Mrs. Parrett: April 2013

Life Update:

Life has been pretty busy over the past few weeks and I’m preparing for it to get even busier!

Spring has finally arrived and I have been trying to take full advantage of the gorgeous weather. Long walks, jogs, picnics, hikes, etc. have been my source of stress relief from all the business.

Two weekends ago I was also able to travel with my best girlfriends to the Finger Lakes, NY for a wine tour. It was seriously so much fun…! All 6 of us crammed into one hotel room and just laughed the whole weekend. It was a five hour drive each way BUT surprisingly that was one of my favorite parts of the trip. Singing loudly to our favorite songs and playing strange car games were some of the highlights.

Weston has started fishing again so it was a good weekend for him too! He caught us a bunch of trout to eat and I supplied the wine for the next couple of dinners. ;)

Work Update:

I work at Lancaster County Children and Youth as a protective caseworker. That means I work with families that still have their children but need some extra help. I work with these families to get them on the right path and hopefully help them find and utilize resources that prevent the placement of their children. As you can imagine it can be a pretty tough job.

I grew up in a foster family where we over 32 children come in and out of our home… and my two youngest siblings are adopted so this profession is near and dear to my heart. It can be really tough some days but the success stories are why I do it. It’s something that is very hard to explain but I know that this is where God wants me to be right now.

I am also a photographer and wedding season is just beginning!!! Some awesome things have happened and I am shooting 22 weddings this year… YES, I said TWENTY TWO. Haha… I managed the get 10 on my own and then I was asked to second shoot with my favorite photographers …EVER at Brooke Courtney Photography. I am still kind of in disbelief that this is actually happening but I could not be more excited.

So between my full time job as a caseworker, 22 weddings, not to mention my little sister’s AND best friend’s weddings (which I am MOH in BOTH) in September I am going to be one busy girl.

Some people call me absolutely crazy but I could not be happier with the opportunities God has put in front of me.

Weston on the other hand is still teaching in York City Schools. He is learning to love it so much and we are preparing to hear if they are renewing his position into next year. This is something that has been weighing heavy on my heart for many reasons and prayers are appreciated!

Music is something that we feel is so important and it breaks my heart that it is even a consideration to take it out of the schools. Anyway, I could go on forever but I’m leaving this one up entirely to God! There is only one quarter left in his school year and during the summers he works at a golf course which he absolutely loves.

As we prepare for this crazy awesome summer to start I wanted to update you all and write it down so in a couple years from now I can look back and remember all of this.

I can’t think of anything better than being married to your best friend. It has been 9 months (ONE YEAR THIS SUMMER… whaaaat?!) and I just can’t imagine doing life with anyone else. It has been such an amazing journey so far and I just cannot wait to see what else is in store. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed with happiness that I just want to cry. I don’t know what I did to deserve all of this, but I’m truly so thankful. Life has certainly not been perfect but I would not change a single thing.

I read a verse the other day that struck me hard. John 13:7 Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”

I had no clue this is where we would be now and I have no clue where we will be a year or even a couple months from now. BUT it so incredibly comforting and exciting to know the creator of the universe knows and is orchestrating everything.

***I apologize for my scattered thoughts and updates. I hope you are all doing well!! Xoxo Mrs. Parrett

Some Grandma’s pay for college, others go all out at birthdays and Christmas… My Grandma, well she likes to take us on vacation. Over the past couple of years she has taken (and paid for) 18-20 of us to Jamaica, Bahamas, Dominican Republic and Mexico. We are a busy family and she knows one way to get us all together is take us somewhere tropical :).

We are so blessed.

This trip was a little harder then most because my Grandma’s dementia has gotten a lot worse, even just over the past couple of months. This trip was probably the last one we will be able to take with her, and I’m really glad we were able to do it. She is one of the most fun people I know and she’ll be 80 in October!! She loves Jesus, her family, beer and the Steelers. She was a principal for many many years and raised two amazing kids (one being my Dad).

The week was spent mostly just relaxing and spending time together as a family. I brought my “good” camera but ended up using my phone for most of the trip! Some of my favorite parts were, of course, the free food and drink, riding gold carts all over Isla Mujeres, running with the sunset Easter morning, having my own room with Weston (this was the first family vacay as a married couple :)), our personal hammock on the porch, the 85 degree weather, sun, sand, palm trees, and summer clothes all week!! Mexico is also where Weston and I honeymooned in July so it will always have a special place in my heart.

Here are some iPhone pics from the trip! One day I’ll get around to uploading the rest.