live. laugh. love.

A Mother's Lovin'

2012-02-07T12:46:00.000-05:00

This past week has been a "drop whatever I'm doing" or rearrange my schedule to make it work kind of week to be around for Kirby and Daniel. School has taken a back burner (don't worry dad if you're reading this--I still have had everything turned in on time and still have gotten my readings done. Just so you know...I just haven't been as proactive on things as I normally am), I've driven to South Atlanta and back a few times, and have basically been on call 24/7. I love that I can be here for my sister in her time of need by sharing quality time with her family. My love language that I show others is definitely quality time and I really appreciate that I have had the time to show my love that way this past week.

But who I have been impressed with even more is my mom. My mom and I are pretty close and talk about pretty much everything. But a shining quality of my mom is that she can really pull through in a crisis. I first realized this about her my junior year in college. After a semester of public relations classes (and hating it), I had a bit of breakdown over Christmas break. My mom was so supportive--suggesting everything from dropping out of school, moving home, transferring schools and everything in between. I ended up just changing majors that following spring, but was so impressed by how quick my mom was to be there for me 100%, no matter what. Other times that I have lost my job, or dealt with some form of a heartbreak from friends or boys, or whatever else that gave me quite a blow--my mom can tell from the first word that I say that I'm upset and need my mom's love and encouragement.

This past week, my mom has been so supportive of Kirby and Daniel. She has taken off work the day of Kirby's surgery and is taking off again tomorrow to spend time with Kirby and Felicity. Although she doesn't necessarily sit down to have the heartfelt conversations, she does "little" things like sweep, grocery shop, or take care of Felicity so Kirby can rest (which are really actually huge and super helpful). Moms are great at lots and lots of things, but as for my mom, I just want you to know that your love and care is not unnoticed or under appreciated, but the opposite; so necessary, valued, and respected. Thanks Mom for loving Kirby (and the rest of your daughters) in our times of greatest need.

heartbroken and praying

2012-02-04T21:23:00.001-05:00

It breaks my heart to sit down to write this but part of sharing my life and those that are in it are sharing the ups and downs.

Last Wednesday, Kirby went to the doctor for an 18 1/2 week appointment (nearly at the halfway point) at the OB-GYN and they couldn't find the heartbeat of her little baby. She went to see a specialist immediately, and back to the doctor on Thursday to double check what they feared was true--she had a miscarriage, or more technically, a fetal death. Because she was as far along as she was, she had surgery on Friday morning to extract what needed to be removed. We aren't sure right now of what happened or why, just that it happened for a reason and that little Baby Cleland #2 is with the Lord and it's for the best in God's sight. We are all heartbroken and wondering. And understandably so, Kirby and Daniel are hurting terribly right now. I have never wanted to take on someone else's heartache for them so that they don't have to feel that pain as I do right now for my sister. We live in a broken world and with that comes a physical death; sometimes much, much sooner than we imagined or anticipated or imagined. No matter what, we are in God's hands and He has a perfect plan. I have reminded myself constantly this week, as I have in hard times before, that God is good. Always, without exception.

Please pray with me for Kirby, Daniel, Felicity, and for their little one that they lost. Pray for maybe not all of the answers, but at least for clarity on the situation and alleviated heartache and processing with this "grey area". Pray for healing after Kirby's surgery--both physical and emotional. Thank you for you concern and love for my family during this time. It really means the world to each of us, especially the Clelands.

Classic City Adventures

2012-01-30T22:37:00.003-05:00

Summed up, this was an interesting/great/exhausting weekend!

Friday: Since I focused most of my Thursday on a paper (which was originally due on Sunday and was pushed back to Thursday--less work for me now! Whoop!) I had lunch with my dad, Kirby, and Felicity at McAlister's. I love being so close to both of my sisters and nieces so I can do semi-regular outings like that. Anyways, after that I was packed and ready to head to Athens....until I couldn't find my keys. Fast forward through frantic searching everywhere in the house, doubling checking to make sure no one took them in the morning, and still nothing for over 2 hours. Thankfully, Good Sam pulled through and turns out that I locked my keys in the car and my spare is still stranded in Chattanooga. After that ordeal, I hit the road just in time to get stuck in rush hour traffic, but eventually made it to Athens all in one piece in time for dinner and an early night out with Jessica and her friend Christie.

Saturday: We woke up bright and early for the FACS Alumni "Chilly Dawg" 5k. Let me just say we were not doing the race for time (read; we walked the whole thing) and I am still sore! Let me just say, I felt as though I aged at least 35 years when I started to complain about my hip and knees hurting mid-5k. Old age at 25 years old is rough.

We cleaned up, went to lunch at Tacqueria del Sol, walked around/window shopped downtown, and headed to one of my favorite sporting events in Athens--Gym Dogs!! We had a meet against LSU and beat them! It was so fun to be back in Stegman cheering on the Dawgs and even better than we won. :)

We went to an early-ish dinner at Last Resort, had some down time, and headed out for the night. Saturday was so fun and great to be back in the Classic City!

Sunday: I woke up in time to make it back to Atlanta for church and a young adults lunch with the church afterwards. I was back on the road again though because once I made it back home, I unpacked and repacked to continue my weekend at Kirby's and Daniel's, who now officially have me hooked on Downton Abbey...like I need another show to watch...

I spent my Monday before class with Kirby and Felicity--going on walks, playing with F and catching up on "Burger" time. :)

Another great weekend spent with friends and family. Hopefully I won't have to endure anymore lost key fiascos anytime soon...

"Just What I Needed" Kind of Weekend

2012-01-23T11:49:00.000-05:00

This weekend has hands down been my favorite of the year thus far. Although, I guess technically every day other than Mondays and Tuesdays are a "weekend" for me (until I get a job....), I don't count them as one because Friday, Saturday, and Sunday are the days that everybody else gets to play too!

Friday afternoon as I was changing my bedspread from this:

to this:

My dad calls me to see if I had been keeping up with my school work (yes, I have) and if so, would I want to join him at the shooting range when he made it home. Usually, our daddy-daughter dates involve a bag of golf clubs and a basket of golf balls...but since it's mid-"winter" aka 60 degree weather and rainy lately, he opted for something inside...with guns. I have never shot a gun before. I wouldn't say I'm a sharp shooter quite yet, but I think we might be making this a more regular excursion so there's hope for me yet. (Funny note: every time after I shot the gun, I would do a little hoppy-jump...my dad said that was something we were going to have to work on...)

That night, Bonnie, Alexa, and I had a craft night and slumber party--complete with pizza and chick flicks. Bonnie loves crafts and went a little overboard when buying supplies, but I assure you that they will get put to use eventually.

Alexa's crafts--the one on the right is a mini chalkboard now thanks to chalkboard paint!

Bonnie's frames; the top on is one she made for Nick for a picture of their day trip to Chattanooga!

Just a plain ole frame that was silver and I wanted some color for my frames and then of course a Vegas frame :)

And this was my time consuming project! I'm going to get a white frame to put around it to have my monogram over my bed to replace what used to be the home of my outdated, lame, ridiculous sun and moon pictures...The monogram is much more me, don't you think?

The proof of a successful craft night :)

Saturday was not all that great (laundry and 3-4 hours worth of reading about Freud...) until I went to the Oyster Barn to have dinner and trivia with Kathleen, Avery, and Avery's sister and brother in law. Although I did ~~nothing~~ very little to contribute, the rest of the team had trivia smarts and we tied for 3rd and won 2nd place thanks to the tie breaker!!

Sunday morning, I went to Christ Church all by myself. Kirby and Daniel were teaching Sunday school during the late service so I braved the service solo. I ended up sitting by some friends of Kirby and Daniel's so that helped me feel less alone. The service was just what I needed to hear (isn't God funny that way?) and after the service was the newcomer's lunch. I met some great people, heard more about the church's mission, and their different ministries. I liked Christ Church before, but I definitely have found my church home in Atlanta after my great experience yesterday. You can be praying for me to make friends my age so I can have a community that holds a candle to what I had and loved about First Pres.

The weekend ended with a long overdue phone call with Kasey, taking quizzes, and eating ice cream while I watched my fav Sunday night shows.

I love weekends like this that have the perfect balance of friends, family, productivity, and rest. As close to perfection as a weekend can get and just what I needed in so many ways!

Rough Week

2012-01-19T12:19:00.001-05:00

There are just some weeks that are kind of sucky. There's really not a much better way to say it other than that. School has kept me plenty busy and has just really reaffirmed me that this is what I have wanted to do and I'm pursuing the right stuff. Living at home has been surprisingly great. Not that I didn't think things would go smoothly, but it's been so so wonderful to have homecooked meals, time with my nieces, sisters, and especially my parents. I feel like I have ~~had a few breakdowns~~ shed a few tears and they have been so supportive of me in my friendships, schoolwork, and financially. That is something that is so invaluable. And I've actually come to really enjoy the drive to and from campus because it gives me a set time to catch up on phone calls and have some "me" time, which is a rare thing around the house at times.

I'm not going to share many details, but I've just felt more distant from my life in Chattanooga than I thought I would and that's been a rocky transition. I know I'm where I'm supposed to be and I want to invest in my life in Marietta (spend time with friends down here, get involved in Christ Church, really focus on studying, etc), but that doesn't mean I want to disconnect completely from my life in Chattanooga and that has proven harder than I thought...leaving me feeling a bit on the lonely side. Also, I'm learning to take care of myself in a different way and have scheduled lots of doctors appointments to do that...don't worry, nothing is crazy wrong, but hopefully I will get some answers to habits I have and my "stomach bubble" as I call it I get from time to time. (If you have ever heard me talk about that or have been around me when I'm in pain, I'm excited to finally get the ball rolling to figure out what the heck is wrong with my insides!) I'm sure I'll share more on that later...but I'll give you a warning when I might get a little TMI in the future.

But something that I have realized that in my loneliness and confusion with my health, I'm so much quicker to turn to prayer, Scripture, and quiet time. I have been craving time to sit and reflect. To talk to Jesus. I usually enjoy it, or at times do it out of self imposed obligation to be honest, but to really thirst for and desire time to sit in quiet, to talk to God, now that's something special. I know God has some great plan that I don't see in this rough week, but what I have seen is that God is unchanging, always there, and always craves time with me the way that I have wanted to spend time with Him these last few weeks. And that is the biggest blessing in a week as sucky as this one has been.

Sundays

2012-01-16T18:03:00.000-05:00

Sundays have always been one of my favorite days of the week. Church, seeing friends, going out to lunch, taking naps, being productive, and of course Desperate Housewives and now add PanAm to the list of "before bed" shows. But now I love Sundays even more...you want to know why?

Because it's a guaranteed day that I get to see my WHOLE family.

I have started going to Kirby and Daniel's church in Atlanta and love it. It's a PCA church that has great worship, incredible pastors and something that's new for me--more than 10 people in their 20s. PTL. An added cherry on top? I get to see, hug, and hold this kid:

She is growing up so fast and I love now that I get a weekly check in with her to see the little things like how much her hair has grown, what new words she's learn, and how she is even starting to put sentences together!! Precious. And now that Kirby is starting to show, I get to have a visit with my future niece or nephew to see how they're going inside my sister's belly too!

And like every other day of the week, I get to see my other niece...this kid, in case you forgot what she looks like :) (What I'm really saying is that I like to brag on how stinking cute this kid is.)

But I think I love it most on Sundays because I can either meet them in time for lunch since they're service gets out later than ours or see them after I have lunch with the Clelands. Everyone is home and we get to do things together as a family, like play Mario Cart or sit down and eat dinner together. Nothing fancy, but I kind of like it that way.

After lunch, I force myself to sit at the kitchen table away from distractions to do readings and papers for my classes so I can relax and indulge in my guilty pleasure TV shows after dinner...and maybe a large bowl of ice cream and/or a glass of wine. :)

Sundays are such a great balance of work and play and just the right amount of family time. It's hard to catch a moment of silence around my parent's house, but so far I really have loved living at home and Sundays are reminders of why.

An Addition to my "Top Ten of 2011" Post

2012-01-11T19:26:00.001-05:00

I have one small, little itty bitty addition to make to my #1 spot of my top 10 of 2011.

Just as a refresh, my #1 went a little bit like this:

1. And finally, what I will love to look back and think about when I think about 2011 is being an aunt. My nieces have held the #1 spot on my countdown for the last 3 years and 2011 is no different! I am so grateful to be close to both of my sisters which allows me a chance to be close to both of my nieces. And it's so convenient that the Newmans are at my parents house and the Clelands are a quick drive to Atlanta! I LOVE being an aunt--being apart of the milestones, spending time with them, and seeing them grow. They are such a big part of my life and of my heart!

And my addition to #1 is that I LOVED finding out about niece/nephew #3!! That's right, Kirby and Daniel are expecting a little one in early July and Felicity will be a 2 year old big sister!

I have loved being an aunt and with each addition, my heart doesn't have to squeeze another spot in there, my heart just grows more and more for each addition. I cannot wait to see what 2012 brings--especially when it means my sister bringing a new life into the world!

Back to schooool, Back to schooool

2012-01-08T15:24:00.000-05:00

I wasn't 100% sure that this day would come, nor do I really believe it's happening right now...but here I am--a first year grad student!

Orientation wasn't until this past Friday so I had no idea what my classes are for this semester until Friday around 4 pm and my first class is this Monday at 5:30. My head is spinning. My books have been ordered and put on rush delivery. Highlighters, pens, and notebooks were purchased. I even dragged my backpack out of storage to get ready. I still haven't quite settled all of the loans needed for tuition and I'm living at home with my parents, sister, brother in law, and niece. But to be completely honest, as out of place as I feel being back on campus and squeezed into my parents' house as I feel, I know that this is exactly where I'm supposed to be. I am itching to know my assignments and fill in my planner. I keep trying to mentally prepare myself to spend hours reading, researching and writing papers, and organizing my notes.

PS- For those of you wondering the details, I'm taking 9 hours (a full load, 2 classes on West Georgia's campus and 1 online) to get my Masters of Education in Community Counseling. It is a full 2 year/6 semester program. Once I'm finished I will be a CACREP certified counselor (if I pass the tests!) and I could would as a counselor through an agency, hospital, church, and the list goes on! The drive to campus is a little over an hour, which isn't ideal but worth it to live at home for now and get lots of free meals and free rent! Hm...I think that about covers the "usual" questions I've gotten from people! Comment if you have other questions!

PPS-I need a part time job in Marietta! Help! :)

The Eve's; Christmas and New Years!

2012-01-05T22:46:00.000-05:00

I know I'm working a little bit backwards but I wanted to post a few highlight pictures from Christmas Eve with the family and New Year's Eve with the Trio.

In our family, we open family presents on Christmas Eve and "Santa" presents the morning of Christmas. Katie and Lee were with Lee's family, but we were glad to have the Clelands over for some unwrapping!!

The shirt Gigi bought F that she just had to put on right then and there!

The hats that I made F! Well, I made the clips for the flowers to go onto the hats...but that's still making them, kind of.

The other present I got Felicity--it's a pillow! it's a pet! It's a pillow pet!

Katie and Lee got me a Baby Cakes cake pop maker! I've used it already!

Felicity thought you were supposed to eat the placemat...not eat at the placemat! Too funny!

Okay, now fast forward a week after Christmas (add in a trip to Mississippi to see my dad's family) and now it's time for a New Year's Eve catch up! A while ago, Cary, Kelly and I decided to make 2011 a year to end with a bang and conveniently, the Avett Brothers were playing in Greenville, SC for NYE! They played for over 2 hours and were incredible. Amazing. Wonderful. Just plan awesome. And bringing in 2012 with a balloon drop, my best friends and the Avett brothers -- it doesn't get much better than that!

Top Ten of 2011

2012-01-03T15:11:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite posts to do is always right around the start of the new year. I love my "Top Ten" post because I can look back every year and see how far I've come and have the chance to reflect on the things I'll remember from that year. So here's my top ten of 2011:

10. This past year, I got to go on Spring Break to Southwind as an adult leader for Wyld Life. (When did I become old enough to chaperone things...much less be one of the most responsible?) I loved the middle schoolers that we had, but a highlight of the trip was getting close with Paige and Kelsey. I love these girls so so dearly and will always treasure memories from that trip!

9. When my life was in limbo from September through now, something that gave my days purpose was working with the Signal Mountain Guard. These girls were so fun and easy to teach. I really missed the sport and it amazed me how quickly it all came back to me. One of the biggest pulls for me to stay in Chattanooga for school was that I could teach this guard again. I hate that I won't be able to teach this group of girls again next year, but I am so grateful for the time I spent with them!

Part 2 of my time in limbo was working at Ribbon and Bows Oh My. Again. Although it wasn't my first choice of jobs and not something I really bragged about to people, I LOVED getting to know my co-workers. They made work fun to be at and I really valued their friendships more than they know. They made my time their feel worthwhile and I loved that we had friendships outside of work too. :)

8. This part of my yearly highlights has become a regular and I have a feeling it will be the case for the next few years: my friends weddings and babies and engagements!

The first wedding of this past year was extra special because I got to be apart of the wedding! I felt so blessed to be one of Hannah's bridesmaids!

The others were so fun too (and less stressful because I got to just show up!)

And I will remember 2011 as the year that my friends are starting to have babies too!

And I always love getting the phone call or text from close friends to share the excitement of their engagements! Mary, Kathleen, Shahrukh, Becca, Katie Lewis, and Samantha Stevenson are just a few that some to mind! I cannot wait to share each of y'alls special days with you in 2012!

7. Whenever I get the chance, I love to spend time in Athens. I get to reminisce over my days in the Classic City, go to football games or concerts, and catch up with friends! I definitely am trying to take advantage of the fact that I have very little tying me down so I like to make as many weekend trips as possible!

6. I love youth group in the summers and this being my 2nd summer was no exception. I felt like I had the hang of things a little bit better but man! this summer flew by! The two big trips we had planned were only a week apart so that threw off any kind of a normalcy for the month of July! But I will always remember my trips to RYM in Panama City and a second trip to New Orleans with the middle schoolers. Both of those trips came after I found out my contract wasn't going to be renewed so it was a wonderful, bittersweet time that I could really be intentional with the students knowing that would be one of the last big things I did as their youth leader.

5. Time with my family is another mark of a great year that will always make my Top Ten list. This year, the 2 things that come to mind when I think about family time was the Mardis family Destin Trip and the annual Rover Rally.

Staying in a huge house with lots and lots of Mardis' makes for a loud and fun week at the beach. I love that this is becoming an every other year tradition!

Another family memory from 2011 is our annual Rover Rally! I'm so glad that Kirby and Felicity could make it! It was so memorable and fun to have a "redneck" type weekend of offroading, eating lots of barbeque, and getting to stop by the apple orchards on the way home. Even more memorable because we were stuck on the side of the road-thank goodness the Rovers that came soon after we stalled were well equipped!

4. The 3/4 of this year that I was the middle school girls youth leader at First Pres will be memories that I cherish forever. That job was my ideal. My dream job. And I know that God has some crazy plan worked out to show me something even better and He's already showing that to me by opening the door for me to go to grad school in 2012, but that doesn't make how bittersweet it was to say goodbye any clearer right now. The conversations, time spent together and the beautiful friendships that I had and still have with the students, parents, and volunteers of that ministry impacted my heart and guided my walk with the Lord. I have too many memories to recount, but I love that ministry and what it means to me.

3. FB Goes to VEGAS. What else could be said?

2. Living in the mountain Home, Bob and Lisa, my small group, and my friendship with Kelly and Cary. I don't even think words can describe the magnitude of how deeply each of these things/people have affected my year. I've talked several time about how much I love and respect Bob and Lisa and cannot thank them enough for their generosity to let me live in their guest house for free. They are so generous, understanding, and honest without question. The girls in our Monday night small group have been a consistant part of my life and so supportive when my life has been in limbo. And Kelly and Cary. I'm so grateful for K's continued friendship and our newfound friendship with C. The Trio will be around for some time to come and I don't think I could have handled the ups and downs of this year without them.

My favorite memory that involves all of these people was my birthday weekend at the Franklin's lake house. I loved every minute of that weekend with them.

Here's to a great 2011 and an even better 2012! I'm excited for what the Lord has in store for my life as a student, my friends' weddings and babies that will be arriving, and lots more quality time with my friends and family!

A Christmas Quickie...

2011-12-29T22:10:00.001-05:00

...Update! C'mon people...

Okay, pictures WILL come but just a quick run down of my holiday festivities:

-Shopping with mom (I made out like a bandit this year with clothes--you da best mom!)
-Sundaes at the Chambers house (a holiday favorite tradition of 9ish years now)
-Lunch with my "big brother", his WIFE (ah! crazy! love her btdubs), and Bonster Monster
-Candle Light service at church (the advent candles caught on fire during the "O Holy Night" solo)
-Presents with parents, Kirby, Daniel, and Felicity (F loved unwrapping presents!)
-Lots of cooking/baking; including but not limited to: monkey bread, homemade pizza, Baby Cake cake pops, lasagna, and more
-And finally, a 3 day road trip to Mississippi to see my aunts, uncles, one of my cousins, and my just turned 90 year old grandmother, Mimi

Whew! And now I'm in Marietta for the night, packing up, going back to Chattanooga to turn back around and go to Greenville for NYE! Don't worry though, I've already started working on my annual countdown of my favorite moments of this past year!

Hope y'all have a wonderful, blessed, restful, and family and friend filled Christmas!

Viva Las Vegas; The Final Chapter

2011-12-25T22:12:00.000-05:00

Okay, last Vegas post--I promise! Mary, Bonnie, and Dan all had to work on Wednesday so they didn't have much of a Tuesday in Vegas once they got up, packed, and headed to the airport. But Alexa and I had book 11 pm flights for that night so we had practically a whole day left!

Once we finally finished packing, getting ready, and checking our bags it was time for food! Finding a decently priced meal is just as difficult as finding our way around (not to mention finding our way out of the MGM!). Alexa and I wandered around New York, New York and settled on a New York style deli. It was really yummy and you could hear the roller coaster overhead which was pretty crazy to think that it was that close! After we played the penny slots for a bit we decided it was time to ride the roller coaster. That's right, the roller coaster that is on top of a building. It wasn't nearly as high up as I envisioned, but still fun and quite a rush! And chilly...

We moved down the strip to visit a few more casinos which turned out to be some of our favorites-The Cosmopolitan and Paris. First was the Cosmo, which is the newest of the casinos on the strip. We wandered through the way-out-of-our-price-range shops and decided to try out the slot machines there--and I'm glad we did because I won $10!

The Cosmopolitan was beautifully decorated and definitely the swankiest.

Next, we were on to Paris! I definitely appreciated sticking with a theme--it was quaint and cozy. I thought it was crazy that the Eiffel Tower came inside of the casino!

Tired from lots of walking, we stopped for a pretzel snack and we ready for even more walking. We settled on having dinner at an Irish pub in New York, New York--we figured 2 red heads couldn't go wrong with Irish food for dinner! Our time to Vegas had come to an end, so we collected our bags and headed for the airport. Oh yeah, I almost forgot...before we went back to the hotel, Alexa won $93 off of the penny slots!! Ridiculous...I had been excited about my $10 (measly in comparison) and she showed me up!

The flight was less chatty and more bumpy than it was en route to Sin City, but I was glad to be on my way home! Vegas was great for a long weekend trip, but definitely not somewhere that I plan on returning to on a yearly basis--not that I could afford such a trip again!

My favorite part of the trip? Spending time with FB plus Dan and getting to travel with friends instead of family. (Not that I don't LOVE family vacays, just a different pace)

Viva Las Vegas! Part 2

2011-12-20T23:26:00.001-05:00

So after a long Sunday with hours of traveling, a forced adjustment to a 3 hour time different, a day full of walking and a late night, we let ourselves sleep in a little bit on Monday. By the time we rolled out of bed and threw on some clothes, it was time for brunch! We decided to try one of Vegas' well known, over the top buffets and I am SO glad we went! Seriously, my favorite meal of the trip. Food anywhere in Vegas is not cheap by any means (averaging $20 a meal) so we usually filled up and made it on just 2 meals a day. Since it was brunch, we had breakfast and lunch options and definitely got the most bang for our buck--and our waiter was AWESOME! I think he brought me at least 6 refills of diet coke without a complain or a grumble.

On our way back up to the room to freshen up for the day, we stopped to take pictures at the MGM's Lions Den. That's right, we had lions in our hotel! They had a habitat right next to the casino and were always attended by at least 2 men.

As we were playing paparazzi to the lions, we found this little Vegas gem. He was on mine and Alexa's flight home too...wearing this same exact get up. Talk about ~~intenese~~ stylin'.

That afternoon was spent with more sightseeing, but this time with a little bit more direction. Our first stop was the Venetian. This was one of my favorite hotel/casinos because they really stuck to the theme! As soon as we walked in, there were Christmas carolers and we were handed a cup of hot apple cider. It was easy to forget it was Christmas out in the neon desert, but I like that the Venetian had a touch of the holiday spirit!

We decided to be the ultimate tourist and went on the gondola ride! They sing to you as you're riding and we even had our own personal photographer (Dan) since they couldn't fit more than 4 passengers in the boats at a time. Well worth the money just to say that we did it.

After walking through some of the stores, we took a taxi to see the Luxor and Excalibur...neither were all that exciting. Although, I do wish that we had known the Luxor has one of the world's only diagonal elevator so we could have riden it! There's always next time, right? We stopped to take some pictures in front of MGM (Fun fact: the MGM is colored green, not after money, but after one of their highest producing movies; The Wizard of Oz's Emerald City. Fun fact #2: MGM is in the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest all brass statue, the lion!)

That night, we booked a champagne tour through Vegas on a party bus. Our bus driver had a family emergency so he was in a bit of a funk and the other passengers outside of our group were a bit on the awkward side, but the back of the bus didn't let that stop us from having fun! We did find out a few fun facts (that I've mentioned throughout the 2 blog posts) and stopped on Freemont Street. The "strip" is actually Paradise, Nevada and just a few miles over is the original Las Vegas. It's a smaller strip of hotels and casinos with the most recent one having been built in the 60s. (I think...) The big attraction is the covered street that does a light show that coordinates to music once every hour!

We of course had to stop when Santa was monitoring the tree...he said a few creepy things, but then Dan showed up and that stopped.

Okay, a little out of order, but before we were on Freemont Street, we also stopped at the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign which was cool to have the photo opp!

And we stopped by the show "Pawn Stars" pawn shop, but it was closed for filming...but at least here's the sign to prove that we were there!

Okay, now back to Freemont. Inside the Golden Nugget, the last of the casinos on Freemont Street to be built, was the world's largest golden nugget (fitting) and even an ATM machine for gold. Just reiterating that Vegas is not the real world.

Our last stop of the night was to see the fountains at the Bellagio, but since all of us had seen them before, we got to spend some extra time touring the chocolate fountain and Christmas display that had thousands of flowers! Oh, and the glass artist who I forgot his name...but Jessica Schwartz and I saw his display in Nashville over a year ago--so it was neat to see what he had done in Vegas outside of a museum setting.

And of course we had to squeeze some time in for the slots...no luck on Monday night, but me and Alexa got lucky come Tuesday...more on that next post! (Yes, I tricked you. I said there would be 2 posts, but I decided 3 shorter posts instead of 2 with one short and one really long post would be better!)

Okay, I admit it. This picture was from earlier in the day when we first say down at the slots, but we did gamble a bit more Monday night and this was the best I could do to prove it!

Viva Las Vegas! Part 1

2011-12-17T13:24:00.001-05:00

This is part one of a 2 part post because otherwise this would be the longest, most overdetailed post ever...so instead I will turn it into 2 shorter, over detailed blog posts.

Vegas, Day 1:

First Picture in Vegas!

I woke up around 5 am to get ready, meet up with Alexa and get to our 8:30 flight. Thankfully it was a direct flight so we made it to Vegas at 10 am their time (The 3 hour time difference really made for a chaotic internal clock for our short trip!) On the plane ride over, I made friends with a 60-something year old man, Jimmy Johnson, who makes an annual trip to Vegas with his millionaire friend (no joke). They play black jack the whole time and he said he has always made enough money to pay off his trip and then buy some designer stuff for his wife and daughter. We seriously talked the whole 4 hour-long flight and the rest of our trip, I would constantly refer to conversations Jimmy and I had had. It made the flight go by much faster and he really gave me good pointers of what to see or what wasn't worth the money.

Conveniently, the airport is 10 minute taxi ride to the strip so we were at our hotel in no time! After a few issues and Mary's persistance, we got checked into our rooms. We were on the 27th floor so we had a great view! Mary and Dan had a view of the airport and the girls room faced New York, New York. Our room had an ad for David Copperfield over the window so the pictures came out dark, but I did get some pictures of the mountains and airport looking out of M & D's room.

After we got freshened up, we walked up and down the strip to take in all the sights. The strip is a 5 mile stretch so a pointer for all of those newcomers to Vegas--wear comfortable shoes!! We may or may not have learned that the hard way later that evening...Anyway, the weather was perfect and sunny so we enjoyed the afternoon outside. Everything in Vegas is beyond over the top and so so far from reality. There are people dressed up as Elmo, Transformers, and Woody and Buzz from Toy Story. Our favorite though was the midget dressed up as Elvis! Only in Vegas...

There are designer stores on almost every corner and rules just don't even seem to exist there. Although not having an open container law was convenient, I could not get over the fact that prostitution is legal there. It was heartbreaking to see homeless people trying to earn a living by handing out brochures and business cards for local prostitutes...On to a happier note, here are some pictures from Sunday afternoon!

New York! New York!

In front of Monte Carlo

The lobby of MGM--They changed to just silver and gold on Monday!

We headed back to the hotel to get ready for the evening. We had tickets to see Vegas! The Show, which was a montage of Vegas through the years--Sonny and Cher, Elton John, Elvis...etc. It was so good! But I'm jumping ahead, before we did that--we went to walk around Planet Hollywood and stopped to get drinks. Back to the convenience of no open container laws, we went to a happy hour and got a drink there and a drink to go!

After the show, we decided to see some of the Vegas night life. We made it to the Bellagio in time to see the famous fountains and stopped by Paris to see the Eiffel Tower all lit up! I love that we got to see so many of the Vegas classics!

After stopping by a club in the Bellagio, (literally stopping by because you have to pay at least $700 to sit at a booth!!!! Insane.) we called it a night. Mary and Dan went down to play Black Jack and some slots and Dan spent about $20 but won $38 so that was definitely a win! I was sound asleep while all of that was going on. Vegas is not for the faint of heart or those in need of sleep. More on Day 2 later!

Gifts from Russia

2011-12-15T14:49:00.000-05:00

Don't worry, my all about Vegas post will be here shortly, but for the sake of staying chronological I'll blog about my dad's return from Russia.

My dad has gone to Russia about once a year for the past 5 or so years (give of take a few) but it's usually for 10 days max. But every so often, someone gets the "luck of the draw" to stay over there for a month long stint. Well, November was my dad's turn to spend a month in Russia. Thankfully before he left, he bought an iPad so he could work on his Russian with Rosetta Stone, Skype with us, and of course perfect his Angry Birds game. No joke, he has 3 stars on every level now. I don't think his Russian is up to par with his Russian fluency...but that's just a hunch.

When he goes to Russia, he always comes back bearing gifts and this trip was no exception!
Note: Please excuse my pink, alien looking fingers. I don't think I noticed how creepy they looked until I was editing the pictures. Apparently I do no have a future in becoming a hand model...

So so much chocolate!

And still more chocolate! This time with prizes on the inside!

Lots of ornaments too!

For the grandkiddos

I love the details on all of the hand painted ornaments and matryoshka dolls!

And of course drinks...that is one thing Russians know how to do!

I forgot to take a picture of one of my favorite gifts--my rose gold hoop earrings my dad got all 3 of his daughters. He got my mom a really nice set of rose gold earrings too and some hand carved jewelry boxes that she absolutely loves but naturally, I forgot to snap a shot of them. Oh well!

I'm just glad he's home in the US and back to a normal, warmer life!

LAS VEGAS--Here we come!

2011-12-10T15:40:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow, I am going to:

with these lovely ladies:

for 3 almost full days!!

Mary works for Delta and somehow got a free 2 night stay at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino. No joke--tomorrow night, I'll be sleeping in a bed in this hotel:

We have tickets to see Vegas! The Show and a Champagne night tour to see all of the Vegas photo op spots! And of course we'll make our way down the strip...which is a little overwhelming based on this picture alone.

I will be taking tons and tons of pictures!! I am so excited for a vacation with high school friends and I'm sure it will be an adventure.

PS- Friends and family have given me Vegas advice.

Thus far, I have been advised to come back to Atlanta with the same last name, don't end up with a tiger in my hotel room, and be on the lookout for cross dressers.

Any other advice y'all have to offer? Do's and don'ts for those of you that have braved Sin City before?

Full House

2011-12-07T09:51:00.001-05:00

Although I’m still waiting to hear from Richmont, unless a small (financial) miracle happens, it looks like I’m starting the Community Counseling program at the University of West Georgia this spring semester. And since West Georgia is in Carrollton, Georgia I’ll be moving into my parents’ house while I go to school. I cannot even fathom my life not in Chattanooga, especially after living here for 2 and a half years. (cue the tears) But knowing that I’ve wanted to go to school for counseling for a while now and the timing has fallen into place, the sacrifice is worth it to live at my parents’ house and away from my home in Chattanooga....and so I won’t be in debt until my non-existent kids’ kids start college.

I’m waiting to hear on an assistantship for UWG that will help cover my tuition and give me some extra money that could really make a big difference! So keep your fingers crossed and prayers said for me! What’s really going to make life interesting is living at home with my parents and my sister and her husband, and my niece Charlotte. Oy. Lee used to be a band director at a high school just outside of Athens, Georgia but started teaching at Norcross High School that’s about 45 minutes away from my parents’ house; So to avoid paying 2 mortgages while they are selling their house, they moved into the upstairs of the Mardis casa. So add one more Mardis to the mix in less than a month and that will make for a very full house. (Have a mentioned that my parents have a dog as well as Katie and Lee? Just saying.)

I keep telling myself that Chattanooga is only an hour and a half away, I’ll be up here all the time, and thank goodness for emails, texting, phone calls, skype, etc. I know that God will work through this and bless this time that I’m back in school. I really am SO SO SO excited for the opportunity to go to grad school and am beyond thankful for my close relationship with my family and that I can spend this time with them, but it is almost too big a pill to swallow to think of being separated from my family in Chattanooga.

On a different note for all of my friends that are living in/around Atlanta--I’m so excited that I’ll get to see all of you more often rather than just on my quick trips to Marietta! I’m anxious to see how I balance school work, (hopefully an assistantship), and spending time with all of you! This is one of the biggest aspects of living at home that I am looking forward to!

Emotional rollercoaster post. I have a feeling this will be the first of several of these up and down king of blogs during these next few months of adjustment. You can’t say you haven’t been warned.

Unplanned Weekend

2011-12-05T17:27:00.001-05:00

This was one of those super rare weekends that I had next to nothing planned. I had a couple of things on my "to do list" that were mostly around the house stuff and got nothing done on it....until about 5 minutes ago when I cleaned out my fridge.

Friday night, Kelly and I were DD's for Bob and Lisa since they had a fancy Christmas party to go to on Lookout so we spent our night either driving from one mountain to the other or eating soup and watching "Say Yes to the Dress". It was perfect. We got time for the 2 of us to catch up with Bob and Lisa and with each other. And I love a good night in watching girly shows.

I slept in until 9 AM on Saturday!!! Big deal! HUGE deal, even! I had a Skype date with my dad at 10 am our time, 9 pm Russia time! It was fun to see him and talk "face to face" and I'm excited to have him back in the States this Saturday. While I was skyping and working on my graduate assistantship application for West Georgia, Kelly and Lisa purged Lisa's cabinets of all things expired. Kelly was ecstatic to organize! After spending a majority of the day in oversized sweatshirts and leggings, we decided it was finally time to get ready for the day (around 3 pm....) Katie Woodruff had invited a group of UGA and LSU fans. We had a pretty even splits of supporters, and although the game got ugly the 2nd half, we enjoyed the company. It was unseasonably warm on Saturday night, so we had a bonfire and just hung out til way later than this kid is used to staying up!

Kelly and I miraculously woke up in time for church on Sunday. Kelly went to see a movie with her mom while Cary and I took her 16 year old family friend shopping for GPS's winter semi-formal that's coming up! After a few misses, we found H. a dress and spent the rest of the day shopping just for fun, stopping at Starbuck's and quickly spiraling to loopy because we were so tired/cracked out from sugary caffeine. We made it to the First Pres Christmas concert, but left early because I literally couldn't keep my eyes open! No joke, I was in bed and asleep by 9:15 last night!

I got the perfect balance of down time, productivity, and hanging out with friends. Weekends like this make it even harder to think of not being here in a few months for school, but I know that I'll be up here at least 2 weekends every month! More on that later...

Birthday Cards from a 3 year old

2011-12-01T17:31:00.001-05:00

My oldest sister told me this story about her birthday and it was just too funny not to share! The 2 main characters: Charlotte, 3, and Katie, now 30. Katie's birthday was on Tuesday, but on Monday, Katie and Charlotte were running errands at CVS.

So now that I've set the scene...The pair were on their way to check out when Charlotte decides that she absolutely must buy her mom a birthday card. Katie says that she doesn't need to, but Charlotte insists. Katie leads her towards the 99 cent cards. And after browsing for a few minutes, Charlotte settles on a pink, frilly, card that might have been age appropriate for any girl under the age of 6. On the front, there was a picture of a girl with a quote that said "Hey Little Girl" (a little creepy sounding to begin with...definitely weird for a soon-to-be 30 year old to be buying for herself).

Anyway, they go to the check out and Katie tells Charlotte she can pay her back once they get home (C has a piggy bank with change her parents' have put in their, money from family for birthdays, rewards for completing her chores, etc.) Charlotte, who never misses a beat, says: "No, mommy I think you should just pay for it since you have lots and lots of money!" Ha!

So they get home and Lee helps Charlotte sign the card, lick the envelope closed, and sneak the card onto Katie's placemat for her to "discover" Tuesday morning. Fast forward to Katie's birthday, she takes the dogs outside after waking up while Charlotte is inside eating breakfast. Charlotte greeted her mom at the door with the envelope opened and card out for Katie to see. The card that she bought for her own birthday was opened by the instigator of this whole thing! Man, that kid cracks me up.

Oh, and then she spent most of the day mad at Katie because she had mentioned the possibility of snow and when it didn't happen, Charlotte held that against her mom.

I just love having these stories written down so I can give Charlotte a hard time in a few years. :)

A Very Crafty Turkey Day

2011-11-29T08:22:00.001-05:00

The 4 day weekend that was "Thanksgiving break" can be summed up in a few words; baking, crafting, relaxing, and family time. But in a few less words:

Wednesday night after work I headed down to Marietta so I could meet up with some high school friends for dinner. Although last year's was a bit more successful, it was still fun. My favorite part was that we got to start planning our "bachelorette weekend" for Mary in Vegas in just 2 short weeks!

Thursday and Friday mostly consisted of sleeping in, playing with my nieces, catching up on TV shows on Hulu, lots of eating, baking an apple pie, and never leaving the house. Well, I left the house Friday night so I could visit Annie and the rest of the Chambers, so that was my big outing for the day. Oh! And we did put up the Christmas tree on Friday (because we got tired of hearing from Charlotte's one track mind about how we just HAD to put it up so it could be Christmas!)

Saturday was a cooking and crafting day! Kelly and Cary got me a pretzel maker for my birthday (because I could live off of Auntie Anne's pretzels. Y.U.M.) and I decided to have my family be my guinea pigs. It turned out to be quite a process making the dough and letting it rise:

Then rolling out the dough and using the "pretzel cutters" to get the shape:

Then I dipped them in baking soda mixed with warm water and put them in the pretzel maker:

And lastly, I dipped the pretzels in melted butter and either salted them or put them in a cinnamon sugar mix. They were a big hit and definitely worth the hassle!

Once we had snacked on my pretzels, we started craft time. Everything we made was from Pinterest and turned out so cute!

Although, I did have a big failure when I tried to fill up my ornament with all pearls. It was too heavy, so I tried to stuff the middle with cotton balls. Well, the cotton balls were no where to be found, so I used a cosmetic pad instead. That didn't work out so well, so I tried to get it out with a straight pin...that got stuck. It wasn't too long after that that I gave up on that ornament and moved on to more doable crafts!

Thankful.

2011-11-24T11:06:00.001-05:00

I have so much that I am thankful for. This year has been a year of roller coaster emotions and experiences but throughout all of it, God's hand has been present and that is what I am most grateful for.

This time last year, I was trying my best to figure out what the heck I was doing as a middle school youth leader. I loved every second of it and will cherish my time spent there. Although I'm sad that that opportunity couldn't continue past August, I am so blessed to still be apart of the students' lives and a member of such a wonderful, God centered, and loving church.

I have so many blessings through First Pres but the 2 that come to mind are Bob and Lisa Franklin and Kelly and Cary. Bob and Lisa have given me irreplaceable friendship and advice, a free home to live in, and an always reliable source of comfort. I just recently posted about Kelly and Cary, but I can't say enough how much of a blessing their friendship has been to me. The timing was perfect and I wouldn't have been able to be as good of a friend to them had my life been the same pace as it had been 6 months ago.

I'm so thankful for not knowing future plans. I'm a planner to say the least and I don't always feel this way, but I'm glad to know that God has some great plans in my future and it's okay that I don't know what they are. I'm waiting to hear back from grad schools to see if I can start school for counseling in the spring. We'll have to wait and see whatever the future holds and if that means I'll be back in Marietta or still in Chattanooga and broke either way. :) But I'm just excited for the opportunity and for friends and family that have been so supportive of my decision to go back to school (if I get in).

My list could go on and on. I am so blessed that I have lists of blessings and that is the biggest blessing of all. I am so grateful that we have a day set aside to share our gratitude with friends, family, and strangers alike.

And last but not least, I'm thankful the little blog that could. I love getting to look back and see my memories documented since August of 2008--man, that seems like so long ago! I love the 10 of you that read this and live life with me from near and far and LOVE getting to read each of your blogs so I feel like we can share that connect.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Engagements and Updates

2011-11-11T12:27:00.001-05:00

Yet again, I have become MIA. So since my last all in one update, I've been working away at the ribbon place per usual. Not much has changed there. I do like working there better this time around because I've made work friends. We're a quirky group, but they make me laugh and help make the monotony go by a bit faster. Some days are harder emotionally than others, mostly for the fact that I really do miss having a job that I am passionate about. Going from working with the youth group that I loved so so much to filling online orders at a ribbon company is quite a jump.

Something that provided a redeeming quality to my days at work was teaching Signal Mountain's color guard. We had our last competition this past Saturday and they won 6th overall in the Division 2 State Championships! I was so proud of all 5 of my girls and am crossing my fingers that this won't be the last time I'll be teaching guard. I really loved these girls-they always made me laugh and worked really hard ~~for the most part~~. :)

Two weekends ago, Kelly and Cary came to my parents for the weekend. It was so relaxing to just have a weekend at home playing with Charlotte, seeing my parents and sisters, having a quick visit with Felicity, shopping, and eating home cooked food.

Then this past weekend after the guard competition (sorry for my random train of thought writing), I squeezed in a few hours of sleep after the guard competition before going to Knoxville with Erin and Cara to surprise Samantha for her engagement!!! Elliot and Samantha went to high school together have been dating for almost 4 years now. After Elliot proposed, he had planned for a surprise party with her friends and family. I am so glad that I could make it to be there! Seeing the look on Sam's face when she saw that we drove up there was worth all the time and money we spent to go up there! Added bonus, we got to see camp friends too!

Side note: biggest ring ever--Perfect fo Sam!

This isn't everyone, but a lot of Sam's friends that could make it! Love this!

And now it's my birthday weekend! I LOVE birthdays so I will definitely update my blog

lately

2011-10-26T16:27:00.000-04:00

I cannot believe we're only a few days away from November!! I LOVE the month of November...my (25th!) birthday, LOTS of friends' birthdays, Thanksgiving and the official beginning of the holiday season; Christmas is less than 2 months away now! I also can't believe how much of a roller coaster my life has been these past 2 months since August. Here's a brief recap:

-Finished up my last few weeks at First Pres
-Moved out of my apartment
-Moved into Bob and Lisa's awesome guest house
-Spent lots of time traveling between in Marietta, Athens, and Chattanooga
-Vegged out for hours
-Job hunted like crazy
-Got burnt out with job hunting
-Started teaching Signal Mountain's color guard
-Prayed a lot about applying to grad school
-Applied to West Georgia for the Community Counseling program
-Swallowed my pride and started working at the ribbon place (more on that later)
-And now about to start applying to Richmont so I can maybe stay in Chattanooga (and be really broke)

All while this was going on, my favorite moments have been with friends and family. The initial shock of unemployment, sadness over missing the kids of the youth group every day, wondering what I'm supposed to do with my life, and beginning to pursue what I've had on my heart for some time now--my friends and family have stuck by my side and encouraged me. My closest group of friends have been Bob, Lisa, Kelly, and our newest addition, Cary Queen.

I have mentioned Kelly and Cary in the last several posts but never can seem to show our friendship justice in a quick blog post...I'll try my darndest though. Kelly and I have grown closer over the past 2 years and I have considered her a best friend for a little less than a year now. Cary just graduated from Tennessee in July and moved back to her parents house on Signal Mountain while she was looking for a job. During this past September, Lisa invited Cary to come to our small group that we have every other week. I wasn't there the first Monday Cary came, but the girls all told me how much I was going to love our newest addition. I was able to meet Cary the next Sunday when Bob and Lisa hosted a small group at their house. We found out that night that Kelly and I were housesitting for Bob and Lisa for 10 days while they were in Italy and Cary's parents were going out of town the exact same 10 days!! Oh yeah, did I mention Cary lives like 2 streets over from the Franklins?! Everything was falling into place for the 3 of us to be friends; it had to be a God thing. Ever since that week and a half, we have been inseparable. There have been countless times that we've said "What did we do before each other??" We can be honest, cry (which happens often), laugh (which happens 10 times as often), and do nothing together. I have never had a friendship fall into place as easily as our's did and it has hands down been the biggest, hugest, most unexpected blessing of unemployment (slash partial employment) that I wouldn't trade for anything.

PS-I also love that we have a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead as well as 4'10, 5'7, and 6'2.

Birthdays Galore

2011-10-23T22:05:00.000-04:00

This weekend hardly seemed like a weekend with having to work on Saturday for the Tent Sale at RABOM (ribbonandbowohmy.com), but I still managed to squeeze in time to celebrate not one, but TWO birthdays!

Since Saturday morning had an early alarm set, Friday night wasn't too eventful. A group of us went to the Terminal and I don't know the last time I've laughed as hard as I did for hours that night. Such a fun girls night!!

After leaving the tent sale (and doing some crafting for Charlotte and Felicity to kill time when I was in the kid's craft room), running, some errands, and cleaning up the house, I was off to birthday celebration #1 for Chloe! Chloe turned 16 on Thursday and had a ton of people from church and CCS at the Terminal to celebrate her special day. Although I didn't get to stay the whole time, it was so fun to see so many great people all in the same place.

Although I got a tad lost, I made it all in one piece to J. Alexander's for dinner with some of my favorite people in the world to celebrate birthday #2, Miss Kelly Powers! I am so blessed to have Cary and Kelly as my best friends and Bob and Lisa as my neighbors, "landlords" and family in Chattanooga. We had so much fun as always and it was such a fun way to celebrate Kelly and her 25th birthday!!

The celebration for Kelly continued this afternoon (today being her actual birthday and all), we went to her parents' house for a HUGE lunch. I'm talking roast beef, squash casserole, mashed potatoes, peas, mac and cheese, rolls, and all finished off with a made from scratch red velvet cake--holy. cow. It was all so good and I was so glad to spend Kelly's birthday with friends and family to celebrate Kelly! We finally dragged Kelly to go and buy and iPhone--no kidding, she is terrified of technology/touchscreen. Or she was and now she's been on her new phone all night!

I was so grateful for a weekend with friends--especially after last week! Did anyone else think that last week just seemed to drag on...and on...and on! Ugh! But this weekend more than made up for it and I get have a trip to Marietta to look forward to for next weekend!

When Posts Don't Save

2011-10-19T16:24:00.000-04:00

I had this really sentimental, sweet blog post all written up about Kelly and Cary...and then it didn't save. Boo. But I am not going to attempt to multi-task in writing a heartfelt blog while I'm watching this past Sunday's Desperate because it will only come out sounding lukewarm and that just doesn't do our friendship justice. So here's the weekend rundown.

I hung out with Kelly and Cary. And Bob and Lisa. All weekend. And went to a wedding. The end. It was a great weekend.

The wedding was for my sweet
camp/UGA friend Liz. She and I worked at camp together--she was Alex Walker's co before I was and the rest is history. Well, sort of. Since she went to Georgia, we would try to hang out once a month by either grabbing a coffee or going on a walk on Milledge. Liz is sweet and wonderful and made a beautiful bride! The wedding was classy and traditional, exactly what I would have expected from Liz. I'm so glad I got to be there and that Cary was my date! :)

Athens in the Fall

2011-10-15T15:23:00.001-04:00

So I've been a little busy. Between working at the ribbon place during the day (money is money, right?), guard practice right afterwards, and seeing friends at night (and when I say friends, it's safe to guess Kelly, Cary, and Katie 9 times out of 10), there has been little time for blogging. But I've always said I'd much rather be with friends than behind a computer, so here we are with blog posts few and far between...I'm trying!

Last (last) Wednesday I went to Marietta to see Brian Diehl since he was in town for a few days. It turned into a mini reunion of sorts because Bonnie came over for dinner to see him, then he and I met up with Bracca and Alexa. I love spur of the moment reunions and seeing old friends!

Friday, it was time to head to the Classic City and see Jessica Schwartz! It's always fun to see her and even more fun that we got to enjoy a weekend full of fall festivities! The weekend consisted of downtown, shopping, pumpkin patch hopping, and football.

The whole reason I came down to Athens in the first place was to go see Marc Broussard at the newly remodeled Georgia Theatre! I don't know if I was more excited to see the concert or to see the updates since the fire 2 years ago. The 2 opening acts were great and Marc was so fun too!

Better Late than Never: Weekend Update

2011-10-06T09:03:00.002-04:00

After a week of doing nearly nothing besides guard practice, I was looking forward to my overpacked weekend! I'll do highlights to avoid rambling...not that I ever ramble of anything...

Friday night I went to my girls football game and since it was homecoming, we got to go on before kick off! That was a welcome change of schedule since I left after the show and headed up to Nashville! I spent the night with Taylor and loved getting to catch up and laugh with her!

Saturday was my girls' first competition. Competition days were long days when I was in high school, but I'm not as young as I was back then and the day seemed suuuuuper long. But fun, so it was worth it. We didn't have our best show, but with 4 freshman, 1 senior, and myself being their 3rd instructor, I'd say we didn't do too shabby. Highlight of the afternoon was watching other high school bands with the band kids and telling them "when I marched" stories. The band placed 3rd overall in the class (woohoo!) and it was 11:30 before I got out of there! Thank goodness I had Bonnie and McDonald's to keep me company for the late night drive back!

Sunday morning was a great sermon by Tim, lunch with my favorite Chattanooga friends, going to see a matinee "What's Your Number?" (really cute and not as raunchy as I thought it could have been; just fyi), solo shopping, and dinner and drinks by a fire pit with Cary, Bob, and Lisa while they told us stories about their traveling in Italy. (Jealous)

All in all, a super busy, tiring, and accomplished feeling weekend. I'm really proud of my girls and I'm so glad I got to be there to see them perform! It's been really fun being back in the guard/band world and it's nice to have some purpose to my days :)

More than I Could Ask For

2011-09-28T10:26:00.000-04:00

My heart has been so full lately. Being back in Chattanooga for more than a few days at a time has been better than I could have asked.

Last Monday, I worked at CVP for the day and got to see all of the CCS sophomore girls that I hadn't seen in what seemed like forever. My heart was overwhelmed with love for these girls and oh, I was just so so happy to see them and literally be tackled by them when they saw me. Then, Allie was jealous that I saw other girls so we had breakfast together on Tuesday morning like the "old days". And in typical Tuesday morning fashion, we ran into Carolann, Elissa, and the GPS girls. It was such a great way to start a long Tuesday morning with hugs from all of those familiar faces.

As I've mentioned in my last few blog posts, I have LOVED my new plus old group of friends of Cary, Kelly, and Emily. I have spent hours talking and enjoying the doubled-over, can't breath kind of laughter with at least 2 of the 3 girls last Monday, this Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and now Tuesday. Seriously, I cannot get enough with these girls--I feel like we have known each other for years!!

And then on top of all of that, after a lot of thought and some needed time away, I was ready to return to First Pres. It really was a hard decision for several reasons. I really needed to separate myself from the youth group for a while, not because I don't love them dearly, but because I needed to just have a break. I also needed to make sure that I didn't allow myself to keep doing my job that I wasn't getting paid to do...a hard truth I needed to make sure I was spending time with students because I wanted to and not because I needed to. (And please don't think that I ever spent time with students that wasn't out of pure love for them and loved doing so, but I just needed to make sure...if that makes sense.) But after some time away, I was ready to get back to my church and man! was it good! I loved seeing the familiar faces, getting big comfortable hugs, and the genuine excitement in seeing people I haven't seen in a while. And who would have thought, but I missed the organ! haha Well, maybe not missed, but it sure was nice being back in a comfortably uncomfortable pew singing with a full choir out of a hymnal.

And the cherry on top, I got had dinner at the Tinsley's with a group of youth group students. It was so so so much fun and full of laughter thanks to the great company!

So all of this rambling is to say, that no I don't know where my life is taking my right now, but my heart has been so full and overwhelmed with blessings of friends in Chattanooga these past few weeks and it has been just what I wasn't smart enough to pray for myself.

Fall Festivities

2011-09-26T09:52:00.000-04:00

This weekend consisted of all things fall and wonderful. After a long walk with Erin and then another walk with Katie later in the afternoon, I got ready for my first football game as Signal Mountain's guard instructor. Besides the fact that I had to pay to park and walk half a mile to get to the game, it was really fun! Chilly, but not too cold and it was crazy going to a high school football game without wearing a pound of make up and spandex. Ha! After the game, Katie and I got late night Ayala's, watched Bridesmaids and her friend Bully came over and we sat out on the Franklin's porch. Bliss.

Saturday morning, the guard had practice to help us prepare for our competition this coming weekend. It's been so fun to be back in the "guard world"--crazy throwback, but fun! We still have a lot to do before the competition, but they're doing well for me being the 3rd instructor they've had this season! (First girl is awesome but got a job so she couldn't come to practices, the 2nd girl was cray-cray, or so I've heard, and now there's me!) While I was at practice, our new friend Cary invited me over for a late breakfast. A late breakfast turned into a late lunch because I stayed after practice for a while. Sidenote: Cary grew up on Signal, went to Tennessee and just graduated, and is back at home. We've only been friends for a week, but she is quickly becoming apart of the group of girls I hang out with. Kelly met up with us to run errands, watch football, and then we went to meet another new friend in a similar situation as Cary. Emily's parents had a bonfire on their home at the back of the mountain. Let me tell you--it was perfection. Bonfire, chili, drinks, friends, and of course s'mores. And even better, I got to wear a cardigan and boots. If that doesn't say fall, I don't know what does.

Sunday was my first day back at First Pres since the first weekend in August. I needed time to distance myself for a while and after seeing a group of the girls on Monday when I worked at camp for a day retreat, I felt like I was emotionally ready to be back. I don't even think I realize how much I had missed the teaching, fellowship, and "at home" feeling I have at my church. My heart was so full and overwhelmed with love for the kids and familiar faces of the church. Oh, I just loved it! The rest of the day involved a lot of indecision, eating, and relaxing with Cary, Emily, and Kelly.

Sorry for the lack of pictures! We used Emily's camera to take pictures at the bonfire, but once they're up on facebook, I need to post them on here. They're hilarious--Kelly is 4'11 and Cary is 6'3--just picture that and it's humorous enough! Hope everyone else had a weekend as great as mine was! :)

LEW is Leighton! And she's here!

2011-09-22T10:56:00.000-04:00

One of the biggest blessings from CVP that I've gained are the friendships that I have found in my co's. Co's have a special bond because they have to be "mom and dad" to 8-10 girls for a week and I keep in touch with almost all of my past co's. One of the co's that I have kept in touch with most regularly and have enjoyed seeing her often in Chattanooga is Alex. Alex and I were paired together at the beginning of Alex and Forrest's relationship and it was so neat to see and hear all of the girly details (well not all because if you know Alex, you know how private she is--and I love that about her).

Fast forward through a quick engagement (I only say quick in the opinions for the rest of society, it was exactly as long as it needed to be and not a day longer :), a couple years of marriage with Alex in youth ministry and Forrest teaching and coaching baseball at CCS to last August. As they were helping me move into my apartment, Alex and Forrest called me into their garage to tell me in a very similar way to how I found I was going to be an aunt to Charlotte (Alex was my co when my dad sent the email to camp saying "What's the difference between an ant and an aunt? One is a 6 legged insect and the other is you! haha We both hugged and cried and I love that I shared that moment with my co) that they were expecting. It was still very early on and they were only telling close friends and family, and I was overjoyed to hear the news. Sadly, a few weeks later Alex called to tell me about her miscarriage. Hearing her sound so heartbroken hurt my heart for their loss. But God is good no matter the circumstances and just a few months later, the Walkers announced their healthy pregnancy of a little girl!

Fast forward yet again to this past Sunday night! Alex checked into the hospital to be induced and after a quick and easy labor (seriously, Alex shocked me when she boasted on the ease of her super quick labor!!), Leighton Elyse Walker was born at 7:36am Monday morning; weighing 7lbs 10oz and 20.2 inches long! A healthy, beautiful little girl. She hardly looked "newborn"; tiny and precious, yes. But she didn't have the splotchy newborn skin that most day old babies have. I feel overwhelmingly blessed that I was able to visit Alex and Forrest and Leighton while they were still at the hospital. I will definitely be frequenting the Walker household since they live less than 10 minutes away to visit with Alex and spend many more hours hold ing my 3rd "niece". :)

Congratulations Alex and Forrest! She is beautiful and perfect and you can totally brag about your sweet daughter because it's all a blessing from God!

Rover Rally 2011

2011-09-21T18:30:00.002-04:00

This past weekend was the perfect daddy-daughter mountain weekend; complete with a cabin on top of a hill, barbeque, off roading with plenty of hills, rocks, mud, and Rovers. We got settled in on Friday night and bought way more groceries than we needed.

My dad and I headed out late morning, leaving Kirby and Felicity back a cabin, (don't worry! They got to go to a fair, eat pizza, and take naps while we were gone!) and we were off!

It was fun as always, but I feel like only pictures and videos can do justice to show our weekend off trails.

As we were leaving, Dale and my dad were saying how well everything had gone, how great the weather was, and that everything just worked out perfectly. If that isn't a jinx, I don't know what is....
So as we're driving to meet Kirby and Felicity at Rib Country and my dad looks at me and says "The power just went out." Me: "I don't know what that means." And my dad says, "Well we're just coasting. The engine isn't working." We coast into a driveway off the highway and with our good luck, a line of 6 Land Rovers pulls up behind us about 5 minutes later. Which then lead to about 8 self proclaimed Rover experts sticking their head in the engine of the "Albino Rhino".

When they finally concluded that it was more than just a side-of-the-road fix, the group of well prepared off-roaders had all the necessary equipment to tow us into town and right into the parking lot of Rib Country. Convenient, right?

Long story short, we had to leave the Rhino in the Rib Country parking lot until yesterday morning (Tuesday AM)...more on that later. Back to the weekend; Sunday was mostly for packing up and heading home. But Kirby and I made sure to stop by Panorama Apple Orchard in Ellijay. Felicity loved get to snack on apple and fried apple pies while we shopped around! Too. Stinking. Precious.

Now for the rest of the dead Rover saga. We left the lonely truck at Rib Country to brave the rain and barbeque eaters' parking lot. My dad had to call Good Sam, then me, then Rib Country, then Good Sam again, and then again, and probably a few more times. After lots of coordinating (and bribing me with money), I did my dad the favor of driving to Murphy, NC from Chattanooga at 8 AM this morning for the 2 hour drive there and the 2 hour drive back all before lunch so I could sign a sheet of paper to let Good Sam know that the tow truck did what they were supposed to do. Oy. All in all, it was a wonderful and memorable weekend with my dad, sister and niece.

PS- Felicity is growing up so fast! She said "Kristin" on Friday night and I think my whole heart melted! She's looking and sounding less and less like a baby and more like a toddler every day! They really do grow up so fast!!

Memories of Rover Rallies Past

2011-09-16T12:03:00.000-04:00

This weekend is the annual "SOLARIS" Rover Rally. There are usually several around the Southeast, and we make it a point to go to at least one a year. It is a fall time tradition that I love getting to share with my dad and whatever friends and family can come. I've been going to these with my dad since middle school, but thanks to digital cameras, I have the last few years documented to show you! I wish I could find some from middle school...those would be a trip down memory lane for sure.

Can't wait for another weekend in the mountains! It's just my dad, Kirby, Felicity and myself this year. Lots of pictures to come :)

A Fall Bucket List-Thanks to Pinterest

2011-09-14T19:39:00.000-04:00

Bulldogs and Bonfires

2011-09-13T09:58:00.000-04:00

Although the Bulldogs are 0-2 now, I have to say that I was much happier with how we played this week. I felt like we were actually playing football and yes, there were some mistakes, but we were actually fighting for the score this week that just running around the field losing helmets and shoes after every play.

Rewind a little bit to Friday night (sans pictures--fail on my part). I got in to Athens with plenty of time for Jessica and I to run errands, run downtown to shop before the shops closed, and eat an early dinner at the delicious Taquiera del Sol. We went to the Winery to sit outside and people watch when we ran into Casey and Pamp! It was great to catch up with some Alpha Gam alums that I haven't seen in years.

Saturday wasn't too early of a start and we finally made it out to the Alum tailgate in Myers. I loved getting to see girls from my pledge class and a couple of the older girls too with plenty of time for catching up and taking pictures of course!

Although we lost, I was and still am proud to be a Bulldog. The weekend was fun, as Georgia game day weekends always turn out to be. Jessica and I made it an early night (hello old age!!) and we were in bed by 10:30 on Saturday night. We slept in on Sunday and went to an early lunch at the yummy Graze. Deeeeeelicious. I headed back to Marietta for an afternoon with my family--which involved a lot of running up and down the sidewalk "racing" Charlotte.

My dad went back to his redneck roots and invested in a "campfire in a can". No, seriously...

So Katie, Charlotte, "Gigi" and "G-Paw", and the dogs, all sat around the fire, roasted marshmallows, and made some end of summer s'mores. I love memories like these. :)

Ten Years Later

2011-09-11T15:25:00.001-04:00

How is it possible that 9/11 was 10 years ago today? I remember after it happened, someone said: You will never forget what you were doing when you heard the news. And that is so true. Whenever 9/11 comes up in conversation, people always talk about where they were when they heard of the planes hitting the Twin Towers.

I had just started Freshman year at Pope and was in 1st period Spanish with Senora. Lewis--a semi-loopy, strong Christian, Spanish teacher that I later had for homeroom my Sophomore and Junior years. We had taken our first test of the semester, my first test of high school, and were working on flashcards for the next chapter. Dr. Stowers came over the intercom to announce that the first building had been hit and immediately, Senora Lewis turned on the news. Dr. Stowers son had been in New York and saw the North Tower get hit and called his mother, which she then passed on the news for us to turn on our televisions. Most of us were unaware of the gravity of what was going on, but Sra Lewis was on the ball with what Al-Queda was and explained to us that she presumed this was a terrorist attack. She wrote over the board information that I knew nothing or little about. The bell rang and we were off to 2nd period with hallways buzzing of what was going on.

I was in Coach Griffin's geography class and as I walked in, the 2nd tower was hit. I was furious when another student in the class was laughing just before it was hit because they thought someone had accidentally run into the building. Once the plane collided with the second tower, the fact that I was watching this happen live seemed surreal to me. I remembered watching the assassination of Kennedy in classes, seeing documentaries on Martin Luther King's death, but that kind of stuff happened in some other lifetime, not mine. We watched in awe as the towers separately collapsed, with a lack of words that expressed our fear, confusion, and overwhelming sadness for everyone that was trapped inside the buildings and surrounding.

My 3rd period Algebra teacher upset me the most, how she reacted still infuriates me today. She refused to let us watch TV and insisted that there would not be any new news to happen in the 90 minutes we had class and that we ought to keep learning Algebra because the "world was still spinning" in her words. Even at 14, I knew that that day was a huge deal and not to be taken lightly. She disregarded emotions that people had for family that lived in New York. I had just found out that because my dad works at Nuclear Power Plants for the Dept of Energy, they had to evacuate. And she could have cared less.

My last class of the day was band. I have to say that I was impressed by how Mr. Gribble, our band director, handled the tragedy by asking us questions about how we were feeling and allowing us to ask questions, like "Does this mean that we're going to war?" I was at home with my band friends and that seemed like the comfort I needed to have. I do remember being shocked when they cancelled all after school activities that afternoon and for the rest of the week. We thought that surely band practice was the exception--we were supposed to practice the rotating block drill that afternoon. (You will only truly appreciate that reference if you marched that year...please excuse my band nerdiness.)

I couldn't stomach to watch the news all afternoon because it just tied my stomach in knots to think of the people in those buildings. The weeks to follow, some of my favorite clips to watch were the ones of the firemen rescuing people, heroic citizens that helped strangers, and especially the stories of people that should have been there, but due to circumstances, like sleeping in, missing the Subway, or whatever else, they weren't.

I don't have anything especially eloquent to say in this post, but by remembering what I was doing that day, it helps me to keep in check that that day was real--that that day was a normal week day until that plane was hijacked, and this tragedy happened to real people with families, and still affects our country today. There are few days that I feel particularly patriotic (don't get me wrong, I love our country...but not in the overwhelming, I want to get excited about it all the time kind of way), but every year around 9/11 and especially now a decade later, I remember the sense of camaraderie that we all felt that day and the days following. And I hope we never forget that feeling out of respect and memory of those lost.

What were you doing when the planes crashed?

Peach Pie Problems

2011-09-09T09:34:00.000-04:00

Daniel has been out of town for a few days (in Vegas...for a Vet Conference? Sounds fishy ;), so I came to stay with Kirby and Felicity while he was gone. Kirby and I always have a ton of fun together doing what sisters do best; talking and laughing the practically the whole time we're together.

Well the sweet sister that she is, Kirby offered to make dinner for a family and wanted to make them a homemade dessert. Growing up, I was always the one in the kitchen helping make dinner, Kirby on the other hand...not so much. So my sister's recent interest in baking and cooking is still taking some getting used to! Daniel and Kirby bought a HUGE basket full of fresh peaches from the farmer's market so she really wanted to use the peaches for a dessert she was making for this family. So peach pie it is!

Kirby peeled the peaches and mixed the pie filling together while I tried my hand at making pie crust.

I've made several pies before, but always have wanted to make pie crust instead of using the Pillsbury right-out-of-the-box kind. The recipe called for flour, salt, shortening, and ice cold water. Well, we didn't have shortening so we figured oil was a fair alternative and after 2 failed attempts of putting water in the freezer to make it "ice cold" (in other words, I spilled chilly water all over myself and the floor...both times), we settled for really, really cold sink water. All of these mishaps are all pointing to "most delicious pie crust ever", right? ha! After some kneading and a floury mess, the crust was as ready as it would ever be.

We filled up the pie tin with the peachy, gooey goodness (that's butter dotted on top if you can't tell...);

And began to cover the top with the other half of the pie crust. Ya see...it was a little bit slippery from the oil instead of shortening combo, which made it difficult to just put on top of the pie. I had success with the "lattice" top pies before, but I went with what I knew. And yes, this was a candid shot that I was trying my best to hid from.

I forgot to take a before picture, so 5 minutes into bake time, I snapped a shot from inside the oven.

We put it in the oven for the directed 50 minutes and the top was a crust was a little soft still so we put it in for 10 more minutes. Then another 5. And another. I've lost track how many times we added time to the clock, but needless to say the baking process took much much more time than we had anticipated.
Side note: all while this was happening, Kirby managed to knock down all of her spices on her spice rack. Like a good sister, I just laughed. This whole pie baking process involved more spills and mess than usual.

Loooong story short, after much deliberation and setting and resetting the timer, we decided the pie was done. Disclaimer: the juice from the pie filling spilled over onto the cookie sheet and burned to a crisp. It was really hard to overlook the black disaster that was surrounding our pie and just look at the pie itself, but we decided the pie on its own was "pretty enough" to give to someone else to eat, but we were still a bit doubtful.

We let the pie cool while we were watching Make It or Break It...yes, it's that ABC Family show about gymnastics. I blame Kirby and Hulu. They got me hooked. Before we went to bed, we tried to lift the pie off of the cookie sheet. Like most everything else in our pie making process, this did not go as planned. The black, volcanic tar had now hardened and stuck to the bottom of the pie tin, which in turn made the pin tin stick to the cookie sheet. So we had to perform a bit of removal surgery...It got messy. I even broke her spatula. In my defense, it was already falling apart.

After lots of laughing and chipping away at the burned nastiness, we accomplished our mission!!

It might not be the prettiest pie there ever was (might not be that delicious either...we won't be able to tell since we're giving it to Kirby's friends), but we had fun making it. My sister has made a delicious peach pie before, so I'm sure this one will be no different...although the problems this pie caused were more than normal. My sister and I have just come to terms with that fact that whatever we're doing together is going to take twice as long as it would the normal person, but we're okay with that because we get to do it together.

And that's enough cheesy for one blog post :)

Fall is in the air...for a few days

2011-09-08T19:07:00.003-04:00

Fall is hands down my favorite season. What's not to love about it? First and foremost it's football season and in a close second, possibly tying for 1st, is my birthday month--Yes, it takes the whole month of November to celebrate my birthday. Next, fall means that I can pull out some of my favorite articles of clothing: scarves, boots, flats, cardigans, and all the layering of clothes that come with that half of the closet...I mean really, my options are endless and who doesn't love outfit options?! What comes with fall are the little things that simply make it fall; stepping outside and feeling that crispness in the air, crunching on leaves when you walk, drinking a warm cup of apple cider or Starbucks' vanilla lattes, bonfires, Halloween!!, the possibility of camping, definitely hiking, any and everything apple and pumpkin flavored (homemade baked goods in particular!), our family's annual Rover Rally (next weekend! Can't wait!), and the list goes on and on. I know that this awesome 70-75 degree weather is just a tease because in typical Southern fashion, I am willing to bet the thermometer at least hits 90 degrees a couple more days before it plummets to not so enjoyable freezing temperatures.

But man! have I enjoyed the tease of fall as much as I could these last few days! Starbucks latte and pumpkin bread, enjoying a crisp apple, and my favorite time so far has been today in the late afternoon when I sat on Kirby's front porch while reading a book and sipping on my latte. Pure bliss. I can't wait for hours in the Tennessee and North Georgia mountains that I will get to spend hiking in the cooler weather. But right now, I'm just hoping it stays cool enough to stay comfortable at the game on Saturday!

Two Words, Two Simple Words

2011-09-07T13:06:00.000-04:00

"Glory Glory to old Georgia.

Heroes have graced the field before you. Men with hearts, bodies and minds for which the entire Bulldog Nation can be justifiably proud.

The tradition of unbridled excellence demonstrated by these individuals and many others spans more than a full century.

And now a new breed of Bulldog stands ready to take the field of battle, to assume the reigns of the Georgia program, to continue that tradition.

Understanding that there is no tradition more worthy of envy, no institution worthy of such loyalty as The University of Georgia. As we prepare for another meeting Between the Hedges let all the Bulldog faithful rally behind the men who now wear the Red and Black with two words...two simple words that express the sentiments of the entire Bulldog Nation...

GO DAWGS!"

My love for Georgia started strong and dedicated,

although I barely knew then that I was just starting to scratch the surface of a life long obsession.

Being a Georgia fan means early mornings with your best friends;

countless upon countless pictures with sorority sisters;

and some strangers too (like creepy old men we meet at Georgia/Florida)...

getting to the stadium at least an hour early to save the best seats in the student section;

sticking by your team in gut-wrenching losses; (like when I cried when we lost to UT in 2006)

and the most memorable of wins; (read: UGA vs. Auburn BLACKOUT)

wearing red and black dresses every Saturday in the fall;

braving the cold and the rain (aka UGA vs. GT in 2008)

traveling to as many away games as your schedule can handle,

and paying way too much for tickets after you graduate from the best 4 years of your life.

But when it really comes down to it, it's about loyalty. Loyalty to the Dawgs through winning and losing. Dedication to making game day more than just a few hours in the stadium, but an all day social event. Spending thousands on tailgates, decorations for your home, more than you should on tickets, and hours upon hours of screaming at the tv, driving to and from Athens, and of course, in Sanford Stadium--getting sunburns, sore throats, and raw nerves. But every season, no matter what, I'll make sure I'm sporting my red and black, carrying a red and black koozie around a cheap watered down beer in it tucked inside my monogrammed lucky game day purse. No matter what I love my Dawgs and I cannot wait to be back between the hedges to cheer them on against South Carolina this weekend yelling GOOOOOOOO DAWGS! Sic'em!

Silly Nieces

2011-09-06T18:21:00.000-04:00

I love spending time with my family and I've gotten to do lots of that this weekend! I'll just let the pictures do the talking :)

It has been so fun being in Marietta and that everyone else had a long weekend so we could all enjoy it together!

Decisions, Decisions

2011-08-31T16:57:00.000-04:00

To be completely honest, I have LOVED not having a schedule or responsibilities (read: I have loved being unemployed). I selfishly have stayed up late watching movies, slept in way later than I normally would, read books for fun, and wasted hours on Pinterest. What I have enjoyed most is the fact that I can be a good daughter, sister, and friend to the friends and family in my life. Even these last few weeks, I have gotten so much quality time with Katie, Kirby, Felicity, Charlotte, my parents, high school friends, and Chattanooga friends alike :) Seriously a huge blessing...Definitely a silver lining during this time of unknown and transition.

Now that the move is over and done with (PTL!), I can refocus my thoughts to job hunting/life decisions.

The idea of going back to school has always been in the back of my mind, more specifically going back to school for either Marriage and Family Therapy or to get my Child Life Specialist Certification. The only problem is that both of those programs are offered at certain schools and with going back to school, I would plan on living at my parents' house to balance out some of the costs. And since my parents' house is a permanent fixture and so are these schools, it just might not match up. If I went back to school, I would plan on nannying unless I found another part time job that was flexible-ish and paid decently. Who would of thought I'd have to go through all of the schooling stress again? Not me, that's for sure, but I know it would be so worth it...and as nerdy as it sounds, I do love learning.

But then there's the other side of the coin; do I hold out for a full time salary job? I've been looking both in Atlanta and Marietta like I've shared with y'all before but I still don't know what I want to do and it's overwhelming and daunting to look at job websites day in and day out. Most jobs that sound appealing are the ones that require more schooling. Or do I just settle for an admin job (gag meeeee) or go back to the Riboon place (money is money...) or just look at nannying jobs. Which goes back to the question of where-Atlanta or Chattanooga? Oy...

Sorry this blog post has zero resolve and is complete and utter rambling...but like I've had to remind myself about before, this blog is for me to remember the ups and downs of my life and also something to share those ups and downs with all of you.

Some may say it's a flaw, but a quality about myself is that I don't know how to be private about 90% of the things that go on in my life...I'll keep other's lives private, but when it comes to me and what I'm thinking--I'm an open book. So I guess reading rambling rampages just comes with reading my blog posts :) Thanks for hanging in there with me.

Home Sweet Mountain Home

2011-08-30T13:23:00.000-04:00

I am more or less officially moved out of Signal View and unofficially a Signal Mountain dweller now! I still have a couple of things that I need to go and collect from the ghetto, but last night was my first night staying in the Franklin's guest house. It's one big room, fully furnished and FREE! It doesn't hurt that I love it and I'm about 40 feet away from 2 of my favorite people.

I'm bringing in as little as possible because needless to say, I am so over all of this moving stuff! But I could not be more grateful to have somewhere to call home whenever I'm up in Chattanooga though. And no, I'm not here permanently nor am I in Marietta permanently. I just have 2 places to call home right now--it all just depends on the day that you ask which state I'm in....such is the life of a vagabond.

All My Bags are Packed, I'm Ready to Go

2011-08-26T22:20:00.003-04:00

Welp. Here I am again, doing what I should do best: packing up and moving. Seriously if you count moving in and out of the dorms/sorority house, and apartments, plus "squatting" at the Liners, Taylor's and the Harwoods, plus summers at camp in Chattanooga, this is my 27th time moving since I was 18. Oh my Heavens, that was the first time I've really counted and that is just too much to fathom. This time has probably been the worst just because I have lived here for a full year and that's something I haven't done since high school! Plus, add in the furniture and that's a whole other level of stress. Luckily, Alex and Forrest let me borrow their couch and bed (mattress, bed, everything!) and they're even letting me store my other junk in their basement until I have a home of my own again! What a HUGE blessing! But after hours of packing this week, mostly today, I am almost all the way moved out and the apartment feels so empty right now! Here's just a bit of the progress from today--just to remind myself later on that I have WAY too much junk...that I refuse to get rid of...

Erin had to pack up my shoes for me because I tried to throw them all into that black trunk, they wouldn't fit, I got stressed and so she just took over for me--thank goodness! And yes, I know I have ~~not enough~~ way too many shoes (and that's not all of them...)

And now here's the almost "after" shots...so so empty and disorganized right now! Stressful for a Type A personality like myself.

I will be splitting my time between Chattanooga and Marietta the next few weeks, mostly just dependent on my weekend plans...but it would be nice to have a job so I could move all of this junk into another home! Until then, I will just take advantage of all of the wonderful friends and family that have opened their homes to me :) Such a huge blessing to have so many people in my life that are so hospitable and willing to put up with me (and all of my junk!)

Blessed to be the Baby

2011-08-25T16:29:00.001-04:00

If you're from Chattanooga and know anyone that goes to GPS or McCallie, or pretty much any school in Chattanooga, you've probably heard of Chapel Talks. And if you're not from Chattanooga, then I will tell you just what a Chapel Talk is; during Senior Year at both GPS and McCallie (the all girls and all boys private schools in Chattanooga) each senior is required to give a Chapel Talk in front the of school, as well as whatever friends and family they invite. Your Chapel Talk can be about anything and you can do anything you decide on stage. They typically are 10-20 minutes long, with a close friend of family member introducing you and then the stage is yours. I've heard Chapel Talks about smells that bring about memories, a dance that the girl choreographed herself, elaborating on a special quote or story in their life, and family.

Yesterday I went to Kelsey Keef's Chapel Talk. She went 2nd during the year because she is the Senior Class President (after class officers, you pull a number our of a hat to decide your order of presenting the rest of the year). Kelsey, Paige and I were the leaders of Dragonfly Den at Southwind this past Spring Break. I love both of these girls so so much and have loved growing a friendship with them, even with our 7 year age difference.

Kelsey spoke on her relationship with her sister who is a grade above her and has just started college at UT in Knoxville. She was eloquent, poised, and even kept her composure when she got choked up-something I know would have caused me to get tripped up. Kelsey spoke of her strained relationship with her sister and how it has affected her both while they were at GPS, during her sister's serious accident last fall, and now that she's left for college. Kelsey was able to say the things about and to her sister that she didn't have the courage to one on one. It's amazing how opportunities come up for people to be able to say what they need to say at the right time and place.

After she spoke, a group of her friends and guests (aka me!) were invited to a lunch at the Pavilion in Coolidge Park where they were serving Moe's--YUM! It was so fun to see Paige, Kelsey, and Babs again and spend time together just catching up! I am so so proud of Kelsey and cannot wait for Paige's Chapel Talk in April!

It all got me thinking how blessed I am to have great relationships with both of my sisters. Albeit very different relationships, I know that I can go to either of them for advice, a listening ear, or something as small as telling them a funny story (and most funny stories that I tell are funny because I did something awkward, let's be honest.) My relationships with Katie and Kirby are something that I so often take for granted and hearing Kelsey share her story just reminded me how big of a blessing it is in my life to have not one, but two! incredible, wise, and Godly sisters to look up to and respect. I love being the baby in the family and could not imagine where I would be today if it weren't for both of my older sisters molding me into who I am today. I could ramble on about each one of them separately and that could show up on here another day, but for today I want you both to know that you are loved and that speaks volumes in my heart.

Loooong Weekend

2011-08-24T14:58:00.006-04:00

A definite perk of unemployment is getting to take a long weekend. It's nice to just enjoy time with friends and family, catch up on sleep, and especially have time to pack up my apartment. Side note: It is amazing how much it takes to pack up a tiny apartment. I have way too much stuff, but couldn't think of not having it so getting rid of it is not at option-oy!Okay, back to the point-my wonderfully long weekend in Marietta. I'll stick with bullet points and highlights for the sake of the sanity of those reading this because we all know I have a tendency to ramble and let's be honest, rambling + long weekend = super long blog post that 80% of you wouldn't make it through.

Thursday: Babysitting Felicity--Loved it as always, especially now that she is learning new words every week and figuring things out on her own!

Friday: Lunch with Kirby and Kathryn Neidhardt--So fun that Kirby and Kathryn grew up together and that after Kathryn prefed me, I went Alpha Gam and now we're sisters!

Friday night, I had a Girls Night Out with Bonnie and Alexa! Alexa had the intentions of man hunting for me and Bonnie, but luckily Bonster and I were able to restrain her and it ended up being a fun GNO sans "man hunt" (thank goodness)

Saturday morning consisted of Einstein Bros. Bagels, Bonnie talking teacher stuff with my mom, and painting coffee filters on the kitchen floor with Charlotte, G-Paw, and Katie. My dad and I made time to the driving range for a Daddy-Daughter date and the rest of the day was spent with family. I always need the reminder to not overbook my schedule when I'm in Marietta so I can actually see my family.

Sunday was church at my parent's church--they even sacrificed going to the contemporary service so Katie and I could feel more at home with the organ and choir! and then lunch at Panera. Next was Nicolie's Baby Shower! I wish I had a picture of all the UGA girls that were there, but it was so fun to catch up with Crossroads friends :)

Monday was pretty lazy--playing with Charlotte, watching TV just because I could, and randomly going to Katie's guard practice to help out the rifles a bit. Random, but a nice little pat on the back to know that if all else fails, I could just be a guard instructor because that's something I know in and out. I caught up with Annie before she moves to MAINE tomorrow!!! And lots of phone calls to catch up with friends :)

My weekend even seeped a little bit into Tuesday, but I eventually packed up my car to come meet Kelly for dinner at Chili's (separation anxiety...we're too used to seeing each other!)

It was so fun to see high school friends this weekend and that I even made time for quality time with family! I might be bouncing back and forth between here and there before too long since this is my last full week at my apartment! More on that later...and like I said earlier: Oy!!

Beat the Heat

2011-08-18T11:12:00.000-04:00

I figure that if I'm going to be unemployed, then I might as well spend my free time getting in shape--and it definitely helps to give me some semblance of a schedule which I definitely need! I have a bad knee (and ankles and hips...basically I'm falling apart in my mid-20s) so running isn't always an option. I like to run when I've gotten back in the swing of it, but especially if it's really hot or really cold my knee will swell and become really sensitive.

If I wake up early enough I can avoid the heat, but let's be honest; it's so much easier to hit the snooze button than get out of bed to go for a morning run and it is WAY to hot in the afternoons to do anything outside besides sit with a glass of sweet tea. But I've found these great YouTube videos that I've used in combination with my running or as a replacement for the days I can't run. Go to YouTube and search "Pop Pilates" and dozens of videos will show up! She does everything from 10 minutes ab clips to 30+ minutes cardio videos. Pilates is gentle on my joints but I've definitely felt like I've gotten a great work out when it's all said and done. So if you're looking to change up your work out or just want to avoid the heat, try these videos, I've really loved the couple that I've done!

Mini Vacation

2011-08-16T10:08:00.000-04:00

This weekend felt like a long weekend/mini vacation--restful, lots of time with family and friends, and lots of time in the car!

Friday afternoon, Kelly and I loaded up my beloved "Roxy" (aka my car) and headed to Marietta. Friday night was spent with my parents, Katie, Lee, and Charlotte. Kelly and Charlotte quickly became friends and the 3 of us were nearly inseparable the whole weekend; if Charlotte was doing something, she wanted us to tag along. After we took a family walk and read her bedtime stories; the "kids"--Katie, Lee, Kelly, and myself watched Lincoln Lawyer. It was a great Friday night in!

Saturday morning, Bonnie stopped by to get "teacher things" from my mom and she and my mom spent the better part of 2 hours talking about classroom stuff. Kelly was upstairs the whole time playing with Charlotte--they played with the Little People and Kelly's favorite part was the dance party to Charlotte's 2 favorite songs--"Jessie's Girl" and "Awww the Single Ladies". Chandler made me a CD senior year of college even though she has the choice of "I can show you the world", songs from Enchanted, and "Part of Your World" my niece choose those 2 songs! Hilarious! Kelly's favorite conversation of the morning went a little like this:
Kelly: Show me your favorite dance move.
Charlotte: Um, no.
Kelly: Why not?
Charlotte: I have too many!
That kid never ceases to keep my (and my friends) entertained!

Kelly and I made it out the door (Charlotte was distracted when we snuck out) and ~~got sort of lost~~ found our way to the Cheesecake Factory for a late lunch--YUM!

Since Kirby and Daniel live so close to the stadium, we didn't even have to deal with parking! We caught up with Kirby, and of course Felicity, before going to the best seats I have or will ever have at a Braves game--22nd row from the 3rd base line! It was "alumni weekend"; Friday night they retired Bobby Cox's number and Saturday was the 1991 team vs. the legends team game before the actual Braves vs. Cubs Game. It was so fun to see baseball players that I remember watching in my childhood like John Smoltz and Tom Glavin!

Our seats were shaded so we were pretty comfortable the whole game, which was nice. I mean, it doesn't get much better than best friends, Braves, beer, and roasted peanuts on a late summer night.

We slept in on Sunday and sadly headed back to Chattanooga. I was only in Chattanooga for 30 minutes max because I literally got out of my car and into Becca Hart's. We headed to Young Harris, Georgia (just outside of Blairsville) for her college roommate's wedding...Since Matt is still in his critical period after his bone marrow transplant, weddings haven't been easy to go to, especially ones where she has to travel. I gladly accepted to be Becca's wedding date--she said I was the best wedding date she'd ever had :) The wedding was held at Brasstown Valley Reosrt which was so nice because the wedding, reception, and our hotel room were all within walking distance. The ceremony was sweet, personal, and beautifully decorated!

But the reception-man oh man!! If I could copy everything about it, I would! It was outside, but under a covered pavilion with romantic lighting and plenty of space to dance to the live Motown band. There was a cocktail hour with waiters passing out Hors d'Oeuvres while the wedding party took pictures. They had the guest book out to sign and had a HUGE bottle of wine for guests to sign too! They served beer and wine, had a buffet line for dinner, yummy cake (the Groom's cake was cheesecake, which I LOVED!), and they even came around and poured champagne for the toast! The service was incredible, the food was delicious, and it was obvious how much fun the bride and groom were having with each other and all of their guests. The family makes their own raspberry jelly so they gave jars of that for the wedding favors, I'll let you know how delicious it is later :)

A highlight of the night though was when Caroline (the bride) threw the bouquet directly to Becca! ha! So that means you're next, right Becca?? ;)

Bonus, we got to just walk right back to our super nice hotel room-way better than dealing with a late night 2+ hour drive back. An added bonus, there was a light switch operated fireplace in the room! So fancy! Granted, it's still August and not quite fireplace weather....we turned in on regardless, just because we could! The whole hotel was incredible and I would die to go back there when the leaves are changing colors! Also, they had a squirrel shaped lamp, so how could I not take a picture?

This weekend was an at home and away from home vacation and so worth the hours I spent in the car! It was great to see friends and family and have plenty of rest and play time too! I'm excited about these next few weekends that I have planned and this was the first of many that I'll remember fondly.

38 years

2011-08-12T08:54:00.000-04:00

My parents are nothing extraordinary. My mom is a 2nd grade teacher and my dad is an engineer and consultant. But something that is really extraordinary about my parents is their marriage. They wouldn't say so, but more and more I've come to realize that it really is something special. People don't stay married these days and yesterday was my parents 38th Wedding Anniversary. My parents really aren't the people to brag (unless it's about their children and grandchildren) but I'm going to brag a little bit for them.

When I was in 1st grade, my mom went back to work as a Special Ed teacher and my dad started working with some projects in Oak Ridge, TN after he stopped working in Marietta. Initially, this project was supposed to be a 6 month kind of thing, but after a while the project was extended. Then extended again. And before we knew it, it was absolutely normal for my dad to make the 3 hour drive up to Oak Ridge on Monday morning (after dropping us off at school) and come back on Friday afternoons and we were too invested in our lives in East Cobb. With 3 kids in middle and elementary school, plus a full time job, my mom was stretched for time like a single working mother is and I never gave her enough credit for all she did and still does. But when my dad came home on the weekends, he was 110%--mowing the grass, helping out with laundry, taking us on Daddy-Daughter weekends through Girls Scouts, anything you can think of.

By the time Katie made it to high school, band become a priority--for the next 10 years. Add on top of that that Kirby and I did Winter Guard, so my parents were full fledged band and guard parents for a decade. Nevermind that my dad traveled during the week and my mom was juggling a dozen things for the family at once...at least one of them came to most every home football game, parents' shows, and of course competitions. My dad even volunteered himself to get his trucking license so he could drive the tractor trailer and be the official "Tarp Crew Dad". During football season, he would bring me Subway on Friday afternoons and we would sit together in the band hall eating our dinners; It was his way of making sure we had time spent together. My mom would dedicate hours to sewing flags and painting props. It was the little things like that that make my parents special. Once I made it to college, they went out of their way to come to Parent's Weekends, Mother-Daughter and Daddy-Daughter events, and as often as they could to see Charlotte and now Felicity! They love their children so well (and maybe their granddaughters even a little bit better! ;) But they went out of their way to support and love their family and each other over the years.

All through this, I've never heard them complain about the distance and how difficult it made life at times. Our family has mastered the art of keeping in touch through phone calls and email. But every time my dad walks in the door, he'd give us a hug, play with the dog and give my mom a kiss; My mom cooks dinners on the weekends with enough for leftovers so he'll have a homecooked meal to eat on weeknights after work. It's little things like that that they show each other their love. So as rare as a lasting marriage is these days, a long distance lasting marriage is an even bigger blessing and rare gift. I know that it's worked because my parents love each other and are willing to make sacrifices for the family. It's worked because they've worked at it. And that is something that I truly admire, respect, and value about my parents. They aren't perfect, but that's what makes me love them more. Happy (belated) 38th Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Pinterest Interests

2011-08-11T10:59:00.000-04:00

I have a slight obsession with Pinterest. And I find no shame in admitting that. The only slight problem is the amount of envy and coveting I have over so many things that I won't have. It is funny to see certain patterns in my taste though and lately for home decor, it's yellow, grey, and white. I have high hopes of doing my master bedroom in these colors some day...or maybe my kitchen. Until then, I will pin away and continue to drool over my obsessions.

Midday Adventure

2011-08-10T16:56:00.002-04:00

Because of storm damage from this spring, our church had to do some repair work on our beautiful copper roof. Per the request of staff members, we were allowed to ride up the crane lift this afternoon! It's even higher than this picture gives it credit!

The view was incredible, even though I got a little nervous from time to time when the wind would sway us just enough! Eep!

Today was my last Youth Staff meeting officially, but riding the crane was a fun, midday adventure. One of the many perks of my job that I'm going to miss--spontaneity.

Because I can't not do it...

2011-08-08T12:25:00.000-04:00

I realize that I don't always have to give a play by play of every weekend or social event that I do, but even when I try not to I always end up feeling like my blogging is incomplete when I don't! So here it is; weekend recap per usual.

On the whole this weekend was uneventful in a wonderful, lazy kind of way. The highlight of Friday was Carolann's 25th Birthday Party! Mostly birthdays these days just involve a dinner with friends or hanging out at their house, which is always great; Carolann's friends went all out for the big 2-5 though! It was cocktail attire with yummy food, drinks, and dancing! So fun! It felt like a wedding reception because that's usually the only reason I get to get dressed up like that. It was so fun!

Saturday was productive without having to leave the house: I slept in, finished a book, watched TV (which I never do so I consider that productive), and job hunted like CRAZY, seriously for hours, it's like an addiction. Turns out that it takes forever to apply to jobs these days because you can't just submit your cover letter and resume...you have to do all of that on top of filling out questions, your work history, and random other things. Not a small task in the least! But I applied to a couple of places and got ready for dinner with Liz Morton. Liz worked at camp with me in 2007 and we have kept in touch ever since. It helps that she was a Tri Delt at Georgia who grew up in Chattanooga, so we had a lot of common ground! She is getting married in just over 2 months and it was so fun to hear about all of her wedding plans and the life that she and Alan are planning together!

Sunday was my last official Sunday as the middle school youth leader. It was bittersweet, but I decided against any kind of announcement because that's usually when I get emotional so no tears were shed. Thankfully it was the all church day at CVP! So after church, I headed up to my favorite place and spent the afternoon with friends on the lake! Molly came over afterwards and we spent the evening drinking wine on the front porch of the Franklins house. I love simple things like that. And now back to work. I'll elaborate more on this later, but it's harder and harder to focus at work when I don't feel like I have too terribly much left to do as my time is winding down...

Just call me Crafty Kristin

2011-08-04T13:14:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago, we had a girls event at River City Pottery. You walk in, pick out the piece of pottery-be it bowls, platters, coasters, pitchers, and the list goes on, seriously they have shelves upon shelves of plain white ceramics just waiting to be painted! I settled on a bowl with hopes of turning it into a fruit bowl for the kitchen counter. You pick out paint colors and away you go! Minimal instruction, which is a little scary, but freeing at the same time. Here are the befores:

And the afters!

I LOVE how it turned out! There are a few of the bigger circles that were a little bit lighter colored than I'd hoped, but on the whole I love it! I have high hopes to go back again...I'm thinking a Georgia themed platter of some sort?

Shared Experiences

2011-08-02T15:49:00.000-04:00

Side note before we begin: Being home sick the past 2 days has given me an excessive amount of time to blog, so this streak of blogging a few consecutive days in a row will be short lived!

This past weekend was jam packed with seeing lots of old friends from high school and college and I loved it! I love that I have gotten to keep in touch with so many friends and that we're conveniently close by--more or less when you look at "close by" relatively.

Friday night was "Big Brother" night with Bonnie. I've talked about Shahrukh before and I love that me, Bonnie, and Shahrukh have become semi regular with hanging out again every few months. The 3 of us pick on each other like brother and sisters do, but after knowing for someone for 8 years that's bound to happen. It was great, as always, to catch up, reminisce, and just spend time together. And the biggest news is that Shahrukh is ENGAGED! He's getting married next summer and I can't wait to meet Safia! We had a little photo shoot in the parking lot, and as much as Shahrukh hates taking pictures, he makes for a good sport because he knows Bonster and I love to document time spent together :)

For comparison's sake; this was Junior Year of High school

And now 8 years later

I got to catch up with Annie over Starbucks on Saturday morning which was wonderful as always. I am so proud of her-she got into PT school and is moving up to Maine by the end of this month to start her program! I'm going to miss seeing her on visits home, but I know that this is something she's wanted to do for a while and I admire her huge step of faith to move her life up north for a couple of years!

Thanks to Twitter, I got to hang out with some of my favorites from PC '05! Now, I love the Braves and all, but I love to tailgate and catch up with friends. Thankfully the impending rain didn't scare us off and we were only forced into our cars for a little bit. Two highlights of that afternoon: first, I realized that people actually do read my blog from time to time. Secondly, and this really did help me, but mid conversation someone pointed out that out of the 7 or so Alpha Gams that were there, only 2 of them had steady jobs/knew what they were doing with their lives. It made me realize that it's okay if I don't have it figured out because few people my age do and that was just what I've been needing to hear. The game was fun and the weather was perfect, but the company was the best part! (I sound so cheesy sometimes...)

Something else that I concluded was that it might not be so bad if I can't find a job in Chattanooga and move to Marietta/Atlanta area. I have lots of friend groups there and there are definitely more job opportunities in the big city than there are here. Like I said in my last post, I'm not only looking in Chattanooga anymore and I think I'm flexible enough to enjoy life wherever I am.

Okay, I know I've blogged a ton lately and they've been pretty long (so I commend you if you've made it all the way through these last few posts!), but I've been feeling particularly introspective lately I suppose. But what I realized that I loved about all of my friends is that we all have shared experiences that bring us together. Whether it's band in high school, sorority in college, camp and church for my Chattanooga friends, and the list goes on, those things are what brought us together and have kept our friendships strong over the years. With distance separating half of my friendships these days, I am so grateful that I can spend time with friends, catching up as if it were something we did on a regular basis. I am so so blessed to have friends and family that I can go through the ups and downs of life with and that they "get me" during those times. My life is abundant in true, lasting friendships and that is something that is so much more valuable than any job could ever be to me.

One month later

2011-08-01T01:25:00.002-04:00

It has officially been a month since Robert "broke the news" to me about my contract being up. So here I am, one month down, one month to go--where does that leave me?

I was out of town, preparing to be out of town, or recuperating from being out of town pretty much the whole month of July. I kept telling myself that I would buckle down and really look for jobs and start packing up my office and apartment once August came around...so here we are. I brought home a couple dozen hangers worth of winter clothes to my parents' house this weekend and brought back some boxes to pack up picture frames, books, and other decorations around the apartment. At least I'm getting somewhere with that. And it helps my mentality that I can do that in stages, but I know I'll have to be moved out before I know it!

It breaks my heart to think about packing up my office though. I felt like that place was more home to me than my apartment has been. I have notes, pictures, scripture, and momentos all around my office and I know I'm going to need an afternoon to myself and a box of Kleenexes when I pack up that little square room. Robert and I agreed that my official duties to the youth ministry would be over the 12th of August since the 14th is Promotion Sunday and the kickoff of a new school year. I'll still get a paycheck until the end of August and help out around the office, but won't be required to go to leader's meetings, Sunday school, or Wednesday night youth group. I'm grateful that we would come to that decision because it really does make it emotionally easier for me to not have to be one foot in and one foot out and not nearly as stressful to make it to events because August is jam packed with showers, weddings, and other things to do here and there.

I've already started to notice myself pulling away a little bit and some days are harder than others to talk myself into going to the office or hanging out with kids. I want to continue to love on these girls and invest in them for the Kingdom's sake, not just for the sake of the ministry, but it's hard knowing that there is a time limit left on our time together. I want to stay apart of the church if I stay in Chattanooga and have a job that allows for that in my schedule, but I'm going to take some time away regardless of where I end up just for clarity in my mind and theirs if I transition from "staff" to "volunteer".

Speaking of where I end up...that's what's keeping me up so late tonight. I was so dead set on Chattanooga for the longest time, but after going home this weekend and seeing so many great friends from around the Atlanta area I've at least broaden my job hunt for Chattanooga and Marietta. Granted, if I were to be offered the same job in Marietta or Chattanooga and got to pick, the Scenic City would win hands down. But with the state of the economy and knowing the kind of person I am, I can see the benefits of either city and am waiting to see where God takes me. But I think the biggest problem of all, (sorry to be such a Debbie Downer for this post, but this is just life for me right now!) is that I have NO STINKING CLUE what I want to do. Like none. Zip. Zilch. Nada. So if you have some epiphany as to what you think I should be doing at this point in my life, I would greatly appreciate the direction. I really would like to stay in some kind of "people" service because God did NOT create me to be business minded. I am a people person, super organized, and like a scheduled, but constant change of pace. I know my strengths and I thought this job spoke well to them, but God's got something planned for me and I'm just waiting and trusting to see what it is.

So, that's where I am. Much more at peace. Scattered home and office life. Trying to focus on my job while I still have it. I'm still at as much of a loss of what I'll be doing come September as I was a month ago. And still I'm praying lots and lots. And lots.

PS-I have totally been blown away by the support, encouragement, and love of my friends and family through this! As much of a low point this is for me right now, I have felt nothing but comfort and stability from those around me! You all are such a blessing in my life and I don't know where I would be without yall :)

Where to begin?

2011-07-31T16:13:00.002-04:00

I am so far behind on so many things that I want to post about and I am at a loss with where I should start. There will be some overlap on these next few posts, but it's my blog and I can overlap if I want to. I'm leaning towards family stuff first, so here we go. And yes, I'm thinking "aloud" as I type...

The day after I got back from New Orleans, I headed to my parent's house after church to spend time with family. Good thing traveling doesn't bother me because I feel like I've lived in my car or a 15 passenger van during the month of July! My dad's brother and his wife (obviously my aunt and uncle, but I wanted to explain the relation) happened to be have made a trip Atlanta for the weekend from Mississippi and the following day was Kirby's birthday so we had lots of reasons to celebrate! My parents made yummy barbeque and Daniel made Kirby a cookie cake :)

It was so fun to have both Charlotte and Felicity together--Felicity loved to play with Charlotte's toys and Charlotte was perfectly content being the center of attention! After dinner, they got to play in the sprinkler, which was a big hit!

I loved getting to just spend time with family. I have to tendency when I'm in Marietta to overbook and try to spend time with anyone I've known in the last 10 years, I wish I was kidding when I said that but seriously. So it was nice to just have a night with family--especially all together!

This past weekend was a long weekend that didn't allow for as much family time, but more quality time with Kirby and Felicity which I feel like I can never get enough of! Kirby had a bunch of friends out for dinner on Thursday night to celebrate her birthday. I am so so glad I got to celebrate her birthday with her TWICE! And it was really great to meet some of her friends and catch up with her high school friends...even though I feel years younger than them even though we're only 3 years apart. I call it the "little sister syndrome".

Friday was spent playing with little F and ~~drooling over~~ looking through Anthropologie. I only walked out of there with a small dent in my wallet and a super cute scarf. (Is anyone surprised I bought a scarf in July? I have an addiction.) I was sad to leave, but was excited to spend some time at my parents' house before the rest of my weekend got too busy.

I wish I could have had more time with Charlotte this weekend, but I just ran out of time when I was in the EC. But her dad had been out of town all week, so they needed time together. Don't worry though, she woke me up at 7 am on Saturday morning so we could eat breakfast and watch TV together. Time with Charlotte will always trump sleep, but man! was I tired yesterday! It's been really great having Katie at my parent's house too because she is not much of a phone talker, so it's been such a blessing to just spend time with her, even if it's just running to Kroger for an errand!

All in all, I have felt so spoiled to spend all of this time with family these past 2 weekends! I have always enjoyed being an aunt, but lately I've been spoiled and have loved how much time I've gotten to spend with Charlotte, Felicity, and their moms :)

The Franklin's

2011-07-28T10:38:00.000-04:00

More than likely, I have mentioned or talked about Bob and Lisa Franklin to a majority of my friends over the last few years that I've lived in Chattanooga. Lisa leads my small group; she is so down to earth, has a full heart, and is there for me 100%. Bob is hilarious, honest, and a little bit crude at times (which adds to the hilarity). Kelly and I house sit for them often and I am OBSESSED with their house. It's over 100 years old and I've told Lisa time and time again, that it's decor is very anthropologie-esque. I'm house sitting over the weekend and I took some pictures to 1. help myself remember what I want my future home to look like and 2. to share with you the comfort, warmth, and beauty of their home.

This is their back entry way. Their youngest son MADE this! Ugh, love.

The kitchen:

Dining room:

Foyer/Family Room:

And probably my second favorite, the living room:

And my favorite "room" in the house, the screened in front porch:

This house will be in my "front yard" of the guest house that I'll be moving into by the end of August! More pictures on that house later! :)

New Orleans Missions Trip

2011-07-27T12:28:00.002-04:00

This year, we took the middle school group to New Orleans, LA to work with Crossroads Missions. Last year, we worked with the New Orleans Mission, which is NOLA's largest homeless shelter. This year was a very different group of students and it was so neat how God used their gifts so differently. We were split up into 3 different groups: a small group of girls cooked and served meals at the Mission, our largest group of 12 helped out at a children's summer day camp called the Leona Tate Foundation, and my group (of 6) worked with Desire for Change, a Christian organization in the 9th Ward that has a day camp during the summer and cheerleading, football, and track camps as well as tutoring and after school programs during the school year.

There was bad flooding on Monday, so we were relocated to help do some finishing touches on a bowling alley being transformed into a community center/church. The "younger" kids aka middle schoolers were on painting and picture duty. Will Clark, our summer intern that is Furman bound in less than a month, and my self were put up on some scaffolding to sand down the walls of a HUGE room.

Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday were spent at Desire for Change. Tuesday consisted of Will rapping "My name is Will, yes that's my name, I may be white, but I still got game." The kids went wild and he earned some definite street cred after that.

Thursday was pool day! Since Allie and I didn't bring our swimsuits, we sat on the side taking pictures and talking to Dwanna, the lady that thought up and runs Desire for Change.

And Friday was the last day for us and the final day of the summer camp. We went to a New Orleans Hornets Basketball camp! Not that I know or really care who the Hornets are, but it gave me bragging rights I guess.

We were so sad to say goodbye! It was hard to believe we had only spent 3 days with these kids, but they were so fun, full of life and energy, and it gave us encouragement to say the least.

Wednesday and Thursday night were different than the others. Most nights, we had "team time" where we reflected on our day, shared funny stories, encouragement for others in our group, and all in all just enjoyed each other's company. Wednesday was our free day! We passed out flyers for our Thursday night Outreach Cookout (more on that in a minute) in St. Roch. And then we were off to enjoy what New Orleans has to offer! For a change of pace from last year, we went on a nature walk through the Bayou, ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. wandered through the few middle school appropriate souvenir shops near the French Quarter and of course ate at Cafe du Monde--YUM!

Thursday was outreach night. Like I mentioned we passed out flyers in St. Roch on Wednesday. Just a tidbit of information, New Orleans is the murder capital of the US and St. Roch is the murder capital of New Orleans. Okay, now that that's out in the open, walking around with a small flock of young, white, teenagers put me a little bit on edge. We stuck out like a sore thumb ALL week long, but especially in St. Roch. But I knew that Crossroads was mindful of the location they put us in and God is sovereign and was taking care of us. Every Thursday, Crossroads hosts a cookout with hotdogs, Kool Aid, baked beans, face painting, games, and most importantly, time for one on one attention. I could easily say this was the highlight of most students' weeks and I loved every minute of it! The kids were so desperate for attention. Literally as soon as we walked up, I had 5 different girls ask me for piggy back rides, if they could paint my face, and at least a dozen other questions!

I could have done a post per day telling stories about our trip, but I'll let the pictures speak and I would love if you asked me more about our trip! The trip was exhausting, trying on my patience, and so fulfilling. I had some hard conversations with some of my girls and was more grateful hourly that I got to share this last trip with them as their youth leader. Even though it made it a little bit harder and I got more attached to the students in this ministry, I know that God has something worked out in this and if I have any say in it, I will remain apart of these girls' lives as long as I'm in Chattanooga.

Here Comes the Bride!

2011-07-26T16:15:00.000-04:00

Sorry I haven't posted this sooner, but the day after Elizabeth's wedding I left for a missions trip to New Orleans--more on that later! But not on to the main event of this post, the wedding!

I didn't take any pictures at the actual wedding, but it was at the same church that my dear twin, Hannah Davis, got married in! Just so you have an idea of what the church looks like, here's one of the 100 yard aisle:

She walked down the aisle to "Here Comes the Bride" (I'm sure there's some official name of that song, but that's what I know it as!) which I think this is the only wedding I've been to that I've actually heard that. The ceremony was traditional and short-exactly what I would have picked for Elizabeth.

Also, her dress was exactly what I would have picked for Elizabeth. I mean, dead on. Go me!

The reception was held in the dining hall of her alma mater, Baylor School. Now before you start to think that's a little odd, Baylor is a super nice private school in Chattanooga; it had chandeliers, wood floors, round tables, and a beautiful overlook of Signal Mountain. It was the perfect size for the event and beautiful! The DJ, food, and drinks were all great! She served Trader Joe's wine, which I loved! I mean, why not? It's cheap and yummy. The food was heavy hor' devours (sp?): pasta and green salads, chicken fingers, meatballs, fruit, cheese, and crackers, etc. and was set up around the room. She had individual key lime pies (so good!) and some kind of chocolate groom's cake that I didn't try because I ran out of room in my stomach...Anyways, enough of that run down...on to bigger and better things-the guests!

Kathryn Brown and her man came to spend time with me in Chattanooga for the weekend which was so great to see her because we SUCK at keeping up with phone tag! Amanda Eade, Paul, April, and Christy (Carbonell) Lord were all the sisters there. We caught up on who (ourselves and pledge class sisters we've kept in touch with) is doing what and reminisced as expected. It was so fun to see all of those girls, most of which I haven't seen since graduation!

We ~~made~~ struggled our way through our Sweetheart Song. I say struggled because we got tripped up on the words a time or two (I'm blaming the amount of time it's been since we've sung it last...some might blame it on the alcohol) and of course did the toast!

Following the reception, we went out to a bar to wrap up the celebration and something that's never happened at a wedding I've been to before happened--the bride and the groom joined the after party! They weren't leaving for their honeymoon until Monday and Christian had some relatives that were in town from Germany he wanted to spend time with so they came out with us! Something about that doesn't surprise me with Elizabeth ~~Cox~~ Roemer.

Congratulations Elizabeth! You made a beautiful bride! Can't wait to come over and see y'alls house!

Budget Breakdown

2011-07-14T22:09:00.000-04:00

Nights like tonight remind me that I am in fact what most people qualify as a "grown up". Although I shudder when I think that there's no turning back, it's also nice when I realize that I don't have homework and regular tests and quizzes to study for anymore...Either way, I just finishing putting a load of laundry in the dryer, I've updated my resume, applied to 2 different jobs, fed the dogs (housesitting), caught up on phone calls and emails, and now I'm about to sit down and finish the dreaded "B" word-that's right, my budget. (duh, duh, duhhhhhh)

But here's the thing, it's really not that bad. My dad taught me a "formula" that I will oh-so-graciously shared with you that really did help me look at my money as percentages. Here's the first thing; you can't spend more than you make. Simple enough, but that's a hard concept for some people to grasp--like people that charge expense after expense to their credit cards but fail to realize that that money has to come from somewhere. Not to say that credit cards are terrible, I have 2 of my own to build good credit. But before I charge to my card, I make sure I have the money and as soon as I get the card statement, I pay it off. Okay, lesson one-check.

Second, my dad put money into priorities, a breakdown of sorts. First, you pay God--10% of your income are goes to tithing for the church. Now that's the minimum and is taken from your WHOLE pay check, not your paycheck after taxes, but before, and if you are able to pay more and feel like that's where your led, go for it! Next, you pay yourself--10% of your money goes into savings for the future, whether that's a new car, saved up for an emergency, whatever it is a crisis (like, oh I don't know looming unemployment) will come and you need a back up for when it does. Third, you pay "others". Now others is a BROAD category--your taxes, and usually majority of your insurance are taken out of your paycheck automatically. But then you have to deal with the "unarguables" as my dad calls them; rent, utilities, doctors visits, gas, car services, groceries, etc. Then whatever you have leftover is just icing on the cake. So if there are leftovers at the end of a paycheck, my dad make me feel better because he said as long as I have prioritized my paycheck and payed off the first 3 categories, then shop away! Well, don't go crazy, but enjoy the money you have left over and buy a new watch or ~~three~~ a pair of shoes! (Can you guess 2 things on my wish list right now?)

I feel so freed knowing that if I following that, then I'm set. Now the downer is that I've looked at my averages of spending in certain areas over the last few months and it looks like I should cut down a little bit on shopping and entertainment...

Here I am again...

2011-07-11T16:16:00.000-04:00

As much as I love sharing my life through my blog, sometimes that openness can be a two sided coin; sometimes bitter, sometimes sweet. But one of the main reasons I have a blog is to document my life so I can remember it in all its ups and downs and to share those moments with my (few, but faithful) followers.

I found out just over a week and a half ago that I will only be on staff with 1st Pres through the month of August. When I was offered the full time position as the Middle School Girls youth leader last August, I signed a 1 year contract that would be evaluated over the course of the year. Robert (youth pastor/my boss) has assured me that it is strictly financial and due to the size of our youth group, but they won't be renewing my contract. So as I sit in my office this afternoon, it's hitting a little bit deeper that I'll only be spending a majority of my time up on the 9th floor of the church for only a few more weeks.

I'm a big mess of emotions and rightfully so. These girls and this youth group have been my life these last 16 months and I'm not really sure what my life here is supposed to look like without them. I don't have any intentions of leaving Chattanooga, or First Pres for that matter, but God could have other plans. All I know is that my heart for Chattanooga, youth, and ministry has grown exponentially and I can only pray that I will find another job to fit those passions. That might mean a 9-5 kind of job while volunteering on Sundays and Wednesdays at the church, but if that's God's plan, then so be it.

Unemployment this time around seems so different from just over a year and a half ago when I lost my job at the Youth Network. For starters, I LOVE my job at the church and that was not so much the case at the YN. Also, I was ~~fired~~ "let go" from being Tony's admin assistant and now it's more of a non-renewal. My emotions are just that much more stirred because I still have a month and a half of work left to do here and it's a daily battle to not let myself pull away because I know my time is limited. I love these girls and this ministry, but to be completely honest I feel my heart rip a little bit more when I think that this won't be my day-to-day life come September. I am fighting to not put up walls or numb myself from getting more attached.

I have no doubt whatsoever that God has a plan so much bigger than myself in this and I might be in the valley for a time, but my prayer is that I continue to represent Him during my time in limbo and seek Him overall else...even if that means moving or doing a job that isn't my ideal. With that said, I need a JOB! And if you have some great revelation of what you think I should do, you just go on ahead and let me know because I'm at a loss. But most importantly, be praying for me--that I lean into Christ and not myself, for my honesty and vulnerability with the girls, for my want to be bitter towards people that haven't experienced unemployment, and a patience to see whatever the heck God has in store.

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." Proverbs 3:5

RYM

2011-07-09T21:41:00.009-04:00

RYM stands for Reformed Youth Ministries and is what RUF branched off from. If you remember way back to the end of January, the rest of the youth staff and myself went to Jackson, Mississippi for a week of training with other youth leaders in the PCA. This is basically the high school student version of that trip, only minus the sleep and add more free time and games...oh yeah, and the beach and 90 degree weather instead of chilly, drizzly winter weather.

This week was particularly special to me for lots of reasons (more on that later), but man! what a great week! We traveled on Monday and Friday and had a solid 3 1/2 days of time on the beach at Panama City. The mornings started off with breakfast, time for devotionals-side note: I wish I could start off every morning with intentional quiet time...but it was near perfection that I got to do it every morning this week on or near the beach!-- followed by worship. After the 700+ of us (and this was the smaller week in PCB for RYM!!) met together, we split off into our electives.

All of the students and leaders signed up for 2 electives that we went to on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning. They were 45 minutes long and I wish I could have gone to each of them because I know the 2 that I went to were so full of solid theology, great teaching, and so pertinent to my life and the students' lives. The first was "How do I find God's will for me life?" I think I might type up my notes on that class and save it for a "rainy day" post when I want to blog but don't know what to blog about and as a reminder of what was taught. But bottom line of the class was basically this: As a believer, you are not big enough to spoil, squander, or squash God's plan for your life! He will work through your circumstances in any situation and my wants aren't what really matter, but HIS glory. Next, all of the girls were signed up for a class that was just for girls to go to that was called "Sad Sex/Happy Sex". But it was so much broader than talking about just sex...but instead she went back to Genesis to talk about the Fall and how greatly that truly impacted us as men and women and that their sins were passed down through generations. It wasn't that I hadn't heard that taught before, but she touched on things that I hadn't thought of in that light before and made them so much more personal to myself and the girls. The last point that she made, and what I would think the class boiled down to, was that we are created as humans with both body and spirit so enmeshed as one--angels are solely spirit and animals are body void of spirit which is what sets us apart. But because we embody both of those aspects, it is impossible for us to do something with our bodies and not have our souls be permanently affected. She described sex as a beautiful act of worship that people so often can't wrap their heads around because it has been idolized rather than revered as set apart and a gift.

Afterwards we had lunch (the food was nothing to get excited, just so you know) then Mega Rec. Mega Rec was an hour or so of games at either the beach or one of the SIX pools at this place! Here are some pictures to give you an idea on the intensity of our time...I say that with a grain of salt because I have no bone in my body that is competitive when it comes to games like this...but either way, so fun, great team building and well worth a good laugh or two!

After Mega Rec, we had the afternoon free!! This is what made this week feel more like a vacation that a typical summer youth trip because we had so much time to just relax, lay out, play in the ocean or pools, and the best part was that it was completely conducive to great conversations! Moments I will cherish forever.
After we rinsed all the sunscreen (and seaweed) off, we headed to dinner, then our night time session. All 700 students worshiped together and Brian Habia (aka Bob Franklin's twin) taught on the truth, relevance, and importance of the Scriptures. He was a great teacher, made clear points, and added in some humor here and there which I greatly appreciated for the sake of the teenagers (and myself) that have the tendency to zone out every once and a while after a long day. Each night had a different source of entertainment:
Monday: A Beach party, fireworks and dancing, since it was the 4th of July
Tuesday: Chill time
Thursday: Dance Party

I intentionally left out Wednesday because it was a little bit different from the other nights. We had a "free night" so we had dinner of campus at "Hooked" and a few hours to kill on the pier and strip mall in Panama City. A lot of the students didn't really have much of a desire to go into all the different stores, so we found other ways to entertain ourselves.

All in all, it was a great, refreshing, exhausting, and wonderful week. So grateful that I got to share this week with this group of students and learn so much more about myself. Most importantly, I am grateful for a week that God put things into perspective and reminded me that He's got it all worked out.

"If You Want Me To"

2011-07-02T22:12:00.004-04:00

The pathway is broken
And The signs are unclear
And I don't know the reason why You brought me here
But just because You love me the way that You do
I'm gonna walk through the valley
If You want me to

Cause I'm not who I was
When I took my first step
And I'm clinging to the promise You're not through with me yet
so if all of these trials bring me closer to you
Then I will walk through the fire
If You want me to

It may not be the way I would have chosen
When you lead me through a world that's not my home
But You never said it would be easy
You only said I'd never go alone

So When the whole world turns against me
And I'm all by myself
And I can't hear You answer my cries for help
I'll remember the suffering Your love put You through
And I will go through the valley If You want me to

Sung by: Ginny Owens

If you haven't heard Ginny Owens before, you need to listen to this song first. Ginny has been legally blind since the age of two and is one of the most incredible musicians and songwriters I've heard. This song has given me encouragement in "valleys" over the past few years and it's been playing on repeat a lot recently. Thankful for a God who keeps His promises, even when they aren't in my timing or even to my liking...He has a bigger plan for my life than I can hope for and for that, I am speechless with gratitude.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Ten on Tuesday

2011-06-28T13:59:00.005-04:00

Because I felt the need to blog, but didn't want think about it...I borrowed this idea/list from Kathryn Neidhardt (who will always be Kathryn Boyer to me...forever and always).

1. What’s the recipe for your favorite drink? (Smoothie, alchoholic, coffee, whatever.) Whatever Starbuck's uses to make, well, anything; vanilla latte in particular...or just a margarita plain and simple (again, one that someone else makes for me)

2. What kind of razor do you use? Schick Quatro

3. Who is your favorite Sesame Street character? Snuffleupagus for sure...how can you not love just saying his name?!

4. What makes the perfect salad? (Lettuce type, toppings, dressing, etc.) Oh goodness, how can I pick just one? My favorite at the moment start with field greens, homemade honey mustard vinaigrette, then topped with tomato, blue cheese and sugared pecans--in other words the Charleston from Southern Star.

5. What was your favorite subject in school? History, with English in a close second

6. What’s your favorite summer tradition? Sitting on a screen in porch at dusk-perfection.

7. Do you suffer from season allergies? Nope...this is a super random question...good thing I'm not to be blamed for coming up with them.

8. How often do you have to charge your cell phone? Every night at least, sometimes I won't even make it to 6 pm because I've used it so much that day!

9. Do you have a bucket list? I would like to think that I do, but I haven't actually kept track of one. All I know is that going to Italy is somewhere on that mental list.

10. Do you have any desire to go back to school? In a few years. I would love to get my Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy, but the thought of juggling school and the "real world" is a terrifying thought. Scary enough to make me keep putting off the idea.

24 going on 13

2011-06-24T12:29:00.007-04:00

This past Wednesday night will definitely be one of the more memorable nights of this summer. Bonnie, Alexa, and I went to a New Kids On the Block/Backstreet Boys concert and holy cow was it fun!! I was super impressed by how much dancing they were doing and how great they sounded. And they still totally embraced the "boy band" matchy concert outfits. White silk suits may or may not have made an appearance. Philips Arena was packed with thousands of screaming 20s-30s aged women and for one night, we were all right back in middle school. And I still love Brian Littrell, just for the record.

Bonnie and I spent the night at Alexa and Andy's apartment in Atlanta afterwards and since I was already in Atlanta, I drove down to see my Burger! Kirby and Daniel's house is really starting to come together. It's been really fun to see the different steps and see Kirby as often as I've gotten to lately. We ran errands with this little Peanut: then dropped her off at home with Daniel for a nap and Kirby and I went to Brake Pad for lunch. It's an old car garage turned restaurant and it was so good! Kirby is turning hippy and got a black bean burger and I got the southwest chicken quesadilla and we both loved our dishes!!

By the time I got home, my parents' college friend/family financial planner Sandra had gotten there. Then we added to the company when Bonnie came over! Bonnie and my mom had "teacher talk"--I know they both appreciated having someone who really understood and appreciated their day to day stuff. I scheduled my hair appointment with Ms. Tammy at 7, so it was kind of late by the time I got home with my new do. Annie and I got to catch up over drinks last night and as always, I love getting quality time with her...even if there were 40+ year old women dancing on pianos at 10 on a Thursday night trying to distract us from conversation. It was interesting to say the least but worth a good laugh or two.

PS-This weekend, I totally reccommend digging up your old boy band CD's and listening to them while you drive around! So fun to rewind 10+ years and remember what it was like to have crazy, unrealistic celebrity crushes! And how can you not be in anything but a good mood when you hear "Quit Playing Games with my Heart"?!

Unplanned Weekends

2011-06-22T10:07:00.006-04:00

This past weekend was one of those rare weekends that I didn't have set plans going into it other than my Co's Baby Shower. And that is a very, very rare treat.

Kelly and I attempted to go to Riverbend on Friday night to see Alan Jackson. I say attempted because we got in, walked around, stood in line forever at the disgusting, atrocious, ick porta potties, tried to find seats, and gave up because we were overwhelmed by the amount of people--particularly the amount of people that were sporting mullets, cigarettes in hand, and were just all around charming folks (please pick up on my sarcasm in that statement). Never again will I venture into the world of Riverbend. Ever.

I took full advantage of my minimally planned weekend and didn't even set my alarm on Saturday morning! Even if my internal clock woke me up before 9, it was nice to just lay in bed, read HP7, and know I didn't need to rush out of bed to go somewhere. I eventually got up to meet Kelsey and Paige for lunch. Kelsey and Paige were my high school leaders that were in the cabin with me at Southwind. It was so fun to catch up with them! Later that afternoon was my Co's Baby Shower! I know I've had several "co's" from camp, but Alex will always hold the permanent title of "Co". It is so exciting to know that little LEW is getting bigger and stronger every day and will be here before we know it! What a special day to shower Alex (and Forrest) with gifts to help them prepare to welcome Baby Girl Walker in a few short months! The CVP staff had the night off so I met up with several of them to relax and catch up.

Sunday was a typical Sunday--Sunday School, church, lunch with friends, hang out with Molly before she went back to camp, then I was back at church. During the summer, we are going through a study where we look at culture and the Bible and how they all tie in together. It's really laid back and I've really enjoyed the few weeks that we've been meeting. Afterwards, we go out to eat somewhere and this week Subway was the lucky winner. But my favorite part of the night was hanging out on the walking bridge while Riley, one of the seniors, played his guitar. Very relaxed, full of laughs, and perfect weather was just the cherry on top.

In the Belly of a Whale

2011-06-19T22:44:00.002-04:00

The last few weeks, Tim has been teaching through the book of Jonah. Like most church going Southerners, I could have given you the gist of Jonah in a short sentence-Jonah runs from God and is swallowed by a fish, stays in there for 3 days, and Jonah goes where he was told to in the first place to speak about God. Done. Easy enough. But that's what never ceases to amaze me about God's word; it is simple enough to break down into a story or a sentence, but deep enough to delve into a few verses per week and provide more than enough to contemplate for days. The latter couldn't be more true for me about the book of Jonah.

God says go, Jonah said no. It's simple enough--I am Jonah. Time and time again, God has laid something on my heart and I've tried to ignore it. But Tim has reminded us throughout this series that God is relentless in the pursuit of His people. Because God loves me, he might throw trials or struggles in my life to bring me to my knees and draw me closer to himself, "in the belly of a fish" so to speak. But no matter what, even if I turn and run further into sins in my life, God has a love that does not loosen its grip or ever let go. Studying the short book of Jonah has been so convicting for me because it has been a bold yet simple reminder that even through my sin patterns and ignorance to how big and absolutely crazy about me God is, He isn't going to give up on me. Ever. And thank goodness for that because I daily have to ask for his grace, mercy, and forgiveness because he knows how dark and deceitful my heart really is, and he loves me regardless.

Read Jonah and just think about how stubborn we are and how persistent God's love is. Seriously, it's only 4 short chapters. Go read it.

Weekend/Work Day Flip

2011-06-15T17:34:00.009-04:00

This weekend didn't seem much like a weekend, but Sunday and Monday certainly did! I stayed at work until pretty late on Friday night--and by stay at work, I mean see the X Men movie with one of my girls. I stayed in on Friday night and spent my evening starting my new book (The Ragamuffin Gospel) and updating my budget. I hit the hay because I knew Saturday was going to be a long day...what a boring Friday, but I loved it!

We had a New Orleans Missions trip with our middle schoolers on Saturday morning and I promised some of the girls I would go swimming with them afterwards, so swim I did! I took one of the girls to meet up with some of her friends at Panera before they went to Riverbend, so I caught up with them for a few hours. It wasn't the Saturday of cleaning and rest that I had planned for, but it was better this way anyways and way more fun! I did get to have a quick dessert with Sophia and Erin so I could catch up on Jump Start camp stories with them. But they were beyond exhausted, (I remember that feeling after a week of camp is over with!!) so our time together was fairly short. After hanging out with Kelly and Silas for a bit, I went to bed because again my Sunday was packed.

After Sunday school and church, I went to Crust to have lunch with some camp friends. Then it was time to pack up Roxy (my car) and head South to Marietta for the Mumford and Sons concert at the Fox!!! Jessica Schwartz and I met up at my parents house and were city bound for the concert. We enjoyed a yummmmmy Italian dinner at Baraonda-we had caprese, bread and olive oil, a glass of wine, a delicious mushroom pasta, chocolate gelato, and some lemonchello--We were stuffed!!! There was no time to sit and digest because we had to get to the concert! Mumford and Sons is one of those albums that I can listen to on repeat and love each of the songs. They were incredible live...they could easily be tied with Garth Brooks for my favorite concerts ever.
The crowd in and of itself was humorous enough. A lady in the row behind us was passed out drunk for both of the opening bands, then popped up when Mumford came on stage. She shouted ridiculous things like "Thank you for coming to America!" and "Play Lion Man!" (after they had already played it) Watching people dance was pretty amusing too...there was the fist pump guy, the seductive dancing girl, the couple that refused to separate more than 2 inches from their other half, a guy that clapped with practically every song, and our drunk friend that was standing on her seat and hanging onto her friend's shoulders for support.

Monday morning, Jessica and I stopped at Starbuck's (I swear they put crack in their coffee to make me crave it at least 4 days a week...that's got to be the only reason I crave it so often) and headed down the longest, most boring stretch of road ever constructed: 316. But that tragic road makes up for itself because I know that on the other side of 316 is the Classic City, Athens. We had lunch at Marti's at Midday, which is a quant house-turned-restaurant that serves huge portions of chicken salad on their made that day bread, fresh mint sweet tea, and anything else that a true Southern girl could ever want. I made Jessica stop by the Alpha Gam house so I could see the non-existent construction progress, but I at least I got to take pictures of our beautiful house.
Then we meandered through the campus bookstore and reminisced over the best 4+ years of our lives. There was an orientation group there, I had the urge to walk up to some of the girls and give them college advice...I didn't want to come to terms with the fact that that was me six whole years ago. I'm old. Katie and Charlotte had some errands to run in Athens, so they picked me up so I could spend time with my favorite redhead.
Then we met up with Jessica at Silver Lining Cupcakes-yum! I have got to do a better job of taking pictures of my food because that's always what I want to show on my blog...fat kid statement, but true. Jess and I walked downtown, ordered a cheese plate and some drinks from Highwire, had more food at Speakeasy, and stopped by the Winery before going home and crashing. Chickfila and a diet coke were a must before I was on the road again on Tuesday morning headed back for a staff meeting and a day at the office in Chattanooga.

Although I burned through a whole tank of gas and more money than I want to come to terms with right now (I'm refusing to look at my bank account until my pay day tomorrow), I loved my reverse weekend in Chattanooga, Atlanta, and Athens!

Just Another Day at the Office

2011-06-14T19:22:00.004-04:00

I love my job, but I especially love my job in the summer. I'll show you a few reasons why with some pictures from last Wednesday at the lake and you can see what I love so much about it...

If it makes you feel any better, I did spend all day today at my desk or in meetings.

Tea Time

2011-06-10T23:43:00.004-04:00

Last Sunday after church, Beth Austin and I hosted a Mother/Daughter Tea for current and rising middle school girls and their moms. The idea was totally Beth's idea, but we thought it would be a good idea for the upcoming 6th graders and their moms to ease their way into Youth Group. I don't know about the churches that most of y'all grew up at or go to now, but I know at JFBC and First Pres, the Children's Ministry and Youth Group are run at totally different paces. We're trying to make the transition from 5th grade/Children's Ministry to 6th grade/Youth Group not nearly as traumatic as it could be and what better way to do that than with food and girly crafts?!

I was in charge of the food while artsy Beth brought the craft...but of course, she had the wonderful idea of making the food presentation even look cute. I don't know what I would have done without her because the presentation would not have been nearly as polished as it was!

And the craft was super easy and fun! Such a good conversation starter and easy for moms and their daughters to do together. It was was so neat to see how different everyone's turned out!

My Big Brother

2011-06-08T22:46:00.004-04:00

I've mentioned my "big brother" several times on here, but majority of you probably didn't know that I even have a big brother, did you? Well, I don't technically have a biological brother, but Shahrukh is the closest I could ever get to having a brother--stands up for me, tells me when I'm being stupid, knows me better than I know myself, and always there for me no matter what.

This all started Junior year of high school. Shahrukh and I were both in band, but hadn't really crossed paths much until we had Honors US History together. A huge portion of our grade was this notebook that was more or less graded on how much you doodled--decorating notes apparently signified learning to Mr. Kirk....the correlation still isn't too clear to me, but don't get me wrong, I loved it. Shahrukh on the other hand was not much of a doodler, or a note taker for that matter. I would get to school early for club meetings, study time, etc. and he would get to school early because of his how his rides worked out so most of our mornings Junior year were spent in the band hall with me decorating Shahrukh's notebook and helping him piece together his notes while he would give me a hard time over my sometimes ditzy comments. Eventually we started talking more about our lives and before too much longer, we became improbable friends.

Just to give you a picture of Shahrukh, he's 6'4, at least double my weight, and from Pakistan. He had had a rough life and was still really caught up with just the wrong group of people in high school. We could not have been a more unlikely pair of friends. Despite the differences-I was the prissy, over-organized, over-involved girl while he was smart mouthed, pot smoking, smart without trying kind of guy-something about our friendship worked. It was much harder for him to trust people than it was for me, but over time we would confide in each other and have honest conversations about whatever drama was going on and that was exactly the grounding that both of us needed.

Senior year, Shahrukh really hit a low point as he was struggling with drugs, depression, and just life in general. One night in early October, he attempted to commit suicide. After taking several pills, he called me to say his final goodbye and say that he was sorry...It took me several minutes before I could really understand what was happening, but by the time I realized the seriousness of the situation, he had hung up. I called my parent's in an absolute panic and they contacted Shahrukh's parents, called 911 and they got to him just in time. He went straight to the hospital and from there to an inpatient rehab facility. That night has impacted both he and I more than we have probably ever talked about to each other, but I know I think about it often when I realize how precious life really is and the importance of a friendship. I have a picture sitting on my desk at work that was taken the day he came back to visit on Senior Night after being released from rehab that I wish I had so I could post it on here....still to this day, I have never been so happy to see someone.

He and I have kept in touch throughout college through lots of texting, occasional phone calls, and seeing each other about every 6ish months. 9 times out of 10 times, we do the same thing. He picks me up at my parent's house, he takes me to get ice cream or a smoothie, we drive around East Cobb, and catch up on life. Shahrukh is probably the one person in my life that can say anything he wants, as crass and off color as it might be, and get away with it. He's earned this right because as mad as he makes me sometimes, he knows who I really am and knows when to expect more or better from me. Don't worry though, this a a 2 way street and I do not hold my tongue when it comes to calling him out either. Apart from my blood-related family, whoever I marry is going to have to get the approval from Shahrukh, which is not an easy task since he's really only liked one of my boyfriends out of all of the years we've known each other. I respect, appreciate, and love Shahrukh more than he'll ever know and I am grateful beyond expression to have had and will continue to have someone that I can call my big brother.

Memorial Day, Pt. 2

2011-06-06T22:08:00.003-04:00

I know that Memorial Day was a week ago, but this is literally the first night I've had at my apartment where I've been able to sit down and update the ol' blog! And to make matters worse, (I'm really doing a good job of encouraging you to keep reading, aren't I?!) I took zero pictures except at Peaser's wedding at the youth group event!

Either way, I woke up EARLY on Friday morning so I could drive my co-worker Baxley to the airport so he could fly to California for some vacay time. But that meant time with Kirby and Felicity since they live less than 5 minutes away from the Atlanta airport! When I discovered that my sister is turning into a health-food hippie, I passed on lunch at their house and I drove home to my parents' house. Once my first priority was met (food), I headed straight upstairs for a nap! I woke up in time for my favorite restaurant, Cherokee Cattle Company, with my parents and a night out with my "big brother". After I'm caught up on posts from Memorial Weekend and this past week, I'll dedicate a post to Shahrukh. *Public mental note*

It was so nice to have a lazy day on Saturday before the wedding! Saturday turned into a late night, so I slept right through church on Sunday morning! But thank goodness for technology because First Pres puts their sermons online, so I was especially grateful that I didn't miss Tim Tinsely wrapping up the book of John! The youth group went to the Lookouts Game that night and I honestly felt like they were going to have to mop me up off the floor because I would have been a puddle of sweat by the end of the game! So. Stinking. Hot.
Of all days, I realllllly wish I had taken a picture of my day on Monday. Drexel and I went to a late breakfast on Monday to celebrate our day off and after some slight detours, me, Ryan, Matt, and Drexel went to D's parents' yacht. She always refers to her parents' boat as a boat....no, it's a stinking yacht. Two bedrooms, a kitchen/sitting area, bathroom, and a sun deck! There's even a token Sea Doo. Crazy. I felt so legit at the Marina getting on their boat...And I figure that I'm totally allowed to brag about other people's nice things without sounding snobby. It was so relaxing to just sit in the water, talking, or laying out on the back of the boat, all while talking with good friends. Finishing the day with Chinese food and the Bachelorette was just the cherry on top.

Well that's about as concise as I can get it. Last week was pretty low key and even felt like a continued vacation because Katie Woodruff was housesitting for a family in East Brainerd so we took full advantage of their neighborhood pool and nice flat screen tv. I felt spoiled to say the least.

Even if she's Brittany Hughes, she's still Pease to me

2011-06-02T09:59:00.009-04:00

Brittany and Ross are married! The ceremony was short, but sweet (my favorite kind of wedding ceremony!) and everyone looked great! After the ceremony, we took a little detour and made our way to the reception. It was held in Brittany's parents' backyard and it was beautiful! They had tents and tables set up around the yard and the dj was on the porch (the pool being right next to the dance floor made me nervous on several occasions, but no accidental fall ins happened!).

Rather than ramble on, here are some pictures (some of these are borrowed from Sloan's dad who served as a secondary photographer at the wedding)

The food set up--and look who was there to help!! Ms. Linda was the cook for our sorority house and we LOVED her! She's hilarious and I'm so glad she was there!
We sang our "sweetheart song" and did the Alpha Gam toast...I felt like I was back in college for 4 or 5 minutes... The candy as a gift was so Brittany! And I love how they decorated using the sparklers! And they're off! It was so fun to see PC '05 girls and some PC '06 girls too! It was a nice reprieve from the "real world" and just have a fun night with them and their husbands, fiances, and boyfriends--since when did we mature enough to have married and engaged friends? Weird, but I love it.

Congratulations Ross and Brittany! I'm so excited for the both of you!

Let the Wedding Season Begin

2011-05-28T13:47:00.004-04:00

Brittany Pease is getting married today! Brittany and Ross has been together since our first few weeks at Georgia. I remember sitting in the dining room at the sorority house doing study hours on a Sunday afternoon the first month of school and asking who Peaser was texting and that was the first I had heard of Ross...and the rest is history. Well, kind of...Ross went to the majority of our sorority date nights, formals, semi formals, and tailgates all 4 years while we were at UGA. I was so excited to hear last summer when Ross proposed! It has been so exciting whenever I've gotten to see Brittany and gotten to hear about all of her wedding plans and today's the day! I'll have a post later on the wedding I'm sure, but I am so excited I get to be there and see the start of their lives together!

Sniff, Sniff-Hooray!

2011-05-24T18:01:00.005-04:00

Smell is one of those senses that can totally affect my mood. Even if my room is spotless, if it doesn't smell fresh then I don't feel like it's clean. The same goes for showering, I might be clean but if I can't smell my perfume or body lotion then I just don't feel as ready to brave the world. Here are some of the scents I'm digging right now:

Wall Flowers are seriously one of my favorite household items and with the sales that Bath and Body Works has (I just bought 6 for $24 with $1 shipping!), it makes it fairly reasonable considering they last for a couple of months!

PS-I'm not so sure why these pictures are so tiny! Oh wel....another day, another blogging issue.

Overbooked and Blessed

2011-05-23T10:28:00.002-04:00

This was one of those weekends that felt like 2 crammed into one because I had so much going on!

I headed home Thursday and from that point, I:
-had dinner with mom
-ate lunch with Kathleen
-spent too much money shopping
-helped my mom clean up her classroom
-ran lots of errands (in other words, spent more $$)
-had a FB#2 sleepover
-had brunch with Anna and Alexa (guard high school best friends)
-made a surprise visit and saw Felicity walking on her own!!
-drove to Fayetteville to see Nicole Gilreath (and her baby bump!)for the first time since graduation; it had been WAY too long!
-went to a bonfire with a group of friends from Chattanooga; it's always nice to hang out with other 20-somethings that I don't get to see too often :)
-was at church most of the day Sunday (per usual) with the exception of a quick nap

This weekend was such a wonderful, exhausting, and refreshing weekend! Even if I have the tendency of overbooking myself when I go to Marietta for the weekend, it's well worth the exhaustion if it means I get to catch up with friends and family like I did this weekend!