Not Me Monday

I decided to do the popular "Not Me Monday" post!
Ok so here goes:

I did not drink too much on Friday night which caused me to have a headache the next morning. I did not stay up until 3:30 a.m. on Saturday morning watching an Animal Planet special on Hippos.
I did not raise my voice at another woman in the parking deck at Brookwood Mall over a parking space (which was 100% our spot fair and square).
I most certainly did not stand on my deck eavesdropping pretending to take Susie out when our next door neighbors were outside in the middle of a heated argument.
I did not drop a huge roll of the ONLY toilet paper in my bathroom stall on the person's foot in the next stall leaving me with nothing. She did not give it back to me.
I did not hit the snooze button 5 times this morning.

On a different note, I am so glad the sun is finally shining! I honestly didn't think I could do another rainy day--oh wait, we're having thunderstorms tomorrow ugh! I swear the weather has a huge impact on my mood. When it rains a lot I feel down and overly sleepy. When the weather is nice and bright I can't help but feel a little cheerier than normal. I am also very happy to announce that our kitchen is going to have a much needed face lift in the next two weeks. We are getting granite countertops put in and a new back splash that has yet to be determined! If anyone has any great places to look in or near Birmingham for some great tile let me know please!

This is what it will look like when we are done...



hahaha-did you believe me?! I wish this is what it will look like! Maybe one day ;-)

Happy Monday to everyone!

Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mom's birthday! I would put her age on here, but I figured I would leave it out. If she's anything like a lot of people I know around her age, she probably has to do the math to figure it out anyway! It's so funny that your birthday gets less significant or "exciting like you can't sleep because the next day is your big day" as you go along. When I mentioned something to my mom about her birthday she just said, "Oh yeh it's my birthday again." I knew she would respond this way because she doesn't like to have any attention on herself....EVER! She is a great mother, and in a lot of ways she deserves to be put in the spotlight for a change. She is a wife most importantly, a wonderful mother to 3, a mother-in-law to 2, and a Mimi or grandmother to 2. She plays a lot of roles in her life, and I'm thankful for this.

So in honor of my mom I will list 25 facts about her that a lot of people probably don't know...

1) She has lived in four states: Minnesota, California, Texas, and Alabama

2) She wears a size 5 or 5 1/2 shoe

3) About 99.9% of the time, my mom has her hair and make-up done perfectly.

4) She discovered her love for rap and hip-hop music a couple years ago. Now it is all over her Ipod and cd player in her car.

5) She loves to watch sports of all kinds. She especially loves basketball when Alabama football is not being played.

6) She was on the popular t.v. show "Hollywood Squares" and won a lot of things including my bedroom furniture that I have had my whole life, a mink coat, a trip to Mexico, a camper, and a lot of other things I can't remember. Whoopi Goldberg was one of the celebrities on the show with her.

7) She has very pretty feet. Someone once asked her to be a foot model!

8) She loves American Idol. She turns the volume on the t.v. way up when the show is on because she gets so into it!

9) Her child other than her obvious 3 children (myself, Brent, and Janelle) is her all black, rescued cat named Scarlett. She talks to her like she is a human.

10) She loves watching old movies. She has a lot of movies in black and white that I have never heard of.

11) She is an extremely hard worker. When she works, she works. She never calls in sick unless she is REALLY sick.

12) She keeps a basket in her car full of goodies-hair brush, candy, make-up, napkins, magazines....she is always prepared-I definitely get this from her! The difference is that her car is neat, and mine is not!

13) She can braid hair very well. She braided mine and my sister's hair a lot growing up!

14) She likes to dance, and she is really good at it too.

15) She is a very trust worthy person. She keeps secrets well, and she rarely speaks badly of people. She has never been one to be known as "a talker or a gossiper."

16) My mom and dad were married when she was 20 and my dad was 19-what babies!!! ;-)

17) She always enjoys a nice afternoon nap. I DEFINITELY got this trait from my mom. Growing up, we used to nap together in the afternoons.

18) She is a great organizer. If anyone ever needed a room, closet, or dresser organized she would do it where everything would have a perfect place, and she would do it in half the time of the average person.

19) She won't admit to this one, but I have to say it anyway-sorry mom!!! She doesn't like to be wrong. If you are debating with her on something, even if she might be wrong, she is so good at convincing you that she is right that you might actually give up on it!

20) She loves Disney movies. She owns almost every classic Disney movie on DVD and now she is collecting them on Blue Ray thanks to Brent!

21) She is not a big shopper. When she shops she usually knows what she wants and gets it!

22) She is very compassionate with my feelings. She hates to see me or any of my brothers and sisters upset.

23) Her handwriting is perfect. I wish I could have gotten this from her.

24) She loves Jack and Clara like they are her own. She is a wonderful grandmother to them. I can't wait to see her with our kids someday.

25) She is ALWAYS there when I need her. I can't even begin to count the number of times during the middle of the night I have needed her, and she has always been there.

I hope your birthday is as great as you are! I love you Mom...

Let happiness pour all over me...

Today is finally FRIDAY!!! I honestly don't think I could have made it to work one more day. Does anyone else have one of those weeks where they feel like they are dragging? I don't know what has been going on, but this week I have been so sluggish. I am itching to go to bed at night and struggling to get out of bed in the mornings. I also find myself soooo sleepy at work, but I think that's normal for most people....at least I hope it is.

One of my blogging friends gave me a sweet award, and I must say that it made my night last night! We found each other through blogs of other people, and if you are looking for a fun blog to read check her out-http://thedraggs.blogspot.com/

This is the award she gave me:











The rules are as follows:

List 7 things that you love and then pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you love. Be sure to tag them and let them know that they have won.

Here are my 7 love things...

1. I love napping-absolutely love it!!!

2. I love my sweet husband that chose to spend the rest of his life with me.

3. I love my chocolate lab Susie. She brings me so much joy (except when she chooses to eat my favorite earrings and pee on the floor and BED) haha

4. I love to find a book that I immediatly fall in love with...one that I love so much I can't wait to get home, cozy on the couch, and read!

5. I love my niece and nephew. They are so precious to me!

6. I love that am I so blessed with two great families!

7. I love that I have the big man in the sky aka God taking care of everything for me! He is awesome!

I will pass this on to some of my favorite blogs:

Lots of Scotts
The Allen Clan
The Morris Family
The Hollinheads
The Ball Family
Adventures of Garrett and Lauren
Full Chroma

On a random note--I noticed today that the Duggar Family off of the TLC show is expecting AGAIN. I don't want to judge, but SERIOUSLY????????? I think the situation is getting out of hand. I'm worried about these kids...it's just not natural! The woman needs a break....or should I say her poor body! Am I the only one that thinks this?!

Disclaimer-I think that is what it said. I read it somewhere, but I didn't see it anywhere else, but I just thought I would throw out the thought anyway.

Thursday Ramblings

I have had so many thoughts going through my mind today so I thought I would put them on my blog...

*I was listening to the latest Church of the Highlands sermon on "The Last Seven Days." In this sermon he discussed what he called "Passion Blockers." One of these "blockers" was focusing on outward appearance. When he said this, I immediately went "eeek, I do this so much!" I can't tell you how many times I worry about the way I look. I worry about my hair, if my make-up looks well kept, if my clothes are in style, if my jewelry matches, etc. I know that we are all humans and it is only natural to worry about our outward appearance, but it shouldn't be our main focus. When I get up in the morning, I shouldn't worry about what people might think of my outfit or making sure my purse matches my clothes. I should focus on being a better person. I should try to make a plan on how I can do better during the day...better in my job, better in my marriage, better in my friendships, and most importantly my relationship with God. He doesn't care if we wear old jeans and a t-shirt as long as our hearts are the main appearance we are focusing on.

*The weather is beautiful outside! I'm so glad that I have a window so I can look out during the day. It's days like today when I am itching to be outside! I would love nothing more than to be on a walk right now, soaking in some wonderful sunshine!

*I'm getting my haircut today, and I am so excited! I don't know what it is about hair cuts, but I just love them! I always leave feeling refreshed.

*March Madness is upon us, and I am nervous. For the past 3 years I have won our family tournament. My name sits on the big trophy for 3 years running....I think I lost one of my games today-dang!!!

*I'm going to eat dinner with some friends that I haven't gotten to see in a while...this makes me happy!

I hope ya'll have a wonderful Thursday!!!

Doggy Diaries

(Please note that this picture is from a year ago...she is a big girl now. I just don't have any updated pictures with me right now to post)

I can honestly say that Susie is exhausting me! Please don't get me wrong because I love her like my own child, but she has really been testing me lately. I guess she is going through her last puppy moments...well let's hope so. The past week and a half I have been going nuts with her crazy behavior. It started out with her smelling horrific. She smelled so bad that I couldn't sleep. The next afternoon when I came home from work I immediately washed her on the deck by myself-BIG MISTAKE. After I bragged about how good she is when I bathe her, etc. she does the complete opposite! I was 90% done bathing her, shampoo still running down her back, and she looks at me and takes off. As I am screaming at her she rolls into a mud pile. I literally lost it! I wasn't feeling that well that day, and all I wanted to do was bathe her and be done with it. I had to completely re bathe her.

Incident #2: I decide that she needs a new toy. I spent 10 minutes in the pet aisle looking for a great toy that she would enjoy and not chew up within 5 minutes. The tag said "Chew Proof," so I figured it would last a little longer than the others. Wrong! Within 2 days I couldn't find the toy, and I couldn't find her one afternoon. I walked around the corner in our house to find a room full of red plastic pieces. Of course the vacuum would have broken if I tried to use it, so I spent 10 minutes picking up little pieces.

Incident #3: Dedee bought her a soft dog bed that is very versatile. We had been using it as a bed on the floor in our bedroom. She never once tried to chew it up, and she had it for a couple months. Hunter had a good, trusting idea of letting Susie have it in her kennel during the day. I hesitated, but I kept reminding myself that she has never attempted ruining it so why would she start now? WRONG AGAIN...I came home to a room filled with what looked like big snow balls. It ended with me throwing her dog bed away.

Incident #4: I came home from work one afternoon, and I immediately smelled something awful. I thought it had to be the trash, but after checking it I knew it was Susie. Sure enough she had thrown up all of her food from that morning. It was all over her kennel, on the outside of the kennel, etc. you get the picture. I spent that afternoon cleaning Susie, washing her kennel, washing her babies aka blankets.

Incident #5: This was the worst one of all---I was taking a snooze on the couch, and my earrings were hurting me for some reason. I decided to take my earrings off and lay them in the middle of the coffee table because I didn't want to take a chance of laying them to close for Susie's wandering eyes. Later that day I was getting ready to go out to eat with Hunter and some friends, and Hunter came in asking me what this was(pointing to my BUTTON PEARL earring). I completely flipped! I had enough at this point!!! She had taken one earring off of the table, chewed and scratched it, and tore the back off of it. At first I was more mad, but then I lost it. I cried for a good bit. It makes me so sad because those earrings were very special to me. My parents bought those for me for Christmas 2 years ago, and I wear them almost everyday. I am still not over it.

And finally incident #6: I had to take Susie to the vet yesterday because her ears have been bothering her, she has been shaking her head, scratching her ears, and biting her paws. I figured she had developed an allergy or had an ear infection. It turns out she has developed allergies. The vet put her on some steroid pills, and he warned me that it could make her very thirsty and more hungry. I noticed she was drinking a lot more water so I made an effort to make sure she was taken outside to avoid accidents. Before I went to bed I asked Hunter to take her outside, but he didn't. I woke up around 1:00 to the sound of Susie peeing all over our bedroom floor! She completely ruined one of our new rugs. She made such a mess! So from 1:00-2:00 am I spent cleaning the floors, cleaning Susie, washing our bedspread that had fallen on the floor during the night, taking her outside, etc. I was not a happy person!


I love Susie so much so I know this is what comes with the territory of owning a dog. Sometimes they mess up, but their unconditional love makes up for it....usually ;-) Please pray that for the next couple of days she is accident free. I need a break!!!

Happy Birthday to Clara!!!

        

I know this post is late...shame on me! This doesn't mean I don't love my precious niece, Clara, I've just been busy.  Well Clara turned one. I can't believe it! I feel like it was just yesterday when Janelle and Gavin headed to St. Vincents to deliver their precious baby girl.  In fact, every time I hear a certain song by George Strait I get teary eyed because it reminds me of Clara.  The song, "I Saw God Today" by George Strait came out around the time Clara was born.  I'll always have a special place in my heart for that song because of her.  I remember Gavin saying he played it for them on the way to the hospital, and I nearly cried then too! If you would like to hear this special song follow this link...http://countrymusic.about.com/od/audiovideo/a/ISawGodToday.htm

Every niece and nephew is special in different ways.  Jack is special in that he is my little "frog." I fell in love from the moment I laid my eyes on him.  He was also the first born in the family so he was special in that way.  Clara is special because she is our little girly girl in the family.  She definitely takes after her mommy! I can already see the future shopping trips now-Gavin watch out! ;-) Clara is such a sweet baby.  She loves to coo, loves to observe, and she loves seeing her family.  She has developed the cutest faces lately! I love when I walk in to a room and smile at her because she smiles so big that her cheeks get squished and her mouth is huge! One of my favorite things to do with her is put her to bed. I always tell her how much I love her, and she is such a miracle baby! I don't know if a lot of people know about this, but when Janelle went for her visit to find the gender, they found a slight abnormality on her ultrasound.  The doctor saw something on the umbilical cord that looked concerning so they had them to a special ultrasound at UAB.  I knew in my heart that everything was going to be ok, and that Clara would be a perfect baby, but no matter what it is natural to be scared.  Thankfully God had everything under his control, and on February 26th of 2008 Clara Rae Ball was born 100% healthy.  Hunter and I are so very lucky to have the love of Jack and Clara.  We know we aren't ready for kids, but having them in our lives makes us better people.  

Here are some pictures from Clara's party! Janelle's mother-in-law, Cassie, water colored the most precious invitations.  It was a ballerina themed party that was "tutu" cute! 

    

  

   

It's not that cute...

Another game...I know, I know I do this a lot, but I like them!

List 10 "Not so cute things about yourself"

1) I pop my knuckles once or twice a day. It used to drive my mom crazy, but now that I don't live at home anymore she doesn't have to hear it!

2) As much as I would like to keep my car clean, I fail miserably. Hunter washed and vacuumed my car over the weekend. The inside is already messy!

3) I leave opened drinks around the house. I will open a new drink, take two sips, and then set it down and forget about it.

4) I can stick my shoulder blades out really far. It feels so good to do it because it stretches my back muscles, but it does freak people out if they aren't expecting it!

5) I rarely make our bed. In fact, I rarely made my bed growing up. My mom always made it for me...I know, I know I sound spoiled, but in my defense my mom would make it before I would even have the chance. She always liked everything to look perfect!

6) I will sometimes leave dirty clothes lying on the ground in our bedroom for a day or two before I put them in the dirty clothes.

7) I don't floss every day or even every week. I really need to start because I go to the dentist in a month or so!

8) I have been wearing my hair in a pony tail almost everyday because I have been too lazy to get up an extra 15 minutes to style my hair. It's so easy to just throw it back, but I know my hair would look so much better if I took the time!

9) My desk at work is almost always unorganized. I really do try to keep it that way, but it doesn't last long! I have papers stashed all over my desk. It would drive my dad nuts!!! Dad if you're reading this, I promise I will work on this for you! ;-)

10) From wearing high heels to work almost everyday, the bottom of my feet can get rough. I hate this! I used to not have this problem, and I don't like it! Thanks to my sweet mother-in-law, Dedee, I got a pedicure this weekend to solve this problem!

I hope these things weren't too "not so cute." Maybe you'll still love me anyway ;-)
I tag all my blogging friends who love these as much as I do! I hope to see some because I love learning more about my friends!

Hop, Hop into Easter

I know Easter is a month away, but I'm so excited about it! It makes me so happy because in my mind, it marks the beginning of spring and new life. New Years doesn't do much for me (as I have already said before) so spring is the best time of year to me. It is my form of New Years. I love seeing new plants, happy colors, warmer weather, etc. With everything becoming so beautiful again, it is a constant reminder to me of the true meaning of Easter beyond the eggs, baskets, and food. It marks the day of Jesus' rebirth. A day to remind everyone that Jesus is always here no matter what. Whenever I feel down or alone, I sometimes forget that I'm never alone. It is such a simple statement, but it is very true. You can be stranded on the side of the road, but God is with you always. It brings me so much peace to remind myself of this.

Along with the great meaning of Easter, is the adorable decorations! I keep getting e-mails from Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma with adorable Easter decorations! I can barely stand it! If I had lots of money, I would probably buy a lot of decorations for our house. Here are some of my favorite things I have seen:

I love these precious little nests. It would be so cute for a little boy's baby shower too!

This tree is so cute! My mom still puts her Easter Egg Tree out every year...it makes me smile!

I am stealing this idea for my kitchen table!

I think this table is gorgeous!

The "M" Game

I found this fun question game-oh how I love these things! I thing I love the most is reading other people's responses...I feel like I always learn something new!

Copy to your own post, erase my answers, enter yours, and tag some people. use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. they have to be real . . . nothing made up! if the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. you cannot use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/girl name question. have fun!

1. What is your name: melissa
2. A four Letter Word: mock
3. A boy's Name: matthew

4. A girl's Name: mary
5. An occupation: musician
6. A color: mauve
7. Something you wear: mask

8. A nice scent: mint

9. A food: mango
10. Something found in the bathroom: magazines-haha
11. A place: Maui, Hawaii
12. A reason for being late: money troubles

13. Something you shout: "make it"--during a sports event
14. A movie title: madagascar
15. Something you drink: mojito
16. A musical group: maroon five
17. An animal: monkey
18. A street name: marigold street
19. A type of car: mercedes benz
20. The title of a song: "move along"

i tag anyone that may need a fun distraction!!!

Two Special People

             

Today is a special day for two very special people in my life-my precious niece Clara, and my grandmother (cookie).  How cool is that to have their birthdays on the same day?! It's so special, and I know it was in God's plan.  Tonight we celebrated Clara's birthday at Habeneros, which is our local favorite, and after dinner we headed over to Janelle and Gavin's house to watch Clara eat her first cupcake.  I don't have any pictures to post because I took them on Janelle's camera, but I will post some on Saturday when I post about her big party!!! It is so weird that Clara is 1 already! It feels like yesterday when Janelle and Gavin got up really early to deliver their precious baby girl.  She is so adorable and so lovable! I can't wait to be able to take her on shopping trips ;-)

Lent made me do it!!!

I have been trying hard to decide on what to give up for Lent this year. Every year I try to make it something hard for me...something I really enjoy. If you know me very well you already know the answer-SWEETS. Ouch is all I can say. I started today and so far I have made it until 3:45-good right?! haha I am really going to need some encouragement for this one. Isn't that sad? Giving something up to show your love and dedication to God should be so easy, and it shouldn't be that hard considering all of the hard things he has done for us. What are you giving up for Lent?!

Meet Mr. Echols

I agree with Elise, let's focus on someone else-our husbands! Here is a list of 25 random facts about my husband, Hunter...
1) He loves Alabama football...literally loves it. When home he is constantly connected to some sports website or tv channel so he doesn't miss anything! He lives on Bama Online.
2) Hunter loves dogs. He especially loves our dog Susie. He calls her "his baby"!!
3) He will eat pretty much anything you put in front of him with the exception of olives and coconut.
4) This is something I hate to admit because I should be the one that says this about myself, but Hunter is great at tying pretty bows, folding our decorative towels, and tying my scarves. He will probably kill me for telling the blog world this, but I think it's cute. He's such a manly man, but he still has a soft side. If we have a girl someday, I will be saying "Go see your daddy for that. I can't do bows!" haha Maybe he can teach me!
5) He watches HGTV second to ESPN. He loves to watch "Spice Up My Kitchen" and other shows that highlight home improvement.
6) One thing Hunter has always wanted to do is to attend the whole week of Braves Spring Training in Orlando.
7) He played tennis in middle school and high school, and he did really well at it. Sometimes I think he could have done more with it.
8) He has really good looking legs...very muscular
9) His dream truck is an F250-diesel, 4wd (I think I said that right)
10) His dream vacation would be to go to Bora Bora.
11) He is really good at doing funny voices.
12) His favorite color is Hunter Green-go figure!
13) He has driven 4 or 5 cars since he was 16...I like to tease him and call him "spoiled"
14) He is really great with babies. He was one of the few that could comfort Clara when she cried in her early months of life.
15) He loves to exercise.
16) He does 90% of the dishes at home
17) He is a night owl. If he could I think he would stay up all night.
18) He loves being at his family's lake house. He would want us to live there if we could.
19) He truly loves his job. He doesn't ever complain about going to work!
20) He is very dependable. If I or any of his friends/family ever need him he is always there to help.
21) His biggest pet peeve is slow traffic or stopped traffic. He gets very impatient.
22) One of his top favorite books is "Marley & Me" He read it on our honeymoon and cried.
23) He likes to go test drive cars on lazy Saturdays just for fun!
24) He is very low maintenance and "always goes with the flow"
25) His two favorite foods are sushi and crab cakes-yuk!!!

Spring Chick

I am such a spring chick! I have been loving this warm weather!!! Here are a few obsessions I have found online....look how pretty and how "springy" they are! The prices aren't that bad for J. Crew either! ;-) Maybe some little birdy will buy me something for Easter?! jk

PS.

Is anyone else ready for spring?!

Susie has a new "do"

Well not really a new do, but a new smell! Hunter and I have been putting things off lately around the house....putting up new shelves, putting new light fixtures up, touch-up paint, etc...We have also been doing this with bathing Susie because it has been so cold outside! I bathed her in our bathroom in December because it was too cold outside to use the hose. BIG MISTAKE-from someone who HATES hair flying around and clumped in our house I freaked out! I probably spent 1 hour cleaning, moping, sanitizing our bathroom making sure every inch of her hair was gone. I made a promise to myself that I would never do that again! With this wonderful spring weather we have been having, I decided she needed a bath. She started to develop a smelly dog scent that I didn't like so much so Hunter finally gave in and helped me bath her on the deck. I have to brag on her-she is so good to bath! She sits still, doesn't bark, and doesn't shake water anywhere. I am beginning to think she enjoys her bath time more than normal. After we bathed her, I told Hunter to hold her so I could get the hair dryer. If you could have seen his face! haha He looked at me like I was crazy and told me she wouldn't like it. He didn't know her love of the hairdryer because he was not there with our last bath time. Susie loves to be pampered! She sat in our side den where I don't care about the carpet getting covered in dog hair, and she let me blow dry her hair for 30 minutes!!! She would tilt her head back and close her eyes like humans do on commercials! She is so cute!!! Here are some pictures from her pampering!

A little sunrise to start my day

My alarm went off this morning, and the first thing that came to my head was "No....I don't want to get out of bed!!!" The room was cold and dark, our bed was sooooo cozy too. I slowly lifted my head to see Susie snuggled in the middle of Hunter and I's legs. I did NOT want to go to work. I usually don't have such a problem getting up the in the mornings, but today I felt like I was dragging myself out of bed. I was even trying to think of excuses to go lay back in the bed with my sweet hubby and Susie. When I got out of the shower, I was still dragging around the house until I saw something in our backyard. Out of the 6 months Hunter and I have been married, I have never noticed a sunrise in our backyard. I don't know if it's because I usually don't look outside that early in the morning, but either way it was beautiful! I took it as a sign from God...he was trying to give me a little "sunshine" for my Monday!

(This is the picture I took this morning...so pretty!!!)

Blog stalking and not afraid to admit it

The title of my post today is the honest truth of where I have been hiding the past week.  I can't believe it's been a week since my last post!!! I'm sorry for being so astray.  I can't say that I haven't had time because I have...I've just been busy blog stalking.  I have found one blog that I love to read.  This particular woman is an amazing woman of God.  I have read almost all of her blogs in the past week or so, and every time I am done reading them I think how much I would like to be like her.  Not in a jealous "I want her clothes, her car, etc..." kind of way, but "I want to be seen as a woman of God" kind of way.  Obviously I am a Christian and I always try to do and say the right things, but I am human.  I sin a lot, say things that I know weren't nice, think bad thoughts when I know I shouldn't, etc.  This year my biggest "resolution" oh I hate that word because I don't like New Years, but my new promise was to become closer to God and strong in my faith.  I go through days when I feel down, sad, wanting more, wishing for a vision for my life and when I stop to think about these things, it is as if God is trying to get my attention.  I imagine God listening to my thoughts and needs.  He's in heaven trying to get me to see what's missing-HIM. Don't get me completely wrong because I do pray and try to focus on his word, but I have continued to fail so far.  

One thing I have been doing is listening to weekly messages from Church of the Highlands.  My sweet friend who I get the pleasure to work with and be my friend is constantly encouraging me, praying for me, listening to me, etc. is like my cheerleader.  She is the one who introduced me to Pastor Chris, and it has the been one of the best gifts I have ever been given.  Every time I listen to his word I walk away feeling full of faith.  I receive such a spiritual lift that is almost indescribable.  This month he has been talking about moving "From Here to There."  The funny part about this series is that this is EXACTLY what my husband and I need at this time in my life.  Another example of how I know God is trying to point things out to me is through Pastor Chris' messages.  Every week there is something heavy on my heart, and so far it has been exactly what Church of the Highlands is discussing.  The verse of the series is "Where there is no vision, the people perish." Wow is all I can say.  It is so true...I have been wanting certain things in my life and internalizing certain things, but I haven't stop to think about my vision or our vision as a young, married couple.  Where do I need to be to be a great, spiritual wife? What do I need to do at my job to make things happen for the better?  What should Hunter and I focus on when it comes to finances, especially in the economic crisis?  So many questions, but I have faith that through God and developing a closer relationship with him, I will be able to answer these questions.  I pray that everyone reading this will try to develop a closer relationship to God because I don't think you can ever get too close to him ;-)

PS. 

If you are interested in listening to his sermons, please click here.

Spring vaca in the mountains!!!

I have been meaning to post this for a while and today seemed like the perfect day to do it because I soooo badly wish I was on vacation. I am so pumped Dedee and Stuart, they are my in-laws in case everyone doesn't know, are taking Hunter and I on a spring trip to two places I have had on my list to visit for quite a while. The first place we are going is Highlands, North Carolina! My friend/coworker has a house in the Highlands and has been talking about how beautiful the town is. My sister also went on a trip last year, and she came home saying it was one of the most peaceful and beautiful places she has ever been. Bring on the peacefulness please! The second place we are visiting is the Biltmore Estate. This place looks amazing! I have recently acquired a taste for wine so that will come in handy for the winery tour! I am so excited, and I am soooo ready for spring! Is that bad that I already wish it were spring? I hate to rush my life away or however people say it, but I just don't like this time of year. Everything is slow, everyone seems to have a cold that never wants to go away, all the plants and trees look pitiful, and it is so cold (except for today of course-YAY)!!! I will definitely blog in March after we go on our vacation with lots of pictures!

Baby Talk

I am so excited to announce that one of my best friends is pregnant!!!!! I have been waiting for this day to come for one of my friends to have a baby, and I am so excited for Candace and Brad. They are going to have the most beautiful baby in the world! It's so weird when you just know something...yesterday Candace called me in the morning, and I didn't have time to answer because I was running around the house trying to get ready to go out to shop with my mother-in-law and her best friend Katie. I saw that I had a text from her saying I needed to call her asap. Right then I knew it! I knew she was preggers or at least I hope that's what it was! We played a little phone tag, but I finally got in touch with her while I was waiting in line at Panera. The poor lady waiting to take my order probably wanted to yell at me because I screamed in excitement and started crying because I was so happy for her! It's even more funny because the same story happened when she told me she was engaged (except we were in person), but I still screamed loud enough for everyone in the parking lot at the mall to stare at us! I can't wait to be "Aunt Mel" and see the blessings that are coming into their life! Yay!!!

Signs

Everyday I pass by a church in my neighborhood that is so small and tucked back in the corner of a parking lot. I don't think I would have ever noticed it, if the big sign wasn't displayed on the main road. Every day I slow down and check the sign to see what the message is. Sometimes the message remains the same for about a week, and others it changes every couple days. My mind is always heavy when I pass by the church. Every time I pass by, I am usually worrying about something, stressed, anxious, excited, nervous, etc. you name it, and the sign never lets me down. I was driving home from work the other day when I was feeling a little down. I was not happy with something that happened at work, and I was holding on to it when I should have just let it go. I saw the sign, and the sign told me exactly what I needed to do: "Be nice, and nice will come back to you." It's such a simple phrase, but means so much. It's so easy to be mean back or to act ugly when someone is not treating you like you should be treated, but to be nice anyway is so important. You never know what someone is going through behind closed doors or what someone is struggling with that day. I have really been trying to act on this phrase, and although I may slip up, I am always reminded when I drive by the church.

Wii Fit...whatever

This past weekend was amazing having three days off instead of two.  I really enjoyed having extra time to rest, play and visit with friends.  Speaking of friends, I met my sweet friend Louise for lunch on Saturday.  I missed her so much! It's sad when you live in the same city and rarely get to see your friends because our "grown-up" lives are too busy! After lunch Louise said, "Why don't we go to my mom's house and play Wii Fit?" I was like sure why not...how hard could Wii Fit possibly be? It's just a game.  I continued to think this the whole time she was playing, even though it did look kinda hard.  When it was my turn she said in order to track me every time I played, I would need Wii to create a profile for me.  I still thought ok what the heck go ahead.  Little did I know what I was in for.  According to Louise this scale looking thing was going to scan my body and tell me my BMI, my posture, balance, how much weight I should lose, give me exercises, and my own personal trainer! At this point I wanted to jump off the dang thing.  I was in awe of what a little game as I thought before could tell me what I need to be doing with my diet and exercise. 

When setting up my profile I got to make my character look just like me. That part was fun! I gave it blonde hair, green eyes, long eyelashes, a cute purple top (Louise said "Of course when I chose it!") and black work out pants.  As soon as I thought we were done with the profile it started making a noise and my BMI popped right on the screen.  I screamed and looked around as if people were staring at it.  It was quite funny if you were there! I was like get that dang thing off the screen.  I declined wanting to know my weight.  The worst part of all  is when it was done "scanning" or whatever that means, it said announcing my body age-44.  I nearly had a heart attack! Not only did it say my Wii Fit age was 44, it made my cute little figure on my profile go from having a tiny waist and skinny legs to a doughnut version! Good thing I have some self confidence because if I hadn't I would have kicked that dang thing across the room, and then found myself standing in line at Target buying Louise's mom another Wii.  Other than the initial shock of this little machine, it was a lot of fun to play.  I got to do some Yoga, attempt to snow ski, aerobics, and my favorite calorie busting of all-hula hoop! I must say its fun to do with a friend because you look so dang silly while you're playing.  At one point during the hula hoop, I looked at my reflection in the windows of her mom's house and nearly fell off laughing at how silly I looked desperately trying to do 300 hulas as fast as I could! Let's just say I got my 30 minute work out with the Wii, and I'm not embarrassed to say it kicked my butt!