2017 What a Year!

2017 Recap!

2017 was a great year but I'm very ok moving forward. This was the year of 'minor' health issues for me. In that perspective it was horrible but every thing else was truly magnificent, exciting, and eventful. It was a very pivotal year for me and Cody! Lets start off the year with my job:

1. So first of all I landed my dream job as a Shaw engineer back in February. I had prayed for so long for this job and I feel absolutely honored to be able to work for Shaw. I am so so blessed and lucky to have such a wonderful job and work with such wonderful people. I enjoy what I do so incredibly much. I have grown so much in this year alone! I absolutely can't wait for what these next few years bring! (in case you missed it read about my new job here)
2. In March I got to meet Philip Fulmer in person... TWICE! Man do I wish he could be UT's next head coach.
3. In April I made a major change and cut 12 inches off of my hair donating it to Locks of Love here. I plan on doing this over and over again for the rest of my life (Lord willing I still have a lot of hair when I get older).
4. Also in April I landed my first bout of pneumonia. Let me tell you... that was NOT fun. I have no idea how I got it but it basically progressed from a sore throat to pneumonia in two days. I just remember my chest feeling like I had been punched repeatedly and I was so frustrated because I didn't understand why, and it hurt to breathe. I had finally broken down and went to urgent care after a round of antibiotics didn't work. After the x-rays, it was revealed why I wasn't getting better (pneumonia) and was given ANOTHER antibiotic and a huge antibiotic shot on top of all of that and steroid breathing treatments. All of that pretty much left me feeling worse and I couldn't even lay down or breathe in deeply without being in excruciating pain. On top of all of that I passed out twice trying to leave the urgent care. I don't know why.
5. May 8th Cody started the two year journey of obtaining his masters degree. I am so proud of him and can't wait for his graduation in May 2019! Read about it  here
6. So after all of that happened, it was about time for my Lasik surgery. Now I know I willingly got myself into that but man I wasn't expecting the recovery to be that excruciating. Read all about that here in case you missed that post. (I still don't regret that decision at all as it is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love my new vision!!
7. During the process of healing, Cody and I celebrated our sweet first anniversary in Gatlinburg renting a cabin! It was so much fun and we loved spending quality time together just the two of us and re-watching our wedding ceremony video. here and here
8. July rolls around and Cody and I celebrate our 24th birthdays. I LOVED my birthday party of hiking and having my family there to celebrate. Re-read about it here
9. Also in July I was baptized by full submersion! What a life-changing experience and expression of my faith! I feel baptism is so incredibly important whether it performed by christening as an infant, sprinkling as confirmation or as an adult, or baptism by full submersion as a kid or adult, it is so very special to have that recognition in your heart to God. Read more here .
10. August rolled around and Cody started his new job at Soddy Daisy high school along with his new position of Defensive line coach as Soddy Daisy. (the team has done really well this year and made it to the playoffs!) here
11. In late August I got pink eye. The third health ordeal. I had no idea what was wrong with my eye and I was TERRIFIED that it was a post lasik complication. I went all day not being able to see clearly and my eye just seeping water/pus (tmi? sorry, it was true and painful). I was very scared and it got progressively worse very fast. After a trip to the ER, my eye was pretty much glued shut and the nastiest red and swollen, I was given antibiotic drops which within the next day cleared up the red pretty instantly but kept my eye swollen shut and seepy. For days this went on until I visited my primary eye doctor to find out I was having an allergic reaction to the eye drops the ER gave me 😒. So I got new eye drops and within half a week, my eye was back to normal. Thankfully this ordeal happened over a long weekend!
12. In early September mom finally sold her house after 3 1/2 years. She now permanently lives in Knoxville! That makes me a little sad because she is further away but I am so happy for her! I can't wait to see her future!
13. Now fast forward to October. I decided to "relive the glory days" and join a soccer league again. I hadn't played in over 7 years but missed the competition and being active on a team. I badly sprained my ankle and tore many ligaments in half. 😑 Read more here if you missed out on that post. 
14. November and December Cody and I enjoyed the holidays with family and really look forward to 2018. 2017 has been such a fun, eventful, humbling year that we have learned a lot from. BRING ON 2018!!!!!!! :) Who knows what God has in store for us! :):)

Happy New Year!

With so much love,

Kayla Raborn

1-1-18

P.S. I do value my health and take for granite my healthy body, I know those four things that happened to me this year are small, insignificant, and temporary and I am very grateful for God giving me a healthy body, this was just a humbling year to realize all I have to be grateful for and to never take health for granite. 

What is Christmas really about?

           Christmas time! The most wonderful time of the year! Everything is brighter, people are happier, gifts are bought, families are together, trees are cut, lights are strung, stockings are hung. Just everything is perfect. Christmas time is so fun but so incredibly busy. There's not a time in the year that goes by as fast as Christmas does. So during all that hustle and bustle is there even time to stop and think? Time to stop and reflect? Take time to slow down and really think about Christmas and what it means to you because Christmas really isn't about all of the toys, presents, money and gifts given, or even about the traditions and trips together as a family. Christmas is about the man in the name. CHRIST. And just that. In this world so lacking religion, Christ unfortunately comes last in a lot of ways, even as far as people taking Christ out of the name Christmas short handing it to xmas. Christmas doesn't even exist without Jesus. Christmas is made to celebrate Jesus' birth. Santa, presents, cookies, trees, lights, etc. doesn't even really have anything to do with Christ. Some may argue it is part of the celebration, but I honestly think the two don't even correlate. It's not wrong to celebrate Santa and Santa bringing gifts, but I think it is extremely important to really realize the meaning of the extremely special day, Jesus' birth. Now technically, Jesus was born some time in March due to tracing historical records and following climate clues in the bible and what it was like in the middle east during that time period, but December 25th is a universal day to chose to recognize and celebrate our saviors birth since birth records were not kept back then and we don't know the exact day. 

             When Cody and I have kids we will celebrate Christmas with Santa and gifts, but that will not be the focus. We will give our kids a few presents but they will have to give one of their old toys to the Samaritan center for every gift they receive to help teach them the real meaning of the season. Christ will be the focus and our kids will anticipate celebrating Christ's birth rather than what gifts they will be receiving the next morning. I am extremely excited to teach our kids about their savior and raise our family in the ways of the Lord; just as I was raised as a child. 

Jesus wants us to love one another and give to those in need and most importantly spread God's word, not just for one month out of the year, but every day year round. We should shift the focus of Christmas to Christ in such a way that even atheists understand the reason for the season. If they don't believe in Jesus, why are they celebrating a holiday made to celebrate Christ for their own gain (gifts and Santa)? Christ is love and wants all of his children to come to him. We are Christ's recruits. 

The story of Jesus' birth is one of my favorite stories to read in the bible. There is something so pure and magical, that it makes you wish you could travel back in time and be there for that famous night. Christmas is about Christ not Santa.




Santa is a nice thought and I know it derives from St. Nicholas. St. Nick was a good man who brought toys to orphans in the winter but do we even recognize that about the symbolism of Santa? We should read the story of St. Nick too!

          Also one of the most amazing movies I have ever seen is The Star! It is a WONDERFUL modern way to share the story about Jesus in a very kid-friendly way. Cody and I saw it the other weekend and it was easily the best movie we have ever seen! Please take you and/or your kids and support these Christian  movies! The sad thing is there is little to zero advertisement due to the way our nation is set up to fear anything with your opinion or religious affiliation. Christianity shouldn't be stifled or hidden, it should be shouted from the rooftops so everyone can hear the good news about Christ. Jesus died for our sins and loves every single one of us. Jesus gave us the free will to make our own decisions regardless of what we think is right or wrong. Jesus loves you! And the best part is you will spend eternity in heaven with Jesus! We are all sinners, repent your sins and live a life filled with Christ-likeness and love. Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice, he sacrificed his own life for all of our sins, and the penalty of our sins wouldn't be death anymore. Give thanks this season to all of the good things Jesus has given you. God gave us this world and he has given us the family we get to spend Christmas with. God is always with us and never wants anything bad to happen to us. Holidays can be hard with those with loss. Those hurting with loss this season talk to the Lord, God is always with you and will NEVER leave you. Spend time in prayer with the Lord. We are the sheep and he is our Shepard. 

          Christmas to me means time with family and time together. Christmas to me means to slow down and appreciate the little things in our life that we may take for granite, and to thank the Lord for the time he gives us because that is one thing that we can never get back or get enough of. For me, Christmas means to enjoy the extra time at church for all of the Christmas gatherings, live nativity scenes, rejoicing to God with Christmas music concerts, and caroling to the neighbors. Christmas means to me, joining organizations at church to feed the homeless families, sewing a quilt for the elderly, visiting nursing homes, taking part of operation Christmas child, and choosing gifts on the angel tree to give to the children in the community. If you are looking for opportunities to help out in your community, look to churches around you, there are a lot of community outreach programs this time of year. Christmas to me also means reenacting Jesus' birth with the family, reading the advent candles out before Christmas dinner, driving around looking at Christmas lights, listening to family devotions, tithing to the church, and gracing family members with random acts of kindness. Christmas time to me means reconnecting to family members and eating a nice warm Christmas meal together in the anticipation of the next day, seeing the joy on peoples face when they see the gift you have gotten them from listening to the needs of their heart. Christmas warms my heart and reminds me of the real reason for the season. I see the love of Christ in my family.  I look forward to Christmas every year and always strive to carry that love throughout the year. That is my new years resolution every year.

What does Christmas mean to you and your family?

With so much love,

The Raborns 💗

12-8-17

Christmas Wish List

2017 Christmas Wish List

Here are a few things I could think of to ask my family for for Christmas this year. I am so excited to spend time with family and I have realized I truly have everything I need, my faith, family, my husband, my health, food to eat, a 'house', etc. These are just some wish list things in the back of my mind that I wanted to share! I LOVE looking at other blogs about Christmas and what other people ask for so I thought I would share :) Posts to come will talk all about Christmas traditions and Christmas cheer!

Pop Socket
Pop sockets have been so revolutionary to holding your phone! I thought this one was so pretty! The pop sockets stick on the back of your phone and help you hold the phone and help you take better pictures because your phone isn't falling out of your hands. I highly recommend investing in this

Goldador Book
So it's no secret that Cody and I are dying to have a dog. They are a lot of responsibility, expensive, and keep you from being able to travel and go places, but their benefits waaaaay outweigh the negatives. I can't wait to have a man's best friend with us, joining our family. We want a Goldador which is a cross between a Labrador retriever and a golden retriever. 

Gift cards
Gift cards of course! Cody and I use these all the time for date nights. We asked for some of our favorite places to go such as movie theaters, Starbucks, First Watch, etc.

Dress Extender
I love this dress extender below. I always love dresses and skirts but they are almost always too short and make me feel immodest and uncomfortable. So this cute dress extender lets me wear/buy my favorite dresses and not worry about a thing!

Bath Bombs
Bath bombs are so relaxing! Most smell really good and turn the bath water beautiful colors!

Cookie Dough
Must I further explain? Haha, who wouldn't want cookie dough!?!?! (Unbaked Bar is a great place to order these delicious treats!)

Essential Oils Diffuse
This year I asked for something I had been hearing a lot about. I really wanted to incorporate essential oils into my life because I had heard all about the benefits of aroma therapy. The diffusers below are how the oils are dispersed into the air. I have been doing my research about the specific oils for a while.

Magnus Bane chronicals

This is the shadow hunters series by Cassandra Clare. I love this series so much. Cassandra has three separate series all intertwined. Her books are very intriguing.

Over Sized Scarfs

These scarfs are so beautiful I can't even decide which one I like best! They look so warm and cozy paired with a solid colored dress and ankle cut boots! 

Floral Dress

And last but not least, this absolutely gorgeous floral patterned dress! It looks perfect for spring and looks very flowy and soft!

What did you ask for for Christmas?

Love,

Kayla 

12-4-17

Christmas Timeeee!

Guys, it is FINALLY Christmas time! I am so incredibly excited! What an amazing way to end the year. So much happiness, so much joy everywhere!

I realize that I already posted about making Christmas cookies with Gigi but realized I never posted any pictures! So here are our masterpieces!

Oatmeal chocolate peanut butter drop cookies!

We baked all day and Sasha only managed to run off with one sick of butter😂.

Now onto Christmas decorations! So here in the Raborn house, we put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving...immediately. It is very important to put the tree up right away to enjoy it as long as possible, but not before Thanksgiving. You know how the saying goes, every tree lit before Thanksgiving, an elf drowns a baby reindeer. We don't want that happening. 

Here is the rest of the decor around the apartment! If you can't tell already, polar bears are my favorite animal and they are all over my apartment!

And like last year, here are our custom made stockings that I had made for us the year we were engaged. I love them so much and you bet we will be ordering some for our kids one day! So fun!

Some more new decor! I love the hot coco smelling candle and the cute little picture of Cody as a kid.  And yes in the background that is a Starbucks cup. I got one of the Christmas cups and colored in the design! It was a fun little craft! In the waaaay back we have our 'Be Merry' plank from our aunt Laurie for Christmas last year (which we LOVE) and we bought that cute little towel on our oven that says 'Best time of year" from Target. 

I purchased some fake snow from our anniversary trip in Gatlinburg this summer and I am so excited to use it! 

Here is a further away view of our tree. It's not a very tall tree but it's full of love :). 

We got this angel from Gatlinburg at Christmas time last year. It is so majestic and gorgeous. This year we plant to get a nativity scene and the following year an advent wreathe, and the following year, a Christmas countdown. 

 And the really cool thing about being married and our own family, is creating your own traditions. I talked a little about that last year. This year Cody and I really enjoyed hanging up the ornaments we had collected over the past 6 1/2 years and how each ornament kind of tells a story; each has a special meaning. If you are interested, keep scrolling below!

This ornament is one of Cody and I's favorite. I got it for Cody for our third Christmas together. It is a wooden cross which has the story of Jesus carved into it. 

This is our most prized ornament. We had full intentions to get this in Gatlinburg during our actual first Christmas married last year but the Christmas Shoppe was a zoo. We decided to come back for our anniversary and did just that. We waited in zero lines. It was so special to get a customized ornament for us to keep on our tree until we are 90+ years old. I just love it so much. (The bears are just so precious!)

I made this ornament for Cody last year for him to open for Christmas. It is something very special to us to have our first apartment. While I was still in school Cody looked around for a long time to find the perfect place for us and get our name on the list. We were lucky enough to snag a ground-level apartment in the coolest apartment complex in the area. AND  Cody got to move in 3 months before the wedding which was a dream for planning and setting up. 

This special ornament isn't actually an ornament at all. It is a little case and it was just so beautiful to not hang on the tree. It is a hand painted box of a horse that Gigi got me a few years ago for Christmas. 

This specific ornament was our first official ornament. This ornament was the first ornament I gave Cody on our first Christmas ever over 6 years ago!

This ornament we got as a present from our cousin Nathan. It is so special! He gave it to us as a wedding present and found it at Panama City Beach (our favorite place and honeymoon location). There is actually a twin ornament of this one that he gave us!

This ornament is so sweet! Our Nana (Dyar) gave it to us this year and it is a Santa with a Thomas Kinkade pained coat! So special! We love his work!

This ornament I think I showed last year. We made sure to collect sand from our honeymoon a year and a half ago to make into an ornament to remember what a special week that was and to see the gorgeous shells. 

These Mickey and Minnie ornaments were bought during out second part of our honeymoon in Disney! We absolutely HAD to have them!

These three ornaments have a special story to them. So the blue ornament with white stars on it represents me and Cody's love for stargazing (especially early on in our dating relationship) and how Nana gave it to me the summer I was going into college. I would always look at it when I was getting overwhelmed and felt instantly better, thinking of family and Cody who all cheer me on. The pine cone ornament I got from Cody two Christmas' ago. We always have a joke about pine cones with his dad ("You know what we haven't talked about in a while? Pine cones") So it always makes us laugh. And the Smokey ornament which you can't see very well to represent UT of course. 

The Starbucks cup represents our love for Starbucks and how many times we have gone over the past 6.5 years. 

We got this beautiful bride and groom ornament from Gigi two Christmas' ago and have had it on our tree ever since! So precious! 

The Coca-Cola polar bear and a tennis racket and tennis ball because tennis will be my sport for life!

The kitchen aid mixer ornament represents our love for cooking, specifically baking (ours is teal though).

And of course a little polar bear. I always like two similar polar bears on the tree so I am searching for this little guy a friend. 

This horse represents my love for horses and horseback riding. Oh how I miss it and the horses.

This ornament represents my dad and how every tree needs a 'glass-looking' ornament that is so perfectly placed and amplifies all of the lights in one area and can be seen from all angles of the room. So I tried my best to do the same. What do you think dad?

Also a very sweet lady I work with at Shaw gave me this sweet UT license plate ornament which I LOVE! It was a very sweet gift and so thoughtful!

What will be really fun in the future will be to see the ornaments we collect over the years when we have our first house, kids, grand kids, etc. The fun never stops!

This UT shirts says so much....we have been through a lot in the last 3 weeks. I am hopeful especially since Phillip Fulmer is our AD now.

On a totally unrelated note....

Dreaming of drinking this magical sounding tea.

And eating these delicious gingerbread chocolate pieces!😍😍😍 I've got food on the brain!

So have a very merry December and keep on the lookout for more blog posts about Christmasssss!!

Love,

Kayla Raborn

12-1-17

Incline Railway and Thanksgiving

We crossed another thing off of my bucket list for us!!!! When I met Cody almost 7 years ago, I realized how many things he hadn't experienced yet. So over the past 7 years I have taken him everywhere to experience all of these things such as the beach, corn mazes, Lake Winnie, Rock City, water parks, plane rides, putt-putt, etc., (next is a small cruise one day shhh). So one of the things Cody had never done/seen was the incline railway! So of course we had to jump on that right away! A few weekends ago we drove to the foot of Lookout Mountain and rode all the way up just swooning on the breathtaking views.

I hobbled on with my boot and enjoyed every second. Just look at those views!

Breathtaking fall view. I love my city so much. 

FINALLY! I got a selfie with Cody after half a year! He has COMPLETELY refused any type of picture now. It makes me so incredibly sad. All I can think about is when we have kids he wont be in any of the pictures or newborn pictures. Well that is a bridge to cross when we get there and could be used as a bribing tool when its time to start trying for kids ;) jk...kind of ;). 

Me and my boot!

Also over the weekend I also helped encourage Cody with his masters degree because he has been feeling pretty down about his work load and how busy he always is. So I created him a chain from start to finish for each month of his masters degree so each month that goes by he gets to tear off a chain. And I have to admit he was pretty excited to tear off the first 7 months he already has completed!

So it is time to get a haircut because I don't like the in-between look. I like it either short or long. And unfortunately you have to go through the in-between stage to get to the long hair but I decided to cut it short again before I grow it back out again fully for locks of love. I plan to do that over and over again for the rest of my life (until my hair doesn't grow out anymore from age).

My fall thanksgiving outfit! I never have a perfect thanksgiving outfit EVER, so I was really excited to find this!

My before picture 

What do you think? The finished product! I did go a little darker but it should balance out soon!

Back of hair. See it's still relatively long! :)

The weekend before Thanksgiving I drove to Knoxville to spend time with Mom, Morgan, Gigi, Granddad, and Sasha. I helped Gigi make her annual Christmas cookies! We baked all day while watching the UT v LSU game with our 'new' head coach😭 I don't even want to talk about all of the things that have been happening with UT and Butch. It hurts too much. My family is so sad.

And now, ON TO THANKSGIVING TIME!!!

So the Wednesday before Thanksgiving after work Cody and I went to his mom's house to help cook and prepare the Thanksgiving food (and taste test a little here and there ;)). Some of the absolutely delicious food my mother-in-law makes for Thanksgiving include her amazing crescent rolls, 'green stuff' (which is my favorite), mac n cheese (how awesome is that?!?), of course the turkey and gravy, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, cranberry sauce, dressing, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, ham, cheese ball and crackers, chocolate covered nuts to snack on before the meal, sweet tea with an orange wedge, and lets not forget dessert! She makes this divine chocolate pie, and carrot cake! Her mom makes the deviled eggs, tea, and banana pudding (my favorite)! We have an absolute feast! And after we stuff our bellies we sit and talk and play some really fun board games together! I usually take a walk to visit the cows to walk off the food baby lol! Wow don't we have so much to be thankful for! And boy, am I thankful for not hosting Thanksgiving again like last year.😂

Part of the group

Finally got a picture!

Deep football talk with Papa :)

Macy's day parade! I have watched this every year and it is definitely one of my Thanksgiving highlights! (Especially since Spongebob was in it! ;))

All the delicious foods prepped and ready to be devoured!

Our walk to visit the cows to help our food digest, getting ready for dessert. The cows were very 'talkative' and fun to see!

The day after Thanksgiving I met my mom at the local greenway to walk. I of course had to take my scooter on long walks and I 100% scooted along. We had an absolute blast just chatting, catching up and just laughing. I have so much fun with my mama! It is so nice being with people who truly are interested in you and what you have to say. Family is the best!

Later that evening Cody and I started putting up our Christmas decorations and decided to create a new tradition of having a Raborn pizza movie night along side of our hot chocolate and Christmas music. Yes we did get two types of pizza and we may or may not have shared it with mom and Morgan 😂. And by the way, Pizza Hut's ultimate cheese crust pizza was the best pizza I have ever had in my life! It was so incredible! (Cody's favorite was the extra most bestest pizza from Little Caesars). 

Being able to spend so much time with my husband is so special and so rejuvenating. It is so nice to reconnect and have actual time together for what seems like the first time in half a year. Work keeps us busy!

Happy Holidays everyone! Enjoy your family time and I hope everyone is happy and doing well! 

Love,

Kayla 

11-12-17

P.S. Get ready for Christmas blogs!! Falalalala lalalalaaaaa! :)