30 Before 30

I am almost 25. I don't consider that old by any means.

I was inspired by Jon Acuff's 40 Before 40 list.

30 Before 30:

1. Graduate with my MSW!

2. Start a family

3. Watch the Lord of the Rings Trilogy

4. Be a matron of honor

5. Have lasik eye surgery

6. Go West!

7. Take dancing lessons

8. Lose weight

9. Become a runner

10. Send out Christmas cards

11. Be able to run with my mother

12. Cook more at home than eating out

13. Keep my house cleaner

14. Get a housekeeper

15. Sing karaoke!

16. Get a job that pays more than $30,000

17. Have my car paid off

18. No school loans (for either my husband or me)

19. Read more books

20. Spend more time with God

21. Go to the movie theater more.

22. Go on more dates with my hubby

23. Travel. It could be CA or Europe, it doesn't matter.

24. Go on a cruise.

25. Go to Disneyworld with my husband.

26. Do my hair more and less ponytails.

27. Move to a larger city

28. Be debt free except for a mortgage

29. See my family more.

30. Love myself more. That almost sounds dirty but I really need to work on loving what God created me to be.

A Break but not Really

Today is the last day of school for the semester. I couldn't be more pumped about this. Union does this awesome thing called J-Term which means for people like me who don't take a class in January, we have a break for almost 2 months before the Spring semester begins. I will be really be getting a break because I will still be interning and I will still be working, but I won't have school to drive to or classes to sit through for 6 hours on Mondays. I have mentally been making a list of things that I want to accomplish starting tomorrow and I thought that I would share this list with everyone.

These items are in no particular order.

1. Read books
2. Try P90x. A friend of ours has downloaded the program.
3. Go to zumba more than twice a week...maybe. I can at least change my days to Monday and Thursday because those are the harder classes to attend.
4. Clean out every room in my house. You know-dust those places that have never been dusted. Clean that area in the bathroom that you always conveniently forget to do.
5. See my family more.
6. Watch movies.
7. Get caught up on work.
8. Paint the bathroom
9. Donate unwanted items to Goodwill.
10. Sleep.
11. Work on training my puppy. She's actually doing very well.
12. Cook some new food items.
13. Try not to cook so many things from a package.

These are things that have been on my to do list for a while, but now I will actually have the time to do them. Every time I have started on one of these activities, I feel guilty because I know that I have school things to work on.

For example, I think my bathroom has been taped and ready to be painted for at least a month now if not longer. It's sad when you think that the blue painter's tape is part of the decor.

Capture It, Remember It

Yes, the title of this post is from a Taylor Swift song. I am not ashamed.

Next month, Andrew and I will have been married for two years. I can't believe that we have gotten to this point. This point of having a routine and being married.

Can you believe I married this guy? By the look of this picture, it looks like I don't even like him,haha. I try to remember little moments. Little things that aren't that important, but it's the little moments that make me happy.

The other Monday, I had just spent six hours in class and then drove home. I was exhausted! At that point of my day, I couldn't even muster any facial expressions. I probably just grunted at him when I entered through the door. I went straight to our bathroom to get ready for bed. I was standing there brushing my teeth with my old-fashioned regular toothbrush.

It's always a joke between us because Andrew likes his electric toothbrush and he makes fun of me because of all the "work" I put into brushing my teeth with my regular toothbrush.

Anyway, Andrew came into the bathroom while I was brushing my teeth, put his arms around me and began to make a buzzing sound like his toothbrush. At one point he made my toothbrush "die" and he quickly pulled out his drawer and put a battery in his mouth. The buzzing immediately commenced. I couldn't help but laugh and be thankful for a husband who have eight years of being "Andrew and Dana" can still make me laugh.

I have a stressful and emotional job. It is so wonderful to know that I can come home (most of the time) and have a husband who understands and is willing to do whatever to make my evening less stressful.

Tanning Beds

Don't you want to be beautiful?
Don't you want to be tan and beautiful?

I admit, I went to a tanning bed for a little while in college.
I also went a little bit during the summer after college.
My reasons were because I couldn't lay out and get a tan, I would look weird if I didn't.

That all changed once my mom was diagnosed with cancer.
I saw how painful chemotherapy was.
I saw how awful surgery recovery was.

I realized something that I hope others will realize:
Why would you purposely put yourself at MORE of a risk for cancer?

I don't smoke because it's gross but because I don't want lung cancer.
I go to the gynecologist to prevent cervical and ovarian cancer.
Why in the world would I go to a tanning bed?
Because being tan makes me more beautiful?
Because I get my Vitamin D?
So I don't have tan lines?
That's ridiculous.
NEWS FLASH:
No one cares how tan you are!

Don't get me wrong, I do prefer being tanner than paler. When I have the opportunity to lay out by the parents' pool, I do...but I put on massive amounts of sunblock to take preventions.

I can't help but hold my tongue when I hear brides talking about tanning,
almost as if it's a part of the wedding planning:
1. Dress
2. Hair
3. Nails
4. Shoes
5. Tanning

Tanning is not necessary to be a beautiful bride. I did not touch a tanning bed for my wedding. I just dealt with it, but also because I got married in December.

Friends, please be smart about tanning.
It's not worth it.
I have never ever heard a doctor say that it is necessary for someone's health to lay in a tanning bed. Even if it's "only for 15 minutes a few times a week."
Believe me I've heard that one before.
Be smart.
Being Tan is not worth hours of chemotherapy.

Zumba!

Zumba!!!

It is all the rage right now.

I was so excited to find that the community center at the next town over was offering Zumba for only $3.oo. The class is taught 3 nights a week, but I can only attend twice due to class.

I was so excited, but I became even more excited when my friend Elizabeth said that she would go with me.

We walked into our class a little nervous.

It was in an old classroom.

There were 5 of us, and we were all about the same size.

After class, I knew that I had found my true calling...

a Zumba instructor!!

I was good! I was picking up the moves quickly.

All I needed to do was to get to where I wasn't breathing so hard and memorize the dances.

I was set!

When Thursday night came along, I was so excited to enhance my zumbaing skills.

Elizabeth and I had even convinced another friend to come with us.

There was a problem though...we had a different teacher this time. A skinny, peppy girl that I have known for about 10 years. Bridgette.

Bridgette and I had done colorguard during the same time and her friend dated my friend for several years in high school. Andrew was even a groomsmen for that friend's wedding.

She murdered me.

Any thoughts I had about being a successful Zumba teacher flew out of the window.
I looked as if I had never had control over any of my arms or legs.

Bridgette was like a cat on speed. I looked like a fish out of water.

I couldn't help but think while I was watching her, that I used to be able to move my body like that.

Today I am a little sore, but I can't wait to go back and learn. Just you wait, I am going to get it!

When to say goodbye?

I'm having some problems. When you are emotionally attached to your job and the people that you work with, when is is a good time to leave?

That might sound a tad bit crazy, I realize this. I do love my job and I love my boss and office manager more than I love my job. I enjoy the relationships with my clients. I enjoy the fact that my boss let me pick out the paint color of my new office (lavender by the way). I love that every year I feel myself improving with my organizational skills. I have not reached the point at my job where I am burnt out or feel as if I have learned all that I need to learn.

Why do you want to leave you might ask?

Well...I'll tell you. I don't make very much money AT ALL. I work for a nonprofit which means that we have to fundraise the money for me to get the green. I haven't really gotten a raise either. They try to make up for it with little things, such as paying for my mileage and giving us a long time off of work for Christmas, but I've got bills to pay. I don't want to have to live almost paycheck to paycheck. Why would I stay at a job that I enjoy for little money when I can find a job that pays a lot more that I could also enjoy.

Did I mention I got punched in the nose working a fundraiser for my job? Yup. A full on "Bring it on, Sista" fight. It would be nice to not only be at a job where I don't have to worry about my job security every year when it's time to make budget cuts in the state and it would be even nice to not have to work on fundraisers.

There is never a good time to leave my job.
If I leave now, that would be right before Christmas and that would leave even more stress on the people that I love because they would have to pick up more of the slack. During Christmas time, it is normal for us to work til about 4 am several nights in a row to get Christmas worked on for our clients.

If I leave after Christmas, that's right before Dinner and Auction, our biggest fundraiser of the year. The other girl who had the job before me did that. Not cool in my boss's play book.

If you leave after Dinner and Auction, I will leave all of my clients to be seen and notes to be completed by a boss that doesn't have time to focus on her duties as a supervisor because she is so busy with everything else.

I also don't want to spring anything on anyone. She asked me to tell her when Andrew and I start to make a family because she told me that nine months wasn't long enough to process what to do while I'm on maternity leave. I'm guessing that this goes the same way. We've had people leave before. My friend Katie left after being on the job only a few months because the job that she really wanted came open and they were going to pay more and pay for her college. Nobody could really blame her for that one. My friend Robin left after working here for 3 years and she wanted a job at the school system so that she could have breaks with her children. No one could blame her for those reasons either.

I know that I will leave eventually. I'm getting my Masters and I don't get much of a raise once that is completed and I don't want to be a director.

I found a job opening that I might enjoy. It pays almost $10,000 more than my job does now. It's enough to start making me think.

Jealousy

My entire life I have struggled with not being good enough. With being ordinary. With not being pretty enough. Skinny enough, and the list could go on and on.

I've been dealing with the feelings of being ordinary. God uses the ordinary. He has to use the ordinary and not the spectacular because only God deserves the glory for the work He has done. I heard a woman who struggles with dyslexia talk about how she has written more books than she has read. She believed that that was possible because God had to take a person who didn't have a thought in her head in order for the book to be completely from Him.

I can't handle your good or your bad.
Sometimes I look at the beautiful people and wish that I had their jobs, body, life, spirit, faith, family....
But I have to remind myself that, yeah, their good is GREAT but could I handle their bad as well? Yes, she's a great writer but that is always expected of her. Yes, she's beautiful but is that all the people see when they look at her?

God has put me where He wants me for a reason. He has given me skills and the faith to deal with my good and my bad.

I'll take Steph for instance. She has a "glamorous" job where she gets to talk to all sorts of important people. Every day is different and she can move anywhere she wants. Hawaii anyone? That is so great, but I couldn't handle being in a job where my looks are very important and I worked in such a hostile and unChristian environment every day. I don't think I could handle being away from my family or spend the majority of my days begging for interviews.

I can't handle her good or her bad.

My friend Jessica. She seems to got it all together spiritually and is very smart when it comes to the bible. Her home is clean and she can cook better than Paula Deen! Her husband has been layed off for like a year now and they were wondering what they were going to do when his unemployment check runs out and they just found out that they are pregnant with twins. I couldn't handle that stress. Jessica can. Jessica just got a promotion and they have decided that her hubby is going to be a stay-at-home dad. God provided, but it was that inbetween where I don't think I could handle it.

I can't handle her good or her bad.

I hear all the time from Stephanie, "I don't know how you put up with [insert situation here]. "

She can't handle my good or my bad.

I have to trust and rely on the fact that God knows what He is doing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy with my life. I love my husband, job, house, dogs, and family but sometimes I just get caught up with comparing and dreaming about what if.

I am Selfish

Today I was reminded about how truly selfish and ungrateful I really am.

I had to go out and see an old client this morning and as an afterthought, I brought her several bottles of dish soap. When I arrived at her house, we caught up on what was going on in her life and how her granddaughter was doing in school. I finally gave her the wal-mart sack to show her what I brought for her.

It was nothing. It was soap.

When she looked into the sack and saw what was placed so haphazardly in there, her eyes grew wide and her mouth dropped. Thank you, Ms. Dana she said.

She then went on to share with me that she had run out of dish soap three days ago and she had been unable to wash any dishes because they did not have the funds purchase the soap. This lady has a yard sale every day and the money that she collects from her yard sale helps get her family through the winter. The day before I brought the soap she said she made $2. $2. She was worried about how her family was going to make it through the harsh winter and she was afraid that their lights and heat were going to be turned off if she did not make enough money with her yard sale. Her son has been digging through trash to find scrap metal. I am not making this up. He has found a place where people are illegally dumping their trash and he seeps through other people's junk to find metal to help take care of his family. He has gotten bitten by a tick and his foot has swelled up, but he is more scared that someone will make him stop than his foot falling off.

The night before I brought the soap to their house, they were discussing prayer and how God works. The son told his mother, some people say not to pray to God for the little things because He already knows our needs, but I think that we should be able to pray for the little things. That night his mother and himself got down on their knees and prayed for soap so they could wash their dishes. They prayed that someone would come shop their yard sale and that an angel would bring them soap to wash their dishes.

My sweet-hearted client told me,"You are my angel from God." I'm not telling you this story to make you think that I am so wonderful that I can sense my client's needs and that God uses me. I'm not that great. God worked through me today, but He also taught me something in the process. Today I am thanking God for soap.

I have never prayed for soap, toilet paper, or clean clothes. There have been times in my life where I have been overdrawn in my bank account due to unwise decisions, but I have never hungered nor have I ever had to pray for something as small as soap.

I can count on one hand the number of times that I have cried in front of a client while doing my emotionally charged job. This time my right eye failed me as a tear sneaked through my tear ducts. She told me that she was blessed. She told me that she knew that God was at work in her life and she still had joy even though they continually struggle financially. How many times have I looked at my closet and thought that I have nothing to wear or glanced in my stocked cabinets and thought I have nothing to eat? Too many times.

I have a nice house, a great car that runs, my bills are payed every month, and I know that God is taking care of me. All of my worries seem so small now. I know that I will probably forget this moment in my life, but God used a sweet older lady in a nightgown with stringy unwashed hair to show me that my Lord is still in the business of caring.

Great Week!

Today is Monday, which is wonderful because that means that tomorrow is TUESDAY and Tuesday means one thing only to this girl: WICKED!!!!!!! I'm so excited about it. I love love love musicals, but this is the one of the most popular musicals that I have never seen. I have been excited about it since I saw that it was coming to Memphis. Everyone I know that has seen it loved it and I can't wait!

Friday, I am leaving for a Women's Conference in Tupelo, MS with my church group. I was excited about it because I love being with the women. I was also excited because Chonda Pierce will be there. I've heard that she's funny and I will also get to worship with MercyMe. Those are both very exciting, but I found out something even better will be there Friday night. Two Words. DAVE BARNES!! This will be the 3rd time I'm seen him and I'm planning on seeing him again in November when he comes to Union.



Enjoy!

No updates in a month?

I have been MIA from my blog. Why? I don't really know. Here are some quick updates:

• Andrew got his diploma in the mail!! We paid too much money to both of our diplomas frames and we will put some track lighting about his, just to illuminate it like a Thomas Kincaid. Completely kidding about the track lighting.
• School started back for me. I am slowly realizing that I need to love and appreciate this semester because the class that is a year ahead of me is going to have a stroke because they are so swamped with school work. On the negative side, I am in class for 6 hours straight on Monday nights.
  
• We got a new puppy. Her name is Paisley and she a an adorable yellow lab. Portia thinks that she is a little toy. I can't wait until Paisley is bigger than her and can give Portia a run for her money.
  
• I broke my toe when I decided to ride my bike to a carwash. I KNOW that I should not have been wearing flip flops, but we used to wear flip flops all the time when we were little AND I was going to a carwash for goodness sakes. It wasn't just a normal broke toe either. I was swollen and bruised and sore for weeks.
  

That's pretty much the update. Not much as gone on in the Hampton House. We are starting the Dave Ramsey money system and we are really excited about it. We aren't bad with our money, but it will be interesting to see how much we can save. Our first goal is to pay off my car. After we pay off my car the only bill we will have will be Andrew's student loans. We need to get crackin' on that because after I graduate with my Masters Here Come Mine!

5k Run

I did a 5k.

It was my first 5k.

I knew I wouldn't place for several reasons:
1. I was placed in the 20-30 age group. While Bolivar is lacking in the 20-24 age group, it is not lacking in the upper 20's age group.
2. I had never done a 5k before.
3. At one point, the route was on a country road that had rolling fields and pastures around me. It was beautiful. The weather was wonderful and I had American Honey playing through my iPod. I didn't feel like running at this point. I wanted to stop and enjoy the scenery. I did not completely stop, but I did walk through that portion.

When I called my mother to tell her that I ran/walked a 5k, her response was,"Oh that's great! Today I ran 12.5 miles!"

Thanks mom!

I really am proud of my mother though. If you had seen my mom a year ago, you would not have imagined her running at all, let alone 12.5 miles. My mother is truly an inspiration. I'm going to keep on trucking though.

Doing a 5k does have its downside though. I am so sore!! It's my calves. If I'm just sitting down, then I'm fine but as soon as I try to put weight on my legs,fahgetaboudit. I'm like an old granny. I'm glad that I'm sore though because that means that I pushed myself yesterday.

P.S. I got a t-shirt to prove it!

Random Dozen

I feel as if I don't have anything great to post about so here goes the Random Dozen!

1. What is your favorite Mexican dish? I love chicken rice and cheese! I don't care what you call it: Pechuga Frita, La Preferido, or Tim's Special. It's all the same to me!

2. When you were a kid, did you get started on your homework right away after school, or did you procrastinate? I procrastinated. I would start after dinner typically and do it in my bedroom with the TV on.

3. What is your favorite store for home furnishings? I love me some Kirklands! I love hitting their sales. I bought a massive painting for our living room for only $20 and it was originally over a hundred.

4. When you were young, did you like school lunches? I didn't appreciate school lunches until I got into high school. We had our pizza line, our hamburger line, our plate lunch line, and our salad line. There was always something for you and you just couldn't beat Turkey and Dressing Day!!

5. Is religion a crutch? For some people it is. Going to church and participating in church sponsored activities don't get you closer to God though. Having a relationship with the Lord is way more important.

6. In your region, what is the "big" (most popular in the community or state) high school sport? Typically it is football, except in my current town-we won the national tournament in basketball.

7. Do you consider yourself rich? No. You don't become a social worker to make money. Between being in grad school and paying back hubby's school loans we are not rich. I know that in comparison to the world we are very blessed though.

8. Which of these would you have the best chance for success in administering:

A) CPR

B) Heimlich Maneuver

C) Changing a flat tire

Probably changing a tire because I have seen it done enough times to figure it out and I have less of a chance at hurting someone while changing the tire

9. Which dance would you prefer to learn & why:

A) Salsa

B) Hip Hop

C) Waltz

D) Swing

This one is the hardest one for me to answer. I think I would love to feel confident in my Hip Hop skills. In the privacy of my own home, I'm the best hip hop dancer, but I would love to know that I looked good doing it in public.

10. What's the worst news you've ever delivered to someone?

I had to work at Walgreens on Thanksgiving day in the photo lab. A man came in and told me that some guy had called him and told him to go to Walgreens to pick up some pictures because he had something he had to show him. The pictures were of his wife cheating on him with the man who had contacted him to pick up the pictures. The husband was in tears and was laid out on my counter. I told him that he didn't have to pick up the pictures if he didn't want to and he told me that he thought he would have to have them for court. As he opened his wallet to pay for these awful photos, I noticed that he had a picture in his wallet of him, his wife, and their 2 little children. I have never felt so bad in my life.

11. Name something you learned in college that had nothing to do with classes or academics. The best memories are made while making late night trips to random locations or deciding to skip class on a sunny day to go to the park. I once skipped class while it was raining and my best friend and I put on our rainboots to go puddle jumping.

12. New variation on an old question: If there's a song in your head that just won't get out, what is your favorite (or most repeated) line in that song?

"Your love, your love, your love is my drug"

Really, Commercial Appeal?

My sister's nursing friend had her picture in the Memphis newspaper beside the story about graduating. That was why I originally clicked on the article.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/aug/15/friends-congratulate-university-memphis-graduates/

The article begins with talking about a special relationship between a teacher and a student and how she came to watch her graduate. It also includes several other stories in the article about how special this particular graduation was. It was going good until the last few sentences...

"The same could be said for Sara Rayne, who received her doctorate in psychology Sunday.
In six years, Rayne finished her master’s degree and her doctorate, but it wasn’t easy.
Since childhood, she’s battled a learning disorder that affects her ability to perform math.
“I don’t know what percentage of people with a learning disability have finished their Ph.D.,” she said. “I just tried really hard.”

Really, CA, Really?

Updates

Typically I write about a certain topic and then say that I will update you on that topic, and I never get around to doing that. But TODAY I will update you on the topic that I'm sure you were sitting on the edge of your seats wondering about: My 7 Day Cleanse!!!!

I'll try not to be too disgusting but I'm a very open and honest person who sometimes doesn't use her filter, so bear with me on this one.

I ended up only doing the cleanse for 4 days. The reason being was because I didn't think it through when I started it and forgot that I was leaving on a mission trip that week. I did not want to be that person who had to stop every 30 minutes to use the restroom. I would have also had the struggle of finding a decent bathroom on the Mississippi roads.

It took about a day and a half to get the cleanse going. I took two pills before lunch and two before bed. I had a hard time remembering to take the pills before bed. With this cleanse you have to drink A LOT of water, which I did. Once the cleanse started, I had to pee a lot and 85% of the time that I peed, I pooped. It wasn't painful. My stomach didn't cramp up and I also never had to run at lightening speed to the restroom. I would do it again, but this next time I would make sure I wasn't leaving in the middle of the week for a trip. I'm not sure how much weight I lost because I don't own a scale, but I felt better.

I would not recommend this to anyone who didn't have access to a restroom during the day. I have a bathroom right off of my office so it wasn't a big deal.

In my Paul Harvey voice," And that is the rest of the story."

I Wanna be a Billionaire so Freakin' Bad

Actually, I don't really want to be a billionaire, but I would rather be one than be poor.

Andrew and I sometimes play a game where we list what we would do if we had all the money in the world. Our lists are so different that it's almost funny. The main difference between our two lists is that I can never really think about what I want for myself. It is so much more fun for me to think what I could buy to make everyone else's life easier. Here is my list:

1. Pay off my parent's house.
2. Buy my mom a cute sports car, a Mini Cooper to be exact and burn old Honda Odyssey to the ground. I would even let her light the match.
3. Pay off Andrew's parent's house. We could buy them a new one if they wanted it.
4. Buy my best friend a taser. Really, I would. Of course, if I bought her a taser, the chances of me surprising her at her apartment decreases because she might attack me with the taser.
5. Pay off Andrew's school loans
6. Buy Hardeman County, Weakley County, and McNairy County a brand new paid for center. All of our buildings are falling apart.
7. I would make it so that our parents would never have to work again unless they wanted to.
8. I would pay for my sister to go overseas to do Mission Work, not to get rid of her but because that's what she feels called to do.
9. I would have my own personal jet just so that I could fly to see Stephanie whenever she needed a hug or a Route 44 Cherry Coke, or McDonald's Sweet Tea.
10. I would donate a lot of my money towards cancer research.
11. I would use my money so that my family would never have to sell our property in Park Rapids, MN. AKA My Happy Place
12. I would also use my airplane to fly to My Happy Place whenever I wanted to
13. I would buy a boat. I do want a boat for myself.

The crazy thing about all this stuff is that it wouldn't make me or anyone else satisfied in life. I'm sure it would help, but unless we have a purpose in life and have God, everything is Meaningless!

Merigold, MS

Have you ever heard of Merigold, MS? Neither had I until we took the youth on a mission trip. This trip was all about construction, which was not my cup of tea. I was in charge of the food preparation and supervising the heathens. I love my youth and they are some cool kids, but these teenagers will get distracted and lose focus as soon as you take your eyes off of them. I have developed some wonderful relationships with these kids. During the trip they started calling me Mama Dana. They loved that I knew the latest rap music and was able to listen to them without judging. I also grew a strong bond with my new good friend Rachel. After coming home from this trip, I really can't imagine ever going through out my life and not knowing Rachel. She has a heart for children and adoption. She is creative and not afraid to step on the wild side. Example: She wanted to smoke a cigar at our Music Minister's fiance's bacholorette party. She has a heart for people and wants to show everyone love. She is 5 years older than me, on her second marriage, and has 3 children and I couldn't have found a more compatible person to be my friend here in Bolivar. I can't wait until Steph comes to visit and we can go hang out with her and her 3 children. She is also the Queen of Truth or Dare. I love this woman and I can't wait to develop a deeper friendship with her over the years.

So many thoughts, so little time

I have so many things on my mind that I want to share with my very little blogger audience. I would like to share how God has instilled in me a new passion for reading His word. Recently, I had noticed and was ashamed that when we were reading from the Bible, my eyes would read the words, but my heart would not. I am ashamed to admit that. I didn't know what was wrong with me. How could I try to disciple youth and not be able to soak up what God was showing me? This has been a burden on my heart for a little while. "What a faker?" was what I was thinking. I don't know what happened because last week or so, I woke up and thought that I really needed some help with reading my Bible, so I went to Lifeway and dug through the millions of devotionals. I decided on one that went through women of the Bible. It was interesting enough and I have enjoyed it because it picked a woman and the whole week was about her. After about 2 weeks of working with that devotional, I have decided that it's not enough. I want to be IN God's word. I want to study a chapter and absorb more than just about a woman in the Bible. I hope that this desire lasts and that I will be able to memorize more scripture.

Important People

Tomorrow I will be leaving at 5:00am to chaperone a youth Mission Trip. I'm excited, yet exhausted with just the thought of it. I am using my vacation days to not have a vacation. Am I crazy? Maybe. As I have been preparing myself for this mission trip, my mind has wondered to the great examples I have had on how to be a great youth leader. My mind immediately goes to Ms. Sherry, or Scary Sherry as she was affectionately called.

Ms. Sherry has been my Sunday School teacher, my Disciple Training teacher, my sign language teacher, my make-up artist, my cheerleader, my decorator, and a friend. I learned how to work with youth by her example. She was always there to listen and to give advice. She knew what was going on in our lives, many times without us even telling her. Her home was our home.

When I was planning my wedding, I called Ms. Sherry to ask her for some advice on flowers and decorations. I think I called her several times before she finally asked if I would like for her to help us. She took my mom and I shopping in Memphis and put arrangements together that we never would have been able to do. She also did my makeup before every dance. I would always go to her house with my foundation on and she would fix me up. It was only natural for her to do my makeup on one of the most special days of my life, my wedding. My wedding was so beautiful because of her help. I love her dearly and so often we don't tell those important people in our lives how much they mean to us and Ms. Sherry is one of those people.

Ms. Sherry and her husband, Mr. John, also showed us kids what a loving marriage looked like. They never shied away from showing affection towards each other and we knew how much they loved each other. Ms. Sherry is also honest to a fault. She will tell you like it is. She didn't hide that her past wasn't perfect and shared with us what God had done in her life. I cherished her honesty and I pray that I can be that honest with the kids at my church.

I can tell what things my youth workers passed down to me. I say phrases like, "Saints and Aints," "When God talks, you don't." Because of Ms. Sherry I have a passion for teaching our ministry team sign language.

Thank you, Ms. Sherry!

What is on my desk?

I Will Try Anything Once...

Or twice, if I felt that I didn't do it right the first time.

I am trying a cleanse. It was recommended to me by a personal trainer. You might think I'm crazy, but he assured me that I wouldn't have poop running down my leg. I'm hoping that it works and kickstarts my phitness. It only takes seven days, so I will be giving updates.

Old Memories

I'm a procrastinator. It's bad. It's the end of the fiscal year at work and it's time to play Make-Up Catch-Up with my time sheets. It's ridiculous really all the stuff they make us do. I turn in one form of a time sheet every pay period, but then they expect us to keep up with in on another form, which I don't. Maybe I'm not a procrastinator, maybe I'm "sticking it to the Man!"

Imagine my surprise when I was typing in my time for the months of August, Sept, October and I'm seeing words in my planner like MOM'S SURGERY, CHEMO, EMERGENCY SURGERY and the feelings and memories all come rushing back to me. I even have the day in my calender written when we went to go pick up my sister from her summer long mission trip. That was the day we made a quick trip to my mom's doctor before we left to get my sister. That was the day we found out she had breast cancer. I was sitting in my office in tears. Who knew writing stupid time sheets would be so emotional? I'm so thankful that my mom is happy and healthy, but that first chemo treatment. I will never forget that night as long as I live.

I remember placing the damp washcloth on my mother's forehead and calling out to God to let it be me that was in pain. I remember having to help my mother to the bathroom. She could barely take 3 steps without having to stop because of the pain. I remember vowing at that moment that whatever I could do to prevent cancer-whether it was not going to a tanning bed, making sure I have on sun screen, getting my yearly checkups on time- that I was do everything that I could. I do not want my future children to see me as I saw my mother that night.

I am so thankful that God was there during those moments. Just recently my mother got a letter in the mail from a church member saying how much my mother inspired her during those months because she just kept a positive outlook on life. I used to say that my grandfather was the strongest person I knew. I see where my mother got her strength from. I pray that I have only an ounce of my mom's perseverance.

Quick Post

Here are some thoughts today:

• Don't be afraid of the unknown
• Troubles are normal, but be careful of your worries
• Most of the things that you worry might occur, don't ever happen.
• Don't be disdainful towards people who are different, smelly, ugly, stupid, or should be "placed in concentration camps (not my words)." God sent his son for them too. Smile, tell them Good Morning. Look them in the eyes because God created them in his image. Show them grace.

I get it now!

Crazy girls, I'm finally getting it. I get why you blow off your friends to spend time with the person you married, even though you see them quite a bit. I totally am understanding it. Currently I am ecstatically happy and obsessed with my husband. We have not spent this much time together the entire time that we have been married. I am more in love with my husband today than I was when I married him. He is amazing. I can tell that we are spending more time together too because we have been doing crazy things out in public that an average observer would not understand. I can't really give examples, but know that we look like crazy people everywhere we go. We are both enjoying each other's company, and that's wonderful because we ARE married to each other. I can tell that he's enjoying spending time with me as much as I am with him. We are finally learning how to sleep in the same bed together. I'm sure glad that we can mark that goal off our list after 1 1/2 years of marriage.

Here are some more updates on my life:
1. School is sucking the life out of me. Can I have a fast foward button please?
2. I need to be a better manager of my time. Do you think that has an affect on Number 1?
3. I am really excited about the 4th of July because I'll get to watch an AWESOME fireworks show.
4. My aunt who was so supportive during my mom's chemo has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
5. Daughter of said aunt (cousin) is due any day now with baby #2. I can't wait to meet him!
6. A good friend of mine in B-Town is preggers, Yay!!
7. I miss my bestie.
8. It's too HOTTTT in TN!
9. I'm taking the music minister's bride-to-be to a sex store on Friday. Can't wait!
10. My boss got a breast reduction, and I'm so excited for her because I want one SO bad!!!

Contentment

On Sunday nights, my Discipleship Training class is doing a study on contentment and learning how to be content with things in our lives. Yesterday was one of those days that I found difficulty in finding contentment. I have been the only one in my office for about 2 and a half weeks now. That means that I can't get my visits done, I can't sit in my office, and I have to answer every daggum phone call that comes through. Yesterday, I almost unplugged the phone and threw it out of the window. If there was a way to silence our phones, I would have. I am not exaggerating when I say that as soon as I hung up the phone, another call would come through. At one point, all three lines were ringing and I just had to let them go because no one else was here. I am not a switchboard operator!!! Then I had to leave early to go to class. Even though I was extremely grateful that he let us out early, I felt like curling up in a ball and crying for my momma. The fetal position is exactly the position that I got into when I got home. I was in a crabby mood! I ended up in bed by 8:00pm. I would have been in bed by 7:30 but it was still too sunny outside.

I need to go to my happy place. My happy place consists of water, warm sun, and silence. And no, a bathtub outside won't cut it. I need a beach or Potato Lake in MN.

Constructive Criticism

Growing up, I have never ever been good at hearing that I was wrong. I don't like hearing that I'm not perfect. I'll admit that I'm not perfect, and I'll even be able to tell you what I need to change. Don't YOU dare try to tell me that something I said or did was incorrect.

Today Shawn Smucker wrote:

Here’s a thought: let someone disagree with you today, and don’t let it affect your self-worth. Consider listening instead of persuading.

“You can safely assume that you’ve created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do” (Ann Lamotte)

When’s the last time you changed your mind about something you are passionate about? Never? Ever consider that the odds you are right about EVERYTHING is probably nil?

Ummm...was he in my head today? That Ann Lamotte quote hits home for me. This semester I am taking a Religion and Spirituality Class and how it affects the social work profession. Basically, social work is an holistic profession. When we are addressing a situation with a client, we look at them biologically, mentally, socially, and on top of those: spiritually. I have to be able to listen to what they believe and try to see how their beliefs fit into their life. Are you telling me that I have to put my belief in God aside regardless of their faith? Yeppers. I have to educate myself in their beliefs, even if they are deciding to wearing a red string around their wrist for Kabbalah.

We have to be willing to listen and hear what people are saying they believe in and not shut them off because what we believe in is different.

Hot in Herre!

A wise man once said, "It's getting hot in here, so take off all your clothes."

I wish that I was able to live by that saying, because it's HOTT in TN!! It wouldn't be so bad if my office had AC. The downstairs does, but not my lair. I'm sitting as close to my window unit as possible which is causing the left side of my body to be cold and my right to be HOTT. Yesterday, I realized that my right side of my body smelled like BO while my left was flowery fresh!

Two thumbs up for me for getting up at 6:15 this morning to go running. I really enjoyed it and I plan on doing it tomorrow as well.

I have found a new best friend.

I'm not dumping my old one, but I found another one. Her name is Annie Parsons and this is her blog http://hootenannie.com/.

This is why I love her:
1. Her blog is called hootenannie! How can you not love that?!?
2. She's very random. Her blog is more about daily thoughts.
3. She is funny! Check out this vlog: http://hootenannie.com/2010/05/road-trip-recap/

She lived in Nashville, but decided to head back to Colorado when her mother was diagnosed with cancer. We have a lot in common, not really. But I'm a firm believer that we are kindred spirits and we would be really good friends if we lived closer. I have decided to stalk her until she is my BFF! Not really, but I would if she still lived in Nashville.

How many of us are jaded to the war? I know three people that are deployed right now. Do I hope that they are safe? Yeah. Do I want them to come home? Yeah. But how often do I pray for them? How often do we pray for our troops? I honestly don't do it as much as I should.

Now that one of my good friend's husband is deployed, I am praying every day for him specifically. A few days after he was deployed, I got word that a boy that I had gone to school with had been killed in Iraq. It home real quick for me after that. I didn't believe it. I had a crush on him at some point. It wasn't anything major. In fact, if I had to sit and make a list on all the boys I had a crush on, I probably wouldn't even remember him for my list. I remember him being very sweet. When he attended UTM he would come into the food court to see my friend Justin and my Andrew. Since the last time I saw him, he had been deployed twice, gotten married, and had a one year old son named Tucker. My heart goes out to his wife. Can you even imagine being a widow that young. Please pray for our troops, and if you get the chance please listen to this Tribute to Israel "Izzy" O'Bryan. It really is worth it.

Should I feel guilty?

Only three more days until husband begins working first shift. I am so excited about being able spend time with him.

I have to confess that I have always had a problem with guilt with husband/boyfriend vs. friends. I know, I know, I know that husband goes first blah blah blah...but really, I do have an issue with it. For example, yesterday I hadn't seen or spoken to husband all day long. I left for work before he woke up and he spent the day helping my mother get a new couch from Memphis to Dburg. (How sweet was that?) I also had my first night of class for my summer school that night. I got home around 9:00pm and he got home around 9:30pm. We were exhausted and we had very little time to talk before we fell asleep.

What was I doing during this time where we could be talking about our days and sharing new information with each other?
Well....I was on the phone with the bestie. The night before we had talked for 2 hours before we got off the phone at 11:00pm, and by the time I got off the phone with her last night we had talked for an hour and a half. I was actually laying in bed beside my husband with the lights turned off just chatting away. He had the TV on, but he had it turned down in respect for my phone conversation. He didn't even roll his eyes at me. I would have thrown him out of the room if he had done that to me. I honestly had talked to my bestie longer in a 24 hour period than I had my husband. Is that wrong? I feel incredibly guilty. He didn't express any frustration with me, but I still feel guilty. Here is where I struggle:
My friend lives 7 hrs away and lives by herself. I think if I don't talk to her then she will be moping around her lonely apartment where she doesn't know anyone else except me. I also want her to know that I am interested in what she has to say and if I shut her down when she's not done telling me about whatever adventure she had for the day then I show that I'm not interested. In all honesty, I know that if I don't answer the phone, then she will just call the next person on her list and she will spend her entire evening on the phone with someone regardless of if it's me or another listening ear. I just am so scared to turn into that person. You know, that person who makes her friend,mom, sister feel so unimportant compared to their spouses. But am I alienating my husband who doesn't really have any close friends to call and chat up the wind with about his day. I am my husband's person (insert Grey's reference here). I am the one and only person that he shares his thought and dreams and discouragements during the day. My hubby is not the only person that I share mine with and I'm not the only one that my bestie calls throughout the day either.

I guess I should be more considerate to my husband, but it really is a constant struggle in my mind because I don't want the friend to feel unloved. To be honest with my blurkers (blog stalkers) out there (which include the bestie), I don't think she would understand if I have one of those moments when I am on the phone with her and I haven't seen the hubby all day long and I am about to lose him to sleep. She does not like to feel put on a back burner. Does anyone? If I was in the middle of a story and sharing my heart with someone and they interrupted in the middle of a sentence and asked if they could call me back later because they needed to talk to someone else more important, I would not be happy. If I did it once, then she might understand, but if I did it all the time where would that put our friendship?

When your husband works 3rd shift, you have to schedule time together. I know that might sound crazy to some people, but you really have to. If it's not scheduled, then it is assumed that he will be sleeping during that time. If you don't schedule the time, then you will not see each other. I'm not talking about everyone being busy with errands or everyone getting things done around the house. I'm talking about daily not seeing the person that you love more than anything. It's Good morning, I'm going to work and then Good night, I'm going to work. Do you understand my excitement with him switching? I will be able to see him enough that I won't feel guilty when I run back to the bedroom for a gab fest on the phone.

This blog actually turned into something a lot more different then what it was planned to be. I wanted to make a list of amazing things I was going to do once my hubby started first shift, but it turned into something completely different.

Who has 2 Thumbs and is Really Proud...

THIS GIRL IS!!!!!!

If you have followed my blog at all, then you will know that I have been doing to Couch to 5k training. It hasn't been as steady as I would have hoped. I have had to press pause several times due to rain, business, sickness, and vacations. I have been stuck on the same intervals for about a month now. It consists of Warming up for 5 minutes, Running for 90 sec, Walking for 90 sec, Run for 3 minutes, and then Walk for 3 minutes. Repeat.
I continued with this interval for so long because I haven't felt that I have mastered it yet. I would do find at the 90 seconds, but I would struggle on the 3 minutes. Sometimes I would be able to run the 3 minutes, but I would be gasping for air at the end. This week has been wonderful for me. I have gone running 3 days in a row and I'm enjoying it. I can tell that the 3 minutes of running has become easier and easier each time. Today my calves are sore after running so much, but it's a beautiful day and I really don't want to jinx myself by not running. My plan is to continue these intervals until I feel as comfortable with the 3 minutes of running as I do with the 90 seconds. There is a big difference in 90 seconds and 3 minutes. I want to be able to not look at my timer and wish away the seconds.

Self Talk has been very helpful for me. Even though I might be dying, I'll look at my timer and see that I have only 30 seconds left and I have to really push myself to continue running. I drug Andrew out with me the other day and even he said that he couldn't remember me ever running that long. That meant so much to me because I am working really hard to be able to run.

I know I look like a crazy person while running my neighborhood because there are just certain songs that come on that you just have to dance to while running. I might wave my hands in the air or clap for a while. Another thing about my neighborhood that I have noticed is that there aren't many people who walk it. We have a great neighborhood, but very rarely do I see anyone walking their dogs or enjoying the outdoors. When we lived by the Country Club, I was always in great company with bike riders and other walkers.

Next week will be 5 minutes. I KNOW I have never run 5 minutes. One of my boyfriends (well the only other one I've had besides my husband) used to run a 5 minute mile. I'm quickly on my way to running a 5k!

I need the Hallelujah Chorus right NOW!

There are so many updates for my blog readers. I went on a great vacation to see great friends. But today, this morning, my husband accepted the 1st shift position at Walmart. Even though it's going to be a $.5o decrease with every paycheck, at least he will be home every night and he'll have Sunday's off. When he called me this morning to tell me that he was able to still take the position, after he had told his boss that he would not take it, I had a reaction that was unexpected...

I went into Oprah's Ugly Cry. I was literally sobbing in my office. Andrew has been working 3rd shift since we got married. We had our honeymoon and then it began. I didn't like it, but it was just something that we did and tolerated. I honestly didn't know how much I hated it until I heard that we weren't going to have to do it anymore. He will be home around the time I get home and he will have Sundays off. This will definitely make things more bearable since my bff left and I have to be creative to not be bored on the weekends and while Andrew is looking for another job. He won't start until next Saturday, but there's a light at the end of the tunnel and I will finally have to learn to sleep with another person in my bed.

Ranting and Raving

I hate man rings. There. I've said it. I hate them. Unless you have won a Super Bowl or you are in the armed forces, don't wear them!!! In fact, I don't even like those rings, but I can get over it because most football players are huge and I'm very proud of our service men. It still isn't attractive though. I don't mind wedding bands because I feel that they should wear them, but not huge honkin' ones with big diamonds in them.

I also hate denim on denim. I don't care if the denim matches or doesn't match. It's atrocious. Don't do it. I don't care. Period. You can wear you denim jacket with anything you want, just not your blue jeans. I would rather go cold then wear denim on denim. I used to live with this girl (I will not say names to protect the awfully dressed) who used to wear her blue jean jacket with her blue jeans all the time!!! Her friends all did it too. I would literally groan underneath my breath when they left the room and several of them would have on their denim suit (because that's basically what it is). Finally I had to have a heart to heart with my roommate. I refused to let her represent our friendship that way. I stopped that habit quickly. Just because farmers do it doesn't make it okay. Farmers also do a lot of other things (inseminating calves anyone?) that I don't do.

Rant completed!

What do we do?

Husband is miserable. He really hates his job, so much so I will share with you that we are considering him seeing a psychiatrist and possibly taking anti-depressants. This decision isn't being made lightly, but he does have a history of depression and it runs in the family. I can count on one hand the amount of times I have seen my husband cry during the 7.5 years we have been together. His job makes him cry. He is the only one in the entire facility that has a college degree and he is unable to get a promotion or a raise. What do you do? Do you quit on faith that God will provide you a job? I don't like this idea, not because I don't have faith that God will provide but because I have done the math. We wouldn't make it financially if he quit. So many people don't have jobs and would gladly take my husband's job and suffer. I have faith that God will provide for us. Jon Acuff (Stuff Christian's Like) talked about being lazy Christians and assuming that God will take care of things without making an effort. I hate seeing him so upset and I feel so useless.

I love Interviews!!

I'm a firm believer that no one call sell yourself better than yourself.

What chu say?

What I mean is that my resume looks good and all

And, yeah, I made good grades in college BUT...

If you will just interview me for the position, I will WOW you!

I had to have an interview for my internship today.

Many of the other MSW students have been talking about how nervous they were about it.

Not me.

I enjoy meeting new people.

I'm very passionate about my job and also very animated.

The interview went well.

I will be working with the DCS on their program to have more teenagers adopted.

I'll get to carry a badge.

Very official.

I won't start officially until next fall, but hopefully I will be able to make a difference.

I had a major success today. I wish (but not really) that there were other people to witness this success with me. Last summer I bought a pair of dressy capris. They are fabulous for my unairconditioned office in the summer. When I got out my clothes for the summer this past month, I realized that I had a major problem. I didn't fit into any of my clothes. Okay, well that's a lie. I didn't fit into most of the clothes. These capris just layed on the floor. I didn't hang them up because what's the use of hanging up pants, then trying to put them on, and then just having to hang them back up because they don't fit yet. The confession is that I hadn't even tried them on to see if they fit. If my shirts were too tight, then most assuredly my pants would be as well.

I don't know what possessed me this morning. I guess all my coughing, sneezing, and irritability got to my head and I guess I figured that if nothing else was going right then I might as well try on my pants. I was ready to struggle and have that moment. You know the moment. The moment when you actually get them zipped, but you look at yourself and wonder if anyone else will notice that the button is stretched to its limit and your muffin top looks like it is from Perkins.
But that didn't happen to me. I put the pants on and they slid effortlessly over my hips and I didn't even have to grunt and lay down on the bed to put them on. My mouth dropped and I have to admit to you...I teared up a little. It was an emotional moment for me and my pants. These poor beautiful pants have just been kicked around on the floor when I could have been wearing them around. I could be miss negative and think that they probably fit before I started running and doing crunches, but I like to think that this not eating thing because of being sick and all exercise I've been attempting has everything to do with it.

Can I Tell You a Secret?

Can I tell you a secret?

I'm going to anyways. Here it is: Somedays I don't like my job. WHAT???!!? Today is one of those days. I got sick Saturday night. I felt awful, but it was worse on Sunday. I stayed home all day and didn't even get out of my pajamas. I don't know what I have, but I know I don't want to be spreading my cooties all over creation. Sunday night my boss starts to text me. She tells me that she is still at her grandmother's house and she wasn't going to make it to work in the morning, but the directors are supposed to go to another county and pick up some stuff. The boss lady asked me if I would go in her place and asked if I would bring the truck. Here's how the conversation went:

A: Can you do me a favor and go to _____ County to pick up some stuff? You will need a truck.
D: Sure. Where do I need to go?
A: I don't know
D: What am I picking up?
A: I'm not sure
D: What time do I need to be there?
A: Don't know that either
D: Okay

So here I am feeling like crap going to a place where I'm not sure of why,where, what, how, or when. I dressed nice today because you never know who is going to be there.
The next morning here is what I find out:
Why: The directors have been storing (Hoarding!!) some books at a warehouse, but the warehouse has been sold so we had to get our stuff out of there.
Where: A random warehouse in another county down a dirt road. Seriously, you could bury someone in that warehouse and it would be a while before they were found.
How: Bring a truck because you will be loading all this crap in the truck by yourself and be covered in dirt.
When: 9:00am

These folks are HOARDERS!!!! What do people say? If you don't wear something for at least 6 months-get rid of it? Well, apparently our motto is if someone donates crap to you 10 years ago and you haven't used it in 10 years and it needs to me moved, then carry it back to your center and store it there because God KNOWs you can't throw it away!!!! I know that I am whining and venting, but I'm sick and I have a fever. I was in a hot warehouse hauling crap back and forth from the truck. My boss owes me big time!!!

Btw, Andrew graduated!!!!

Plan B

I really enjoy reading books on my Kindle iPhone app. If you know me at all, you know that I judge my purses by whether or not I can carry a book in them. You never know when you will be in a situation, like a long line at the grocery store, waiting on a bench somewhere, or you have to go to the bathroom and I mean NOW! That is why I enjoy my phone because I always have a book on me.

Right now I am reading Plan B by Pete Wilson.

Here's what Amazon.com had to say:

In Plan B pastor and author Pete Wilson uses real life stories of disappointments and hurts along with the biblical stories of men and women like David, Joseph, and Ruth to help readers come to grips with the truth that they will face situations that in themselves they are completely unable to handle but that in them God is simply trying to get them to surrender their plans so that they can receive His. He identifies our common responses to difficulties and offers hope, helping us to
Understand what God might be up to
See how surrender helps us to receive God's plan
Embrace the community of believers
Reconcile a God of love with a life of tragedy and suffering

Pete hit me right on the head for this one. How often do the plans that we have for our life go in a completely opposite direction? I can't help but think of the husband and I during this time. He had big plans. He planned on already be a college graduate and having a great job in a great city. Well, he is just now about to graduate, hates his job with a passion, and we are living in a town that really shows no promise for growth. How do you think that makes my husband feel? Like a loser? Depressed? Like he has no control for his life? I also think of a friend who desperately wants that person who she is going to spend the rest of her life with. What makes it worse for this friend is that she likes to have control. How do you think she feels? Alone? Doubtful?

Direct from book:

"Your dreams may not be happening, and things aren't turning out the way you expected, but that doesn't mean your life is spinning out of control. It just means that you're not in control. It's in those moments you can learn to trust the only one who has ever had control in the first place."

Um...yeah. He got me there. I had to reread that a few times and shake my hand up at God.

Peter Scazzero said," I like control. I like to know where God is going, exactly what He is doing, the exact route of how we are getting there, and exactly when we will arrive. I also like to remind God of His need to behave in ways that fit with my clear ideas of Him. For example, God is just merciful, good, wise, loving. The problem, then, is that God is beyond the grasp of every concept I have of Him. He is utterly incomprehensible."

I can't wait to finish this book. One of my favorite things about this book so far is that Pete (like we are good friends already) is actually using the Bible to make his points. Shocker!! I hate reading books or going to hear speakers and they don't use the Bible. I want to know where you got your information and hear proof, and Pete does that.

Oh yeah. Pete is from Nashville. He's a local and because of that, we need to support him. :)

In My Opinion...

This is just my opinion but I believe that wedding receptions are more fun when alcohol is involved. I have been to my fair share of wedding, but the best ones are where people feel more "free" or "uninhibited" to let lose. I don't know what it is, maybe its that College mentality that never leaves people and they know that once they have that champagne/wine/beer in their hands, that means the Cha Cha slide is all for the taking.

I don't need alcohol to enjoy myself on the dance floor, and I can do a mean Electric Slide or Cupid Shuffle. Have you even been to one of those weddings when they want everyone to dance, but no one wants to start it off? I have been to many MANY of those weddings and there's the awkward moments where there are only 3 or 4 girls on the floor.

But, it seems when the liquor is flowing more people are willing "shake their groove thang" on the dance floor. Unfortunately for myself, I married a man that can cut a rug, but only in the privacy of his own home. I don't think there is anything wrong for me to grab my husband and get down and funky to J Timerlake's Carry Out.

"Number one, I take two number threes That's a whole lotta you and a side of me"

So, Relax dear friends when you are at a wedding or a classy affair that asks you to "Back that thang up." Just have fun and imagine you are gettin' down in your bedroom or in your car driving to Walmart. We shouldn't need alcohol to relax, just take a chill pill!

Sidenote: I'm not in the picture above, but it looks as if they are having a good time though.

Bows

Bows Bows Everywhere and Not a Drop to Drink

Well, not really. But in Hardeman County, Blue bows covered every corner. Here are a few pictures of us "Painting the Town Blue."

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month and the bows are a form of community awareness.

...to the hils of Tennessee

My heart is broken for the families in my beloved home state.

We weren't prepared for this.

Tornadoes, Bring 'em on!

Earthquakes, Well...we've been expecting it

But not Floods...

Someone told me that it has been 500 years since it has flooded this badly.

My Hubby and I drove to our hometown yesterday to see how it was looking.

Luckily I was able to bring my snazzy new camera along for the ride.

Families do not have flood insurance. Why would we have flood insurance? It doesn't flood.

This photo was taken on the corner of Airways Blvd and Hwy 45S in Jackson. New car anyone?

I was looking at photos from The Tennessean this morning.

There was a picture of a man leaving his neighbor's house. The story goes that his neighbors were out of town because they were shopping for furniture for their new home. The couple plan on getting married in June. The neighbor tried to get into the home, left, came back with a key and came out with the Bride's wedding dress.

Families are coming together.

Neighbors are trying to help.

Families that have been the donators are having to be the ones who are accepting the donations. Families who have lived in large homes are having to sleep in shelters next to the homeless and needy.

No one ever thinks that THEY will be the ones who are homeless and needy.

That's always THEM.

Inmates are coming out to help prevent even more flooding. All the help is needed, doesn't matter who you are or what your background is. Just Help.

Historic landmarks like the Grand Ole Opry are flooded.

The places where people were married, got engaged are under 20 ft of water.

The bridge that I crossed every time I went to visit my best friend is flooded.

The streets look like a scene from the movie, but instead of it being filmed in a heated Olympic sized pool, it's for real.

Please pray for these families. Many don't know if they will even be able to get home. Even if their homes weren't destroyed, their neighborhoods might be and how in the world are they going to get to their work?

I'm a little scared

Today is Friday and currently it is 4:55 pm. That means in 5 minutes I will be getting off work. It is currently not raining, even though it is in the forecast for tonight. No excuses today. When I get off work, I'm throwing on my running shoes and hitting the road for Week 3 of my Couch to 5k challenge. I didn't get to start on my run this week as early as I wanted too. I had class Monday and Tuesday night, Wednesday was my birthday, and Thursday I had to help my best friend pack up to move out of her apartment today.

Boy! Thursday was an emotional low for me. I knew that if I could make it past Thursday I would be okay. I have to admit that I had a hard time walking up the stairs to her apartment for the last time. I will refrain from sharing the story about how Steph was wailing so loudly on the stairs that her ghetto neighbor came outside to see what was going on,hahahaha. I have loved loved loved my best friend being so close to me over the past year, but I almost wish that she had originally gotten a job farther away so that this transition wouldn't be so hard. We already said good-bye after college,and that was very difficult. We didn't want to do it again. But as of today, she is out of her apartments and on her way to a new adventure. I will be seeing her in less than a month. Yay!!

Get ready blog readers, because for my birthday I got a DSLR camera. There are about to be some great pictures on my blog. This is really my only outlet (besides Facebook) to put my pictures. I hope that I have the talent that I think that I will have to picture taking. Maybe not enough to be a professional photographer, but hopefully enough for myself to be proud.

You are about to judge me

I pride myself on being very honest. I am the same no matter where I am at and who I am with. I sometimes (a lot of the time) say things that are possibly inappropriate to others, but at least I'm honest.

Here is something that I am dealing with currently.

My husband is kinda-sorta my best friend. I love him dearly and I tell him everything. We discuss everything together and he is ultimately the person I go to, but....

If I really want to have a conversation and get the reaction that I want then I go to my female best friend. That is how it has always been throughout our relationship. When Hubby and I started dating, I was really close to a group of four or five girls. My theory was that they were there before him and they would probably be there after him. (I didn't expect to marry the person I started dating at 16.) Whenever the group would hang out as friends, at the end of the night Andrew would get frustrated at me because while all of the other couples were cuddling on the couch, I would be sitting and talking to my best girl friend who had a long distance relationship. He would end up sitting by himself. My excuse was that I didn't want Heather to feel lonely because her guy wasn't there. That continued all throughout high school, and then we got to college. I lived with my bestie then, so obviously she would hear about everything. I would tell her my crazy stories and complain to her because she would either be in shock or laugh hysterically at my stories, or offer a comforting word. My husband listens very well and might chuckle or offer food for thought, but when it comes to the reaction that I crave-I go to my female friends.

With my female counterpart moving away, I am faced with a scary thought...Andrew is going to have to take the place of Steph with the reactions. Yeah, I will be able to tell her my stories and hear the reaction over the phone or by Skype, but it is just not the same. I want the cackle that resembles a muppet's laugh. When I wanted to do something fun, I would automatically ask the friend before the husband (that's due to his work schedule, not because I didn't want to be with him). This will be an interesting time for me and our marriage. He will be graduating and hopefully getting a job that will put him at home on the weekends and nights. Then he will become my:
Shopping buddy
My Chickasaw paddleboat partner
My listener
And the Person I throw my jokes too!!

Hot Dog!

This blog really doesn't have anything to do with food, but with a bathing suit.

I love bathing suits. I truly do. They have them in so many different colors, shapes, sizes, styles. They aren't like jeans. I do have a difficult time finding swimsuits because of my body size. But TODAY I have ordered one. I will have to update everyone on how this bathing suit works for me but here's a picture.

Obviously, it is me in the picture. It has underwire and everything!!!!! I can take the straps off and I don't have to worry about cleavage and being immodest if I'm swimming in mixed company. Actually, I don't mind swimming with mixed company, it's creepy mixed company that I worry about. I should get it in a week!!

The world would be a better place if...

My thighs didn't rub together.

Seriously, I think I would be a much better Christian, social worker, wife, and/or friend if my thighs didn't touch each other when I walked, ran, breathed.

Hopefully I got a laugh out of that one,hahaha.

I'm still on Week 2 of the Couch to 5k Plan. I'm not disappointed in my progress, but I do wish that I was on Week 3 or 4 already. My past 2 weeks have been crazy though. I'm very proud of myself. My breathing has gotten better. I'm still huffin' and puffin' like I'm about to die, but my rhythm is better.

I read somewhere that if you go into your kitchen and break one dish, are you going to break every single dish that you own? No, You Crazy Pants! Dieting is the same way. Just because you aren't able to exercise like you want to one week, that doesn't mean that you can't do it the next week. So, while on some days I haven't been able to run due to work and classes, I drank only water, have eaten more salads, and done sit-ups. I have to admit that I haven't lost any weight, but my legs are ROCKIN'!!

These aren't really my legs, but I can tell that my calves are stronger and my thighs (while still touching) look better. I noticed this morning that my stomach was flatter too!! My breasticles (boobs) are still gargantuan, but progress is progress, Baby!

I have a plan. I'm going to be visiting my bestie in Baton Rouge at the end of May. I will have to be in a bathing suit during that time (Drat!) but I want her to really be able to notice how much better I'm looking at that time. I'm not planning on losing 30 lbs in one month, but I do want to look like I have made progress.

You have to stay in shape. My Grandmother, she started walking 5 miles a day when she was 60. She's 97 today and we don't know where the hell she is" -- Ellen Degeneres

Never Too Late?

One of the classes that I have been taking this semester is called Policy and Advocacy. Basically the point of this class is to teach you about what is going on in TN with different policies. We were assigned to a group and a topic. My group was assigned Adoption and Foster Care, which I love and really have a heart for. We were supposed to then find out what was going on that either needed to be changed or needed to be implemented. One of my fabulous group leaders found an article about a project that was started in MN and MO that helped older teenagers become adopted. We decided that that was what we were going to do our presentation about. We found all sorts of statistics about how once children reached the age of 14, they pretty much gave up the hope of being adopted. We did our first presentation about how it was important to have programs such as the ones established in MN and MO in TN because they were beneficial.
The 2nd part of our presentation is what my group is working on now. We actually have to go through the steps to make our plans a reality. Our teacher really doesn't expect us to start this great adoption program, which we call Never Too Late, but he does want us to see and find what steps would need to be taken to begin this program.


Wellll.....


One of my group members was talking with a DCS (Department of Children Services) Regional Advisor about his internship for next year. He happened to mention our project in passing to see what she thought about teenagers struggling to becoming adopted. The RA LOOVED our idea and actually requested that I do my internship there as well so that we could actually get this program started in TN. We would be the starters of the program. We would be interviewing teenagers in foster care to see what their thoughts would be and we would even be in charge of getting the grant money. I really wanted to do my internship with Drug and Alcohol rehab services, but this is such a great opportunity for us.

I'm going to email the lady who is in charge of finding internships for me and tell her about this opportunity. I'm still in shock!

Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.1 Timothy 4:12 NIV

Motorcycle Babe

I did it!

I rode on the back of Andrew's motorcycle. I thought that I would like it because I do enjoy a good jet ski ride. I wish I could have taken a picture of my face before we took off. I was excited and scared all at the same time. I have to admit I also squealed when we accelerated. I had a blast!!! I am going to take motorcycle lessons and maybe one day I will have my own motorcycle to enjoy.

By Golly, I Still Like Him!!

With Andrew being on an Educational leave of absence from work, we have had the best time together. It's amazing that after being together almost eight years, that I still like him as a person.

Yeah, I love him and all that, but it is good to be reminded that if I randomly met Andrew on the street, I would still want to get to know him and make him my friend. This might sound weird to some people, but you have to realize that we don't get much time to hang out and be together. If you are married, please don't take for granted having your husband home every night and being able to spend time together on a regular basis. With Andrew and I working opposite schedules, him going to school full time, and I have classes on his 2 nights off we really don't get to have that much quality time together.

Here is what we have done:

Here is our Magnolia tree that sits in the very center of our front yard. I love trees, and I like this one, but it kills any grass or life around it.

We (Andrew) built a retaining wall around our tree and planted hosta and those pretty plants (I can't remember their names) around our tree. There will hopefully be a picture of it later. We filled in the wall with top soil and it looks so good!! The wall and the plants cover up some of the bare areas in our yard, and we also bought grass seed that should grow in shade areas.

Here is our work of art!! The left side of the front of our house has holly bushes. I hate holly bushes, especially these. They are bare in the middle of the bushes and they have sharp leaves. The right side of our house had nothing but clover. We killed the grass and clover, put the weed smotherer material over it, planted our flowers, and then mulched it. And oh yes, that is an edger and a curve you see. They are going to put me on curb appeal. My mom was so proud of us that she has been showing everyone the pictures I sent her. In our new flower beds, we planted Knock-Out Roses, Day Lilies, Azalea bush, something I can't remember at this time, petunias, and we transplanted a rose bush that was at the side of the house to the front. I also have hanging plants on the front of the house too.

We also got a new mailbox and created a flowerbed with petunias and day lilies around it too. I planted zinnias in our flower bed beside the house. I am really excited about the zinnias. They are the only ones that I planted from seeds so hopefully we will see them growing before long.

I met one of our neighbors while we were working on our yard. She told me that she has lived on that street for 32 years and no one had ever tried to make our front yard look good. That meant a lot to me that she noticed right away the work we were doing. The front of our house really does look a lot different now. Hopefully we won't kill anything to quickly, but I do have a plant that i have had since before Andrew and I got married and it is still living. Hopefully that is a testament to my gardening skills!.