Wow!

So it's been a hot minute since I posted last! I had been married for 6 weeks. My life was at a huge pivot point! I was finding my new normal and for that season, blogging just didn't fit. 

Fast forward to TODAY and I've been married for coming up 4 years this summer! I have TWO babies now! Life is so different.  And life is wonderful.

With Little Guy almost 6 months old now (and sleeping through the night!!!) I'm starting to think about you all again. Starting to think about a lot of things again. This will take some time, but I'm excited to relaunch my blog soon and rebrand with who I am now. I'm EscoMama!


And since I love a good deal, here's a good one for the parents!

Pampers size 1 and 4 are super cheap on Amazon today!
9 cents a diaper for size 1 and 15 cents for size 4 if you do subscribe and save. http://amzn.to/2nf8Aeh

Lemonade Stand Time

Sometimes my mind goes crazy and starts spitting out ideas.  I think my entrepreneurial father left just a tiny bit of his imprint on me.  I received an email from our condo association about a community yard sale in five weeks.  And BOOM my mind decided I should:

• invite friends to join me to have a more appealing table 

• go through the bags for Goodwill and pull things out 

• go to WalMart and buy that folding table I saw last night 

•  this will be perfect to promote my home business in my new local area

• AND I should definitely make make lemonade and cookies to sell (now to pick the perfect flavor...)

I'd LOVE to know how you have used your entrepreneurial and/or hospitable skills to create the BEST yard sale EVER! And if you enjoy visiting yard sale in NoVa, how to do you find them?  Craigslist, WaPo, neighborhood signs?
Please, all suggestions welcome.

Magnificent Obsession

As I reach the end of my second week of married life, I thought you might want a peek into my wedding day. It was wonderful! As I was returning to my work day commute the last couple mornings, I was listening again to the song that was played during our ceremony while we took communion. Our good friend Josh gave of his time and talent to play Magnificent Obsession by Steven Curtis Chapman. One of my favorite worship songs by SCC, I wanted to share with you what it means to me and our marriage.

Lord, You know how much
I want to know so much
In the way of answers and explanations
I have cried and prayed
And still I seem to stay
In the middle of life’s complications
All this pursuing leaves me feeling like I’m chasing down the wind
But now it’s brought me back to You
And I can see again

This is everything I want
This is everything I need
I want this to be my one consuming passion
Everything my heart desires
Lord, I want it all to be for You, Jesus
Be my magnificent obsession

These lyrics mirror the season of life I had been in prior to my first date with The Husband. God had brought me. God's grace is to always draw us back to Himself. For the wedding day, I had Josh skip this first verse and start in with the part of the song that was my hearts cry of the day.

So capture my heart again
Take me to depths I’ve never been
Into the riches of Your grace and Your mercy
Return me to the cross
And let me be completely lost
In the wonder of the love
That You’ve shown me
Cut through these chains that tie me down to so many lesser things
Let all my dreams fall to the ground
Until this one remains

You are everything I want
You are everything I need
I want You to be my one consuming passion
Everything my heart desires
Lord, I want it all to be for You
I want it all to be for You

You are everything I want
And You are everything I need
Lord, You are all my heart desires
You are everything to me

Wedding days and marriages overall are a mirror of our relationship with Christ. They are meant to teach us more about how He feels towards us, how He cares for us, how He gave His life for His beloved. With the lyrics above my heart was crying out that He would take us both as His. That our main focus would be Him even as we enter a very exciting new relationship and season of life. I am fully in love with my husband. But my magnificent obsession is Jesus. And I am beyond thrilled that He has appointed this time of my life to enter into this earthly covenant to mirror how He loves us. 
I want it all to be for You

ALSO!!!  My wonderful photographer posted a sneak peek of our wedding photos!

http://www.ginnyfilerphotography.com/2013/07/elizabeth-and-josue-are-married/

Bubbles or lack thereof

In the last two and a half years, I think I've had two baths. Not that I've been filthy all this time. I promise I have showered! We're taking about bathtubs here. There was that one retreat and that one hotel... I think that was it for the baths since 2010.

I've written about my journey towards being debt free before. One of the major things I did to turn myself around financially was to give up my pricey one bedroom in exchange for a studio apartment. In many ways, the studio was BETTER than my old place. It was so much closer to work and I really enjoyed the quiet neighborhood. But I gave up a few things. A full kitchen and a bathtub mainly. Some people wouldn't miss these things from their lifestyle, but I really have. But you know what? It was so worth it!! That extra cash in my account each month allowed me to aggressively deal with my debt. 

Now that I'm getting married next month (!!!) I'm getting ready to move back into an apartment that includes multiple rooms, a full kitchen and a bathtub. Yes, it will cost more, but I'll have a husband to help with that.  And together we are going to finish kicking my debt to the curb. We were also smart when we were shopping for a place to live. We did our research and found a great deal that met our needs, but did not excessively exceed them. Now I fully expect to spend the next few months baking and soaking in the tub!

I'd encourage you to make big cuts if you need to save money. You really can do it if you remind yourself it's for a time and a season. The blessings will far outweigh the sacrifice.