Praising Him in EVERY circumstance!

In church this morning one particular set of verses stood out to me. Maybe because of the time of year, the family isn't close, or maybe because the amazing Hubs has been coming and going so often. Whatever it is, it was a great reminder!

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18

This particular part of scripture is about when Paul was in prison. That doesn't sound like a circumstance where I would want to be thankful or praising God in, but that is exactly what Paul did. And God saw him through it, & literally broke the prison doors open to free them. Another special part of the story?! One of the prison guards became a Christian after witnessing Paul praising while he was in the deep part of the prison. Now, if that doesn't give you motivation, what will?! Think of the people that are around you, watching you, learning from you. I can't even fathom the ways God will use me when I learn to praise and thank him in every circumstance!

Being joyous doesn't come from our feelings because feelings come and go. Being joyous comes from faith. When we have faith in God and want to please Him, we can always be joyful. 

My dad always taught me an acronym for JOY:

Jesus first

Others second

Yourself last.

   

True joy comes from Jesus. 

So when I get homesick for my family, I will rejoice.

When Scott has to leave me for trainings or deployments, I will rejoice.

When Mallow moo keeps me up all night, I will rejoice.

When I feel alone, I will rejoice.

When there's hurt, I will rejoice.

In every circumstance, I will rejoice! 

Also, I will be thankful.

I will be thankful that I am in a new season of life, I love being married to my best friend. 

I will be thankful that I am far away from home, I miss my family & appreciate them more.

I will be thankful for Jacksonville, North Carolina. I am making amazing new friends and creating lasting relationships.

I will be thankful when my husband is away for he is fighting for my freedom & we seem to always get closer and learn more about each other. 

I will be thankful when Mallow makes a mess after being outside, for she is my little furrbaby and cuddiler.

I will praise & thank Him in every circumstance.

Dear Dave Ramsey,

Dear Dave Ramsey,

I hate your stickin' guts.

You make me vomit.

You're the scum between my toes.

Love, 

The Cummings

Haha just kidding, kind of.

Part of my personal journey through Scott & my engagement process was to take Financial Peace University through my church, a financial class by Dave Ramsey. It really was very informative, very well written, & Dave Ramsey tried to make it "entertaining". BUT, after taking the class and now married, I have found a tiny problem: We are a military family.

We don't fit the "cookie cutter" budget example through his book, we have to make HEAPS of changes. Just ask us last night, four hours and two budgets for every month later. One for the first two weeks of the month, and one for the last two weeks. They both change constantly due to Scott's training schedules, and future deployment schedule.

One word------CONFUSING! 

"A budget is telling your money where to go, instead of wondering where it went."

But we did it. Together. We completed it, we have a name for every dollar made. I will say after a night of constantly thinking of money and a budget, to dreaming about budgets, I woke up very refreshed and ready to take it on. Bring on the newlywed budget, the ever changing amount of money per week, the bi-weekly changes, the month changes, all of it. Why?! Because it is glorifying to our God {our spiritual duty is to take dominion over our money, not surrendering God's resources to the enemy} and it's making Scott & I closer {Agreeing on our value system, we have unity which is SO powerful}.   

So here is my real letter to Dave Ramsey:

Dear Dave Ramsey,

Thank you for having classes on this confusing matter.

Thank you for teaching to put God first: 

Give, save,& then pay bills.

Thanks for saying, "You must gain control over your money or the lack of it will forever control you."

Thank you for making a template.

Thank you for figuring out that there is a free spirit [Scott] & a nerd [Me!] in most marriages and how to overcome that.

Thank you for showing us how to live like no one else...

So later we can live like no one else.

So now I guess, thank you for the LONG hours last night, the dreams about budgeting, 

and for the budget that my husband & I know hold.

Love, 

Scott & Kassidi

"In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive'."

Acts 20:35

Welcome home!!

Husband is HOME. 

Yes, yes I am an extremely happy wife! Scott is training for his deployment next year and this training lasted a loooooooong month. BUT, he is finally home for a little while and I am going to take advantage of any minute spent with him. 

I love getting butterflies in my stomach, and they definitely were fluttering around as I drove to go pick up my Hubby. I was just a liiiiittle nervous. I love that even after we are married, I still get butterflies. And I still get the opportunity to experience our "first kiss" over and over again. 

Even if we do have to be apart, it makes being together just that much more special. We have gone through many, many homecomings and months apart, but this time was different. 

This time we are married.

This time we both have rings on.

This time we are going back to OUR home.

This time we can fall asleep in each other's arms.

This time we can wake up to each other in the morning.

This time we can have dinner and cuddle in our home.

This time was the best time!

Mallow and I have done a few things around the house to surprise him and I can share a few! ;] 

I wrote this letter from us to be the first thing that he saw & then signed with with love from both of us.

{Mallow's paw may have had ink all over it for a while ha, she's a good sport!}

The house was SUPER clean, I thoroughly cleaned his car for him, and decorated the home for Autumn. He was so happy to be home and was grinning from ear to ear. :]

Mallow attacked Scott with kisses for literally twenty minutes. She would not get off of him or leave his side. 

My heart was full seeing her remember her daddy!

Last week Scott called me and told me that he had a dream of cooking me steak for dinner when he got home. 

So, he made it happen! [Yay me!!]

I took pictures of him grilling, but he didn't want me to share any of them. {Maybe because I had him wear my apron with his jeans [; }

Yummy steak, sweet potato fries, salad, & monkey bread. 

We shared dinner, just the two of us, candlelit. 

It was so romantic.

Praying, holding hands, sharing what has been going on.

Then cuddled on the couch, watched football, & headed to bed.

PERFECT day! 

 My cute Mama-in-love gave me this cute idea! 

In honor of 9.11 

I can't believe that it has been twelve years. 

Please say prayers for the families who lost love ones that day.

Also, pray for the family who has loved ones fighting today.

And those who continue to fight for us.

.:HUSBAND:.

Calling Scott my boyfriend was easy. Calling him fiancé was harder. Scott had been planning to propose for months, so he was used to the idea before I knew what was coming. Right after we got engaged, Scott would introduce me as fiancé and I would get all giddy and blush. 

Calling him HUSBAND, now that is hard to get used to and I love it. I have always wanted to go to college, get married, start a family, live happily ever after. I always wanted to be a young bride. But I never really thought of calling my groom "husband". It always seemed like an old term for people who have been married for forever. 

I seriously get butterflies, blush, and get extremely giddy when I talk about him as my husband. I adore it! And honestly, I don't want to get used to it. 

I want to always get giddy and blush when I talk about my husband. 

Am I the only bride that feels this way?!

Scott, My Husband...

Loves God more than anything

Always loves

Always protects

Always cuddles

Never leaves

Is my bestest friend

Always kisses me goodnight

And kisses me in the morning

Loves my morning hair

Looks sexy in his uniform

Has my whole entire heart

Home

Leads me

Is patient

Kisses me on my forehead

Loves church

Is my Sailor <3

Trusts me

Travels with me

Prays for me

Is my happy

Is the key to my heart

Shares secrets & keeps them

Is my favorite

Eats my dinners

Reminds me of my Daddy

Is my other half

Loves dating me

Strengthens me

Loves me unconditionally

Romantic

Sends me adorable messages

Will grow old with me

Thinks of me before himself

Gives amazing hugs

Loves my family

Understands me

Encourages me

Great kisser

Sends me flowers

Is a man of God

Will forever be my always

Calls me when he's away

Makes me giggle

Is going to be the best daddy one day

Loves taking pictures with me

Watches all kinds of movies with me

Takes romantic walks with me

Bought me a puppy

Surprises me

Makes up the best stories, ever

Amazing lover

Shares candlelit dinners with me

Cooks with me

Gives me massages

Acts like a little kid with me

Builds blanket forts

Sings on road trips

Tickles me

Never wants to change me

Enjoys my mountains with me

Makes me feel like the most gorgeous girl in the world

Is the main character in my journals

Adventures

Loves me without makeup, in comfy clothes

Loves me dressed up

Grills dinner

Always holds my hand

Flirts with me

Plays with my hair

Is my comfort zone

Loves all of the nicknames I have for him:

Hubs, Hubby, Loverbug, Love, Cuddlebug, Hubster, Mr. Cummings

Honey, Honeybunchesofoats, Sweetheart

Loves ice cream..almost as much as me

Plays at the beach with me

Leaves me breathless

Comes up with nicknames for me

Cleans the house

Loves me for me

Draws amazing

Knows the Bible

Is an amazing Husband.

Wow. 

Husband is such a strong, very detailed word.

No pressure to keep this up, Honey! ;]

How did I ever live life without Scott?!

I seriously am the most blessed girl in the entire world!

Scott, Thank you for truly being an amazing Husband.

God, Thank you for blessing me with the Husband of my dreams and inventing marriage as a gift to both of us. 

Military Newlyweds.

I have only been a Navy wife for a short time, but 

have already learned a few hard things. 

First off, by saying "I do" to being the wife God made me to be to my Sailor, I also said I do to the following... 

• Leaving my home state and moving across the country.
• Having to learn how to be a housewife, without my mom down the street for help.
• Learning how to cope being away from my family and friends.
• Saying goodbye, yet again, to my Hubby as he leaves days at a time, sometimes weeks, and lately months. 
• Having to squish my own spiders, millipedes, and         NASTY cockroaches.
• Reaching out to other women who have gone through all of this.

Because of these "I Do's", I have found some good ways to cope without crying every night and laugh through each day. 

Here are just four of them!

Church.

Your relationship with God will flourish while you are on your knees. Find a good church home to plant your feet in on Sunday mornings. Find some Christian women to hold you when your family back home can't. And find that God is the best ingredient to a long lasting, happy marriage. 

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 

Phone.

The telephone is your best friend. Whether it is to have a conversation with Scott, listen to his voicemail, or to call family & friends. I always have my phone on me to capture these precious moments. [I do secretly, okay not so secretly, wish we still used old vintage phones, in addition to our cell phones.] 

Furr-babies.

Mallow really is my best friend when Scott isn't here. 

She lets me "dress" her up all cute, plays with me, and lets me cuddle her. Pets are a perfect way to make you realize that you aren't all by yourself. I might even have conversations with her. Might.

Parents.

My parents are my best friends. My in-laws are amazing. 

I am just one blessed girl!

I love the family that I have and I love the family that I married into. Family should be your comfort zone. Strive to better relationships and pursue new ones. When I am down and need a pick-me-up, my family always comes through and cheers me up. 

Parents are your best support group. 

This has been on off day, so it was good to remember some of the ways I have learned how to cope. :]