me yesterday. I'm praying for the Solomons. I'm praying . . .

14 days until NYC.

78 days until I am a college graduate.

One year and two days until I am Mrs. Robert Lewis Rader . . .

What a wonderful life.

Bible Verse to think about:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

-Romans 15:13

I am at peace with this week because I have a God in my heart that is a mighty God. If I trust in Him, hope will follow, and I will live in Him.

much love & muchos besos a todos -

b

Rejuvenation

I'm sitting at my desk thinking of ways I can procrastinate... I have a test at 12:30 tomorrow and have only studied a few hours. I haven't ever been a procrastinator in my life until this semester. This week made me realize how much of a procrastinator I have been. It seems like "manana, manana" is my motto lately. Starting tonight that motto is going to be thrown away! I have always been an extremely motivated individual and lately I have been somewhat lax in my ways. I am going to start tomorrow fresh and with a new perspective. I'm going to bring the old me back, and prove to myself that I can do the things I used to and be happy. I am a planner. I am a list-maker. I am a task-taker. I'm motivated. I'm strong. I'm bringing it all back.

In light of that, I am going to set some daily goals for myself:

• Read the Bible at least 30 minutes per day.
• Make church my #1 on Sundays [join an ABF next week].
• Get ahead in my studies [finish things two days before they are due...like I used to].
• Read a novel 30 minutes per day.
• Exercise 30 minutes + per day.
• Drink more water.
• Eat more fruit and veggies.
• Think positively [no more Negative Nancy or Debbie Downer syndrome].
• Make my passions my priorities [prioritize].

I love Monday nights with Jose and Melea. It's been really hard lately seeing that all of my best friends have left town in the past year to six months... I'm going to call, email, and text them more. Everyday I am at my house I realize more and more the value of those friendships. I love my girls. . . and do not know what I would do without them.

I can't wait til next week. My dad is coming back from Bolivia for a few weeks. He called me today. I wanted to cry I was so excited but I didn't want to bring him down. I can't wait to hear all of his interesting and cultural stories. I have to turn my passport stuff in [prioritize]!!

We got our slideshow of our engagement pictures... absolutely stunning.

Here's a preview:

Here's the link: http://aplusrphoto.com/show/briana-rob/

Love to my girlies who aren't close in distance but close in heart: Krista, Aubri, Taylor, and Sissy for always being supportive and having faith in me.

I think that's all for tonight. Oh, wait: 22 Days until Spring Break in NYC and 86 until I'm officially a college graduate. **Praise the Lord**

Bible verse for the night [definitely appropriate for the mood]:

Therefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

xoxo

b