Sometimes I look at the world around me and it looks like there is a lot more violence, hate, pain and suffering than there is goodness. Last night I asked God why. Why does it look like the enemy is winning? I felt like God told me, "Amy, don't focus so much on the enemy. Focus on being kind. Focus on loving people. Where there is even a little bit of light, darkness has no power…"

Married. Moved. Michigan. Music?

Dear bloggers,

Can you believe today is Monday? More importantly, that Monday is almost over? I sat down to blog early this morning but got nowhere. Then Peter and I headed to IKEA to finish off some shopping. Then it was lunch, then we stopped by the Guitar Center, came home, unpacked, cleaned, played Ruzzle (so addicted to this game!!!! ps, Angela you're my favourite opponent)... nothing too crazy. Nevertheless, the day went by pretty fast.

As many of you know, Peter and I were married December 1st 2012. After the two-week honeymoon we came back and had our work cut out for us. Its one thing to get married, but it was another thing to go through the immigration process, and move all of your belongings out of one country into the next. Even though its only about a 4 hour car ride, it's a lot different then say, moving 30 minutes from your old home. As of last Thursday, I'm thankful to say I am pretty much all moved in. Just some books and photo albums that I've left with the parents, but other than that, it's nice to finally feel organized again!

As I write this it is a bitter cold day here in Michigan. The snow is beautiful of course, but it's freezing. I've been making all sorts of hot drinks to keep me warm and have been trying to stay active to keep my blood flowing, but there's no way around it sometimes. When you're a slim jim and have poor blood circulation, even the 20 second walk to the car sends chills down my back. Thankfully my husband lets me crank the heat to any level I need. Usually at the expense of his own discomfort.

Soundcheck for Sunday morning 

Anyways, all this random ramble. What is new and exciting in my life? I am absolutely thrilled to be working on staff at a local church here in Michigan as their full time Worship leader/Arts Director. Peter works at the same church so it's nice to be able to go to the mid-week meetings together. It's been so wonderful to get involved right away into a church that is growing and thriving. I'll admit I feel a little intimidated to be leading in a church where I hardly know anyone, but building new relationships is half the fun. The leadership is a blast. They are so down to earth and enjoy a good laugh. I love that their focus as leaders is to reach out to the community. An active church is a healthy church. What I also appreciate, is the fact that they are totally supportive of my Music career and continue to bless the calling on my life as a traveling recording artist. I'm not exactly sure what this next year is going to look like, but it will be a mixture of worship leading, writing and recording a new album for 2013 and setting up local and abroad tours. Right now I'm just seeking God on how to go about all of this. My heart feels anxious because I just don't know where all the financial backing is going to come from for the new album, but I'm just going to keep writing it. The songs are in me and they need to come out. I just have to trust God that he will provide all the necessary steps.  I'm not entirely sure, but I'm thinking of heading back to Nashville to record the whole thing there. In my immediate future, I'm looking to start playing some local shows in Michigan and it's neighboring States, so keep an eye open on the touring calendar.

You know, it's been really strange for me to have a complete shift in my life. Being a wife and a homemaker has been beautiful and yet overwhelming. Half the time I'm thinking... "Hey wait-- If I'm always cooking and cleaning, how on earth am I going to have time for the rest of my life?" Still, I feel God whispering in my ear, "Amy, just enjoy. Enjoy all things. Enjoy all seasons. Everything you need to get done will get done- but do not worry about tomorrow. Each day is a gift, and it's the simple things that can bring so much joy..." And so I'm learning that. I don't allow my anxious little heart to get the best of me. I'm learning to work with the things that are in my hands right now. If that involves a lot of cooking and cleaning, then so be it. I have to admit, there's nothing so sweet as having your own home and haven with your best friend. I love it that Peter gets to work from home many days and I can be in the kitchen cooking up a storm, yet I can pop in our home office every 5 minutes and just give him a big hug...or a kiss. Doing life with your best friend is amazing. Even in this very cold cold city, in the middle of January, it warms my heart.

~Winter Wedding Decor~

Sarah Walker with Amy Savin

I have to admit, planning a winter wedding was an absolute blast! Growing up, I always thought that for sure I would get married in the summer. I was planning on doing a vibrant Sun-flower themed wedding with lots of bright yellows and pinks. I never would have thought that I'd actually be getting married in December! This changed everything for me! Initially I was feeling overwhelmed at the challenge ahead of me to find a location to host the reception (since having one outside was definitely out of the question), and also to find decorations that would not suggest "Christmas". I definitely tried to avoid the colour red at all costs. After much pondering and long hours of searching the web, I decided to do a very cozy theme of roses, pinecones, lanterns, and candles. Below are some of the details that made this day so special!

Bride's Flowers:

Sarah Walker, a talented artist and great friend of mine, put together the most gorgeous winter bouquet for me. I told her to just be creative as long as there were roses and pinecones. Sarah blew me away. She tied together cream roses, silver brunia, evergreen, and of course the pinecones. The final product was brilliant. To see more of Sarah's work, please see her incredible website: TheCuratedHouse.com

Bridesmaid's Flowers:

I had another great friend of mine, Tanya Tomic make the bridesmaids bouquets (seen in the photo with the cake). All the bouquets were made of synthetic materials from Bowring and Micheals Craft Store. 

Amy Savin Wedding (December 2012) ~ Photography by Leslie Ghag

Centerpieces:

As you can see in the above photos, we used two different centre pieces: 

1) Brown lanterns ( with Candles, Pinecones, fake snow) 
2)  Glass bowls (with water, cellophane, candles, fake snow). 

We placed each of the centre-pieces on gold chargers and used little tiny white plastic beads (from the dollar store) to imitate fluffy snow. Thanks to Beverly Campbell for all the ideas! To get the snow-look on the pinecones, we just dipped the pinecones in icing sugar, and then coarse (large crystal) sugar to get the sparkling effect. You'll also notice around the centerpieces little pinches of baby's breath, for a more dainty, snowy look. 

Cake: 

Tanya also make my cake. It was all completely vanilla (the most deliciously moist cake I've ever had) with icicles lining the entire cake! Tanya dipped the pinecones in icing and sugar (the same way the centrepieces were done) and used chocolate sticks in between the pinecones. As a cake plate, I ordered a wooden birch tree slab from save-on-crafts.com. The only problem is that the website said I was getting a 11-15 inch, but when it came in the mail, it was only 9 inches which was not big enough. So, Tanya creatively made her own plate 12-15 inch I believe, and we layered the two cake stands together. It turned out beautifully :)

All Photography by Leslie Ghag 

Amy + Peter's Wedding ~ December 1st 2012 ~

Amy Savin Wedding (December 2012) ~ Photography by Leslie Ghag

Amy Savin Wedding (December 2012) ~ Photography by Leslie Ghag

December 1st 2012, 10:00am, Peter and I made a promise to each other; a covenant that cannot ever be broken, except by death itself. It was an incredible day. I could not have asked for a day more perfect or beautiful. Being in the same room as so many friends and family that I love so dearly, felt like a glimpse of heaven. We were so blessed to have Leslie Ghag capture all the particulars and meaningful moments. Here are just a couple photos. Check back for more to come!

"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24).