Lovecakes

We've been busy...

2009-07-16T09:21:00.000-07:00

We moved back to Dallas...
We are on the Village staff at the Dallas campus...
Zipporah eats all her fruits and veggies and takes naps..
Once we are settled in I hope to blog more...

Enjoy Z eating and being cute with her hair all over her head:)

She will be 8 months Saturday!!!

That's all:)

Because Summer Called My Bluff and Tagged Me

2009-05-30T12:50:00.000-07:00

Summer tagged me so I had to answer this or I would go to hell or something.

Eight things I look forward to:
1. Meeting Jesus face to face!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Come quickly!)
2. Going to get Zipporah out of her crib in the mornings and putting her in the bed next to Adam and watching her snuggle up to him.
3. Moving back to Dallas and eating at all the restaurants that Memphis didnt have.
4. IC!
5. Old friends...although I KNOW I am going to shed tears for the new ones...
6. Singing and writing more
7. Ice cream
8. Coming back to Memphis to visit

Eight things I did yesterday:
1. Hung out in my robe for hours!!
2. Hung with Vanja
3. Went to the Dont Waste Your Life concert in Memphis
4. Ate Pei Wei
5. Got to see alot of people I really like at the concert
6. Danced in the highest heels ever for 2 hours straight while holding Z most of the time. (Whew)
7. Watched a pretty awfully cheesy movie
8. Messed with my husband when he was trying to go to sleep:) I LOVE DOING THAT!

Eight things I wish I could do:
1. Sing for a living
2. Always think before I speak
3. Eat multiple flavors of ice cream daily with out dying from it
4. Be able to do hair and makeup well
5. Abolish sex trafficking and get all the women and young girls back to their families
6. Play piano and guitar
7. Have a supernatural power to zap food to starving people
8. dance (modern, jazz, ballet etc.) really well

Eight shows I watch:
1.
We dont have a TV but if I can then I like to catch American Idol or awards shows which normally ALWAYS disappoint, but I still eagerly await them.

I tag Lauren W

Sorry...sort of...

2009-04-05T17:20:00.000-07:00

To say that I need to update my blog would be an understatement. We were having tons of inappropriate fun together talking about Jheri curls and bathroom humor and I had to go and have a baby. THEN the only thing people were interested in were pictures of Zipporah and I crumbled under the pressure.

I never take pictures so that makes it hard and most days instead of blogging I prefer to stare off into space until I realize hours have gone by, eat whole boxes of cereal and chocolate covered granola bars (Sorry Heather, I will change) and stare at my baby until she does something so cute that everyone should see, yet I know I wont document.

So, if you even sort of missed me then I apologize. However, I cant say with certainty that I am "back." I have actually been going through a mini "techno crisis" lately. I have a myspace...I never check it or respond to people...I have a blog...you see how well I have been doing with that lately and I now have a Facebook since Summer forced my hand (although she rarely sends me messages, BUT she did come into town to see me this weekend so I cant complain) but I sort of want to do away with them all because I cant keep up!! But then how will I know when Ray Ray from the 5th grade gets married or when the perfect girl from high school gets fat? (Come on people, be honest with yourselves)

I also blog so infrequently that I become long winded and as my friend Chris Chavez basically told me that reading my blog at times is the decision between reading to the end or having a good 30 minute quiet time...

So...I wont update about our fantastic trip to Savannah or every cute thing Z is doing or how great the Rising was or how wonderful it was to write a song with Jourdan or have her come into town twice or having Summer here, or having dinner with the Bleeckers in Memphis or about my goal to lose 10 pounds as I watch Rick and Heather disappear before my eyes...I cant do any of that because it would just be too much. And I cant upload all of the pictures from those events because 1. unless there is something that I don't know about, adding photos to blogger is TIME CONSUMING and 2. I didn't take any...

BUT Lauren Buck did get a few from our time in Savannah last month, so I can leave you with those...

Z unsure about the camera

Z realizing she loves the camera

Z thrilled to see Uncle (Brian) Buck

Classic photo of the over smiling mom attempting to get her child to smile...didn't really work

Both of us giving up on the smile

Lauren, me and Z.

Nothing great about this, just think Adam is looking tall, muscular and fine...

Thanks for taking the pictures Lauren!

Til Later,

Zipporah Pics

2009-01-22T15:49:00.001-08:00

If you want to see some cute pics of Z, go to www.lindseysheaphotography.blogspot.com
Lindsey is a good friend and even better photographer. Thanks Lindsey for the pictures!!

Howdy

2009-01-05T16:39:00.000-08:00

I need to fix my blog...its pretty whack right now. I can't figure out how to make my header fit my template and don't really have the time to figure it out. PLUS whenever I switch templates it erases my friends list and I cant remember peoples blog addresses, so I get way behind. Blah, blah, blah. Everything is good with us. We had a laid back Christmas. NO GUESTS! NO GOING OUT OF TOWN! At first I thought I wouldn't like that, but it was really great and relaxing. Having a new baby is so full time that any break is good. I don't talk on the phone much or go many places lately and its good. I am sure I will be back in the real world eventually. So if I haven't talked to you or seen you and you're offended...stop. But I am pretty blessed not to have people in my life that get offended like that, so...never mind! I don't have much to say, but look at how Z is growing into a little girl! These were taken with Adam's cell phone so that's why her eyes look funny and they are a bit blurry, but we tried. She's 6 weeks in these pictures and will be 7 weeks tomorrow. Its flying by for us!

We were waiting in the hospital for them to see Zipporah, so that's why she has on a wristband, she isn't trying to be cool:) (Long story on the hospital, no problems FYI)

I think that's all I got! But we may be getting a new computer soon and if we do I will have more opportunities to blog and hopefully keep peeps updated, although I think something is already wrong with our new camera, so we'll see!

Til Later,

An Update in Pictures

2008-12-21T15:52:00.000-08:00

Some pictures I like of Z from her first 4 1/2 weeks of life...

Z chillin'...no we did not pose her like this or lace her fingers together...all Miss Priss' doing.

Adam and Z talking some things over

Friends (she always sleeps with her little hand like that)

Kirk and Zip

Shannon knit Z and Irene matching hats

Its unclear whether she liked it or not (poor Z...she is only like 4 days old:) (are those my hands or what?)

Auntie Angie and Z

Our Memphis Thanksgiving

Our little family

Z doing some serious thinking in the hospital

Daddy and Daughter

Zipporah has the biggest eyes and when you take pictures they get even bigger...we call this "Zipporah sees the devil"

"Zipporah modeling"

Adam and I at the Reach Christmas party...we never take pics together...

Me taking pictures of Shannon taking pictures of Z in a gift box...I will post the pictures she took later, but for now I better go feed and bathe little Z. I am sure I wont blog before Christmas, so I hope its a good one for you all!

Til Later,

The Birth Story, Part 2 (Long, but surely interesting...)

2008-12-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

So, we walk into the hospital and make our way upstairs to the labor and delivery area. It still feels surreal, like they aren't going to let us stay and that I will have to carry Z for 9 more months. We get there and they take me back fairly quickly. Being in labor is pretty intense especially when people are asking you questions like "Whats your address?" "How tall are you?" "What did you weigh pre-pregnancy?" Its like, "What does it matter what I weighed then? I am fat and in pain now, so just let me lay down!" You kind of just want to go Incredible Hulk on them and start smashing things until they just submit you to a room and stop asking questions. But you gather yourself and press on.

I must say though, I definitely prayed throughout pregnancy that if I were to make it through a natural delivery that I would want to be dignified. Someone left a comment on my blog when I was talking about wanting to go natural and she talked about how she acted a fool the whole time. I thought it was hilarious and then I thought "Oh, Lord please let me keep my cool." Because, that's OK, for someone else, but I have no medium button, just calm or full out crazy. I didn't want to embarrass myself, my husband, my baby or cuss anyone out. Not very becoming. I will say in advance that He was very faithful.

So they take me back to triage and make Adam wait in the lobby. I get into that confusing hospital gown and all of the questions about height, weight and what I want on my tombstone begin. I was having awful contractions. It was around 6:15pm or so and the contractions were still every couple of minutes. After all the paperwork the nurse tells me that she is about to check my cervix and I start thinking of a number in my head that would be pleasing to me. Well, before I pick one, she tells me that I am dilated to 1 and 1/2 centimeters. I almost start crying. I ask her if she's kidding, she says she isn't. She tells me that she will allow me to stay about an hour and check me at that point to see if I can stay. Can stay?? I had no clue what I would do if they sent me home. Being in pain is all the same, but having to get dressed and drive back home and then do it all over again if I became further along just sounded so awful. But I said "OK" and she said she would go get my husband...35-40 minutes later she returns to check on the beeping monitor for Z's heart rate that they had painfully strapped to my stomach (someone please invent another method for the two monitors they strap on you when you are trying to labor but those things don't give you freedom to move freely and they are tied so tightly that they hurt!) and still no Adam. I said "Mam, where is my husband? I am in alot of pain and need him." She says, "Oh, I told the people up front...they must have forgot."

5 minutes later my very sad/angry looking husband shows up. He was so upset that they forgot about him. An hour and some change had passed since I'd left him and he had no clue what was going on. The ladies at the front desk were laughing and chilling and when they finally realized "Oh, yeah you could have gone back there awhile ago!" Adam says very sternly, "I know this is old hat to you guys, but this is my first child and I would appreciate it if you would treat it that way." They sincerely apologized. Intense.

So, he gets back there and I tell him how many centimeters I am dilated to and he knows I am defeated and that the lady is coming back at 8:00 to decide if I go home. So he starts praying aloud for God to work a miracle and literally open my cervix to a 3. He sent text messages to friends and asked them to pray as well. It was such an intense time, but Adam labored with me like a champ. Though we hadn't practiced ANYTHING, he started helping me breathe when the hard contractions kicked in, rub my back, got me the trash can while I threw up several times, it was crazy, but he was such a help, not sure I could have made it. THEN IT HAPPENED:) I started throwing up that awful Popsicle when SPLAT! something came out of me...I said, "Adam, something just happened! I might have gone to the bathroom!" He looked at me and said, "Um, I am going to go get help."

Funny side note...Adam is afraid of all things "bathroom." His biggest fear is that he would see me "go" on the delivery bed. And when that "splat" happened he was sure that I had "gone" (the long kind) on the bed.

So in Memphis fashion it was past 8:00 and no nurse had shown back up like they said they would so he just grabbed any nurse out of the hallway. In a full circle God moment, in this huge over staffed hospital the nurse he randomly grabbed was the same nurse that took care of me last September when Adam was in China and I miscarried our first child. It was a sweet moment, that I couldn't focus on because of the drama of whether or not I had pooped on the table. :) But in my heart I knew God had done that on purpose. But she came in and gave us full attention and told me that my water had broken and that I would definitely be staying. The reason it looked so funny was because Z was in a bit of distress and had a bowel movement and it came out when my water broke. Adam was relieved, although we weren't happy Z was in distress.

We were thankful the Lord had come through again. (as always) I was staying and our long awaited pumpkin head would be there at some point:) Then she checked my cervix again and within that hour I had dilated to a 5! It was such a blessing, even though in my laboring mind I was thinking, "Holy, crap! This is awful and I gotta get to a 10." But I was thankful nonetheless.

Well, then Satan showed up...actually, it was just the anesthesiologist asking if I wanted an epidural. Of course, whether I got it or not I had to fill out all the paperwork just in case. Greater pain, more questions. When she asked me about the epidural I definitely said, "Maybe." But Adam interjected and said, "No, she doesn't want one." Of course all the feminism in the room flared up and my nurse reminded us that I was the one in pain and that it was my choice, but I calmed her down by telling her he was just reminding me that I really didn't want one. She said OK and told me that she had two of her children naturally and that I could do it and would be fine. Great, thanks for the encouragement, it was time to head to the delivery room.

Somehow getting into that room brought on more pain. I was feeling like I might lose it, but my sweet husband kept me calm and kept praying aloud. I just needed to be reminded that God was with me. I had been so fearful leading up to that day and needed to know that the Lord would be with me. I was inadequate to do everything that I was doing that night and I needed to remember this was all bigger than me and my pain. I was about to birth a soul and this would be just the beginning of my need for Him.

The nurse checked me and said I was at a 6 or 7. Kind of vague, but we were advancing. It started to get chaotic...I had been fairly quiet, but started to say things like, "Adam, I cant do this," to which he would reply, "Babe, you're doing it! You're so close." I didn't feel close...Then I started saying things like, "What am I trying to prove?!!" And he would say, "Nothing babe, just trust the Lord." And more things like,"Dangit Eve, what the Hell?" To which he would reply, "Okay, babe just breathe." I am proud to say that was my only "cuss word" and the nurses there would later say that I was one of the calmest and best natural patients they'd ever had. (They also told me how they had been hit and kicked and yelled at by lots of natural patients.)

At that moment I just felt the sudden urge to push like my bottom half was about to fall off. Or as a friend's sister would say, "Like your butt is stitched up and a cow's trying to come out." The nurse had left saying she would be back in a couple of hours to check on me. (What the??!?!) But she had been gone 10 minutes and I told Adam we HAD to get her. I was about to start crying and I knew if I did that I would lose it and start screaming or something. It was totally the Lord because as bad as I wanted to give up and start going crazy which would have maybe caused me to lose control of my body and start to push (which would have been BAD) I tuned back in to Adam's voice and started breathing even though there was no break in contractions and my back hurt so bad that breathing was the last thing that I thought would help, but I stayed focused on him.

We pushed the nurses button a hundred times before we realized (in Memphis fashion) that it was broken...That would mean Adam would have to leave me to go get her. What if I were single!!! I would have had to go peak in the hallway myself and look for a nurse. Luckily she wasn't far and came in and checked me and just in that 15 minute span I had reached a 9. She took her glove off, I begged her to put it right back on and check again because I swore something was falling out of my body. She did, even though I could tell she was like "Lady, nothing changed in 2 seconds," but I was at a 9 and a 1/2 and she said she would call the doctor.

He comes in and walks out because I wasn't at a 10. My doctor wasn't there. Adam says this guy smelled like he had been smoking. I tell her to check me again, I was at a 10. It was time to push, which was a relief since I had been blowing for 10 minutes (which stops you from pushing) but the doc had disappeared. I heard someone say, "I think he went to the lounge." I almost cried. He showed back up shortly and got dressed booming of cigarettes according to Adam, but I didn't care. At that point the janitor could have delivered my baby, I just wanted her out. 5 pushes later...she was:)

They didn't put her on me or anything, which was fine...they just cleaned her and gave her to me later:) Strictly business...I normally wouldn't sell myself out like this, but Adam says its apart of the experience...This is me as soon as I pushed her out. I said, "Is it over?" and then I looked evilly at Adam as he had the nerve to have a camera out. This is the result...

My mentor Joelle, who has had 5 kids at home...Adam had text her to come help me labor when it was getting intense, but by the time she showed up they wouldn't let her in because I was pushing. It went pretty fast, praise GOD! I am glad it was just Adam and I. Such a time I will cherish forever.

Just barely 7lbs and 19 inches. See those long feet?

My great friend Shannon. She and Joelle were there right after she was born (10:02pm) and stayed til after 1am getting us groceries for the night etc. So sweet! BIG BLESSINGS THEY ARE!

New parents after the hard work:)

The sign in our room...AMEN!

A.T and Z.T (He kept his promise and cut that goatee off the next day since she was born healthy and happy. Praise God!)

I have a baby...

Shout out to all the visitors:) Ben and Ashley, Danny, LeCrae and Darragh, Lara, Liz, Jeremy and Shannon, Heather and Rick, Paula and Joelle! Love y'all!

Ashley's due in Feb. with a little girl!

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Veto and Shannon

Danny, Jeremy, Irene and Liz

Liz, Darragh (who had her baby 4 days later) and some chubby girl eating:)

David and Lecrae meeting Z

All the guests are gone...little lonely Z

At home with Dad

Ok, my baby is screaming for food. Better go! I will post newer pictures later! Thanks for being patient!

Til Later,

The Birth Story Part 1, Getting to the Hospital

2008-11-26T15:48:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I definitely promised to update by the end of last weekend, but I obviously missed that deadline. But I am super tired so have a little grace;) Although sometimes talking about birth can be graphic and personal...I am going to go ahead and share because it really was all God and His grace that made this a "special" time:)

So, I had been asking everyone to pray that Zipporah would come early so that I could see her and kiss her pumpkin face and so that I would have a better chance at a natural delivery. God heard his people:) 2 days before my due date I woke up at around 6:15am or so with this cramp of a feeling and I thought "Maybe that's a real contraction." But then I thought that I was overreacting because I was so ready to have her. But I noted the time and when that feeling returned 10 minutes later and then 12 minutes later I decided (even if I was wrong) to go ahead and label this "early labor." (If you've been pregnant you can understand that I wasn't necessarily overreacting since Braxton Hicks contractions don't hurt and this was the first really different feeling that I had felt in awhile.) Adam had been at Downline that morning, so when he got home I told him that I thought I was having early labor and well, he started asking why I hadn't finished packing and started putting underwear and socks into a backpack. So I told him that he was stressing me out and really needed to calm down and carry on with his day as usual.

By noon, the timing of my contractions were all over the place, 25 minutes apart then 7 then 15, but luckily I had a little book that made me aware of each phase of labor and it gave me great security that I was indeed going to have a baby soon. I didn't want to get too excited. I had told only a friend or 2 that I thought I was in labor and really just wanted to lay in bed until the action began. Well, all at once 3 friends decided to stop by. I have to admit that I wasn't feeling that idea initially but they came and brought me lunch and although the contractions were getting stronger and closer together; their company turned out to be a good distraction. But then, Darragh and Shannon and Adam FORCED me to go for a walk. They wanted to make sure the contractions were real. Normally if you go on a walk and the contractions feel better then you probably aren't really in labor so they wanted to make sure, even though I was pretty certain that I was in labor; that or someone had hit me in the back with an axe when I wasn't looking.

We walked around the block, which wasn't super far, but I felt like my hips were about to fall off. It was really cold and painful, but I was really appreciative that Darragh (who was so pregnant that she had her baby 4 days later) and Shannon stopped their days, put their kids in strollers and walked in the cold with me.

That must have been what I needed because once I got home the contractions were coming every 5 minutes or so. I told Adam that we might need to start getting ready because it looked as though this was actually happening, so he says, "Ok, I am going to go get the car detailed then." "Ummmm...ok" I guess thats what he felt was important at that moment; for his daughter to come home in a clean car. I said "ok," because my goal was to labor at home as long as possible and with him gone I had a better chance of just chilling and waiting. By the time he got back it was time for him to focus and rub my back and pay special attention to me because my contractions were 2-4 minutes apart and strong.

At that point I started getting nervous. Adam hadnt ever really wanted to practice breathing and we hadnt really talked through a plan about how I would actually get through natural childbirth. And since I vomited on myself twice during birthing class and Adam almost started crying, I didnt feel too confident about what we had learned that day. But thats another story. Anyway, I felt like the contractions couldnt get any closer but at my last appointment I was only dilated a half centimeter and I didnt want to get there and they tell me I needed to come back later. That might have created some sort of rage and I might have hurt my witness by punching a nurse in the nose bone. But I didnt know what else to do. Back massages and breathing were losing their effect since in my head I was stressing about when to get to the hospital.

I call a nurse, she says to just go up there. So we start getting dressed...Oh my Lord, ya'll should have seen my outfit. When you are in pain it seems like matching is impossible. I had on a black snap Henley that was a little too small for my belly, some light brown sweats that were flooding and falling off my hips (a bad combo) some scuffed up white tennis shoes and white socks, which you could catch a glimpse of due to the flooding, glasses, uncombed hair, a gray pea coat and a popsicle.

Packing seemed like it took ten years (I was already mostly packed but needed to put the everyday things into the suitcase) and we were on our way, BUT our neighbor happened to be outside and he had been saying Zipporah would be born on his birthday which was that night (and he was right) and Adam told him we were on our way to the hospital so he wanted to give me a hug and a wish of good luck. Sounds fair enough, but I just wanted to burn rubber and get the heck out of there. Luckily we live about 8 minutes from the hospital. Grimacing and eating my popsicle I knew that icy treat had been a mistake. I know you arent supposed to eat when you are in labor, but my sweet husband gave it to me since popsicles and ice had been my one pregnancy comfort and it made me feel better for a few minutes and then my stomach started making idle threats that would later become a reality.

So we get to the hospital, leave our luggage in the car until we knew further instructions... I throw that stupid popsicle on the street... my sweet husband picks it up and takes it to the trashcan. I roll my eyes, vow in my heart to remember to be loving and gracious towards him during labor, pull up my sagging flooding pants, wonder why I hadnt put on something better and head into the hospital to hear our fate.

Til Later,

First Things First...Z's Room

2008-11-21T21:37:00.000-08:00

I am a little behind, but here goes my effort. Its 11:37pm...Adam is asleep...Zipporah is fake sleeping and Elizabeth is here for the second night in a row staying the night to lend a hand because she is a saint, but I will go into that later. I thought I would finally put up pictures of Z's room. (uh oh...she's already starting to moan...this may not happen after all) I know people want to see pics of her, but we have to go in order:) Hopefully I will have some up by the time this blog is over.

Okay, its 1:09am now and I am back:) Here are some pics of her room...

I am not the best photographer, so you may not get the whole picture, but bear with me.

The guest bed

Changing table with her initials that Shannon made! (The furniture is a dark chocolate even though it looks black)

Zipporah (I picked out some fun paper with dots and the different names of Christ and some accents and Shannon put it all together so perfectly!)

Brooklyn

Thomason

All together...plus I hung some of the sweet notes and prayers I received from my great friends at my Texas shower on some ribbon:) She'll know that she was prayed for!

Buckets of toys

My very pink, very cheap curtains that Shannon and I made

And the ribbon around them...very do it yourself room:)

Her little "care cart"...she has way more product then I do

A closer look

I covered 4 canvas with fabric and the wall says "Every good and perfect gift comes from above." I have never found that to be more true than this week.

Rocker/ottoman

Zipporah's very own bookshelf...I initially asked Adam if we could just move one of our bookshelves into her room and find some other place to put our stuff and he basically said (as he did throughout pregnancy) that "Zipporah is not taking over...if she wants a bookshelf she will have to earn it just like we earned this one..." He really sounded tough and like a dad that wasnt going to be ran over by a little kid...Now that she's here... you can currently find him melted all over the house;)

A closer look...My aunt Yolanda sent her the piggy bank with her name on it and Ashleigh made her the little "Z" canvas:) So fun!

Okay, honestly my goal was to blog about the room and the delivery which I have to tell in full since it was such a God story, but it is now 1:51am and I just realized 1. that Zipporah has been soundly asleep for almost an hour and I should have totally taken advantage of that and 2. I am really sleepy:) BUT now that I am going to have to move her to our room she will probably wake up screaming or something and I will find myself right back out here. But I will definitely continue working on having the delivery and pics posted by the end of this weekend. PROMISE!

For now she say's
"I'm tired"

"Sooo...goodnight!"

Til Later,

Ummmm....

2008-11-16T19:19:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know that I have NO CLUE as to what I am going to do with her when she gets here, but I would like for Zipporah to come. I will try to read a book or something and figure out the rest later, but right now I just want to kiss a little pumpkin face. I feel like she is getting bigger and I am not. She is probably all smashed up in there, but I cant wait to see her. My prediction is that she is a perfect mix of Adam and I...big eyes, a strong jaw line and a goatee. Please pray she comes (on her own) in the next day or so...k? Thanks for your help.

Til Later,

2008-11-12T16:51:00.000-08:00

I need to update. I am coughing up a lung and sneezing everywhere, listening to the new Beyonce album. (thanks myspace for the preview...such great singing, lots of ballads!) But Adam is sitting court side at a Grizzlies game and has players passes or something, so he may not be back til late, so I may go hang out with Darragh and David...or take a Benadryl and pass out until I go into labor...OK, that probably wont happen. (Not sure why she put it on her album, but B is singing the crap out of Ave Maria right now)

I went to the doctor today...nothing is really happening. Zipporah loves my uterus. And that's comforting for me to know, but I want her here now. With my due date being next week, my doctor wanted to talk about inducing. Sad day:( Oddly enough Adam jumped at the sound of it. I have been wanting to wait to see if I go into labor so that i would have a better shot at having her naturally. But the reality is that our families come into town 5 days after my due date for Thanksgiving and 1. I don't want to stare at anyone while I labor except for the person who got me into this predicament, I mean... my sweet Adam; 2. I feel guilty having Adam's family driving from Michigan and Virginia and get here to find there is no baby. And 3. I want to be well and out of the hospital so that I can enjoy my neighbors deep fried turkey and all the food our families will be making for the combined Thanksgiving we are having with our neighbors. So, looks like this is our option, unless I choose to be selfish and keep waiting or she comes in the next few days. But its kind of exciting to think about her actually being here by next Friday/Saturday.

Well, I was going to put up pics of Z's room, but I think I will go cough up my lungs at Darragh's so that I wont be alone on this quite rainy dreary night. Maybe I will get back to that later, perhaps if I am up wandering around the kitchen at 3:00am. K, that's all.

Til Later,

Look at Me being Like Butta (on a roll...huh? get it? huh?)

2008-10-23T09:44:00.000-07:00

I thought I would update! 3 times in October! I am proud of myself. There is literally a TON of stuff I should be doing, but I will just keep adding to the "Put off til Forever" list that I am making. I don't really have any pictures besides this one...

These are pretty bad pictures... I look asleep, but it was like almost midnight after Adam and I had gotten home from hanging out. But since he thought I looked like I had on a pregnancy suit, he wanted a shot. I am always lagging behind, so that is actually me at 33 weeks even though at this point I am 36 weeks and a little bigger. But something is better than nothing.

I have some pictures of the decorating process of the babies room, but I think you all should just come visit instead. Our camera is bad so some are all splotchy and doesn't do the room justice, so I will wait. Its pretty cute and girlie though:)

I will tell you that the colors are chocolate, pink, green and white and that the room was based around this little "guard dog."

This is what he looks like on his other side...

Such bad lighting and photography, so I will stop there:)

Okay, none of that was apart of what I was blogging for and now I am far off track and ready to quit.

Adam turned 28 on Saturday:) So we had people over for cupcakes, cookies, ice cream etc. and then after a couple hours about 20 of the brave ones headed out to SKATE!! Y'all...I am ashamed for not having had my camera. You have never seen so many people over 6ft tall on the ground. The beautiful AND sad part is that they were all actually trying really hard to skate...they weren't really joking around and yet, at heights of 6'7 and 6'5 and 6'4 I saw them dropping like flies, flailing arms, using the wall to stop and many other wonderful sights. Now, normally I would consider it rude to be the person NOT skating, sitting on the sidelines laughing at the people who ARE skating, BUT in my own defense being 9 months pregnant at a skating rink is no fun unless you can at LEAST laugh at your friends. I wish I at least had a picture of the line up (mostly guys) who were skating. All very tall, in shape...tough guys looking timid as ever with their size 15 skates on. I will give you my top 3 favorite falls and then I will stop...

3. LeCrae and Benjah skated up behind Adam and put their arms around his shoulders and brought him down. But they went down too...That was alot of "man" for little kids to skate around. Adam had been skating about a 1/2 of a mile an hour the whole night, so it was good to see some action from him. I kept saying "Babe, how are you having fun? You are going so slow! He would just keep saying, "I'm cool babe, see, you gotta know you're limitations." (Even though he was going a 1/2 of a mile an hour, he was dripping sweat)

2. Ben Washer (6'7) got out on the floor...usually a prankster, but very serious and like a minute and a half later, without so much as a cool breeze to disrupt his concentration he just fell. I lost it. I laughed so hard I thought I was going to go into labor. Geez, 6'7 is just so much to go down and come back up. But he did better after that.

1. And my favorite fall of all...a new friend of Adam's who DID NOT want to skate finally built up the courage to get out on the floor. He looked so confused and timid and after a couple laps of walk/skating he somehow lost his balance and while flailing his arms in the air took down a skinny little black girl with glasses who was about 8-10 years old. (Nothing funnier than a grown man pulling down a little kid with him as he falls) The girl was MAD, she got up and rolled her eyes in ways I had never seen them rolled and called him a "Pervert!" while he very seriously apologized. He looked deflated as she skated off dissing him to her friend. Haha, no forgiveness, but he pressed on:)

When we were done skating I realized all in an instant that we aren't that young anymore. Darragh and I were waddling and pregnant while all our guys were complaining of back aches, blisters (Really? From 2 hours of skating?) and were sweating way more than what seemed to be appropriate for a little recreational skating. We ended up eating burgers at Red Robin. That was a long day for a pregnant girl, but it was all worth it for my Sweet.

So, that's really all I have been up to. Went to the doc and the estimated weight of Z right now is 6lbs and 7 ounces!! I am so pumped since people keep telling me I am going to have a 4lb baby. If we make it to the due date then she could be about 8lbs! Cant wait to kiss her face!! I start going to the doctor once a week now. I am really in the home stretch. Pray for us during this big transition! You can join us in praying that she comes early! (Not too early, I still have a shower this weekend:)) I also want to deliver without the help of medicine, so PLEASE pray for that experience, that I can make it through. I wont feel like a failure if I don't, but I would love the extra prayer. Thanks friends!

Til Later,

Why Donald Miller is Voting for Barack Obama

2008-10-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

This is a very well spoken interview with Donald Miller, but it doesnt intrigue me because of its eloquence, but rather because of the truth in it. This isnt a ploy to get you to vote for Obama, but it really just struck a chord with me. I feel as though he says almost everything that I want to say to some people who vote "Christian" (ha) or for the party of their family, or who have made Christianity all about Gay Marriage and Abortion, or in my opinion more shameful then all..."uneducatedly." Its a great read if nothing else and I know we all love Donald:) So, this is just something for my friends to read in hopes that maybe those who havent been following will read more articles and watch missed debates or interviews. I have heard lots say, "I havent really been paying attention, but I think I will vote for so and so.." EEK! Scary. Anywho, for the random people that find my blog and like to argue, dont bother....dont have the time. But if you are a friend with questions...we can talk. http://burnsidewriterscollective.blogspot.com/2008/09/interview-with-donald-miller.html

Til Later,

Begrudginly Updating Part 2 (This is great if you're bored at work with time on your hands)

2008-10-12T18:50:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness...I was just typing an update which I have been dreading doing in the first place and somehow magically my hand highlights and erases all of the text...I am over this. Well, really I was going to go play by play but the rest of the former update is that I went to Texas for 2 AMAZING showers and then my mom came back to Memphis with me for about 4 days. Here are only a FEW pictures of the ton that were taken. There are so many, but I don't know how to make a slideshow:( The first shower my mom and her friend hosted. It was really nice to see people I hadn't seen in forever and to have lots of family there.

My mom made me wear a sash and my big brother thought it was really funny since he knows I dont like stuff like that, so he took a picture.

A little food

Cute cupcakes

I opened lots of gifts and my mom was standing there the whole time, perhaps even more excited than me

It's Maw Maw!! She insisted I sit on her lap...I guess no matter how old, or pregnant you get, you still have to do what Maw Maw says.

My aunt Sheenon and her daughters

My stylish aunt Yolanda

LaTonya co-hosted with my mom. Sweet lady!

Some boys crashed the party...my brothers Chris and Damien

My cousin Antwone:)

Okay, there were lot of other people there but this is getting longer by the second:) I then headed to Molly's house for a shower with all my Dallas friends! (It was obviously a long but exciting day) I was so excited! I LOVE seeing them! Molly's house was soooooo awesome...too bad she sold it:( If I am sad about it then I am sure she is too so I wont keep talking about it.

The wonderful hosts! LOVE THEM!! Thanks girls!

See that diaper cake in the middle of the table?? Mel made that! She was so domestic for this shower! Everyone did a great job!

I love this picture. Lauren was really excited about making the heart on my stomach with Barkley

Katie and Niki!!!

Jourdan and I and her Cd!! I am so proud of her:) Cant wait for you to come to Memphis!

Why are little things so cute? Somehow, other than this, Molly dodged pictures all night...

Faith and Nat:)

Hope I didn't miss anyone...that's all the photos I got! And finally I couldn't leave without a dinner with these girls:) PF Changs and no makeup mmm...makes me happy. Being an extra 20 pounds...less happy:)

So that's all for the Texas showers. I still have one more in Memphis that I am really excited about.

My mom came into town and we really just chilled and bought a few baby things. She finally got to go to Graceland...unfortunately she went alone...too pregnant for that again. But we had a good time and it was good to see her before the baby comes. AND I had a couple of last minute visitors this past weekend! Brandi Howard and Kelly Moore stayed with us while they were in Memphis to shoot a wedding. LOVED being with them. Okay, that's all for now. That was draining! OH!! Go get LeCrae's new album REBEL!!! I promise it will not disappoint (not simply because I am on there;)) it really is sooooo good! www.reachrecords.com I know you can get it at Lifeway, Mardel and Walmart. (And I swear those shower thank you cards are coming!) LATER peeps!

Til Later,

Update Part 1

2008-09-21T12:32:00.000-07:00

Blogging is so overdue. I am taking a break from cleaning my super messy house to try to at least begin a blog with the hopes of one day finishing. I have had a few pretty eventful weeks!! I was really excited for these weeks to both come and go...sounds weird I know, but as exciting as they were; pregnancy makes me super tired so it was fun to finally just go home and crash.

The "eventfulness" started at the end of August when my sister came to visit. She stayed for a few days just to hang out. We didn't do a ton of things because I needed a little rest, but we still had some good hang out time. We went to see LeCrae perform the first night she was here and did alot of eating, but other than that and church we just hung around. I felt bad for being boring but she didn't seem to mind so that was good:)

LeCrae

Leia disregarding my strict "no candids" order

Back home after the concert

We also drug her out to a Downline barbecue of about 100 strangers forcing her to make small talk. She did pretty well. I was proud.

Leia and I at the barbecue

We had a fun time. I was glad she came! She even treated me to a massage!!! Just what I needed:) Ok, moving on to the next week...

Sept 5th was the Downline retreat. I didn't take any pictures, but Downline is the ministry that Adam works for. So EVERYONE that is involved in or going through the program headed out to For the Kingdom camp for an overnight outing...It was pretty fun. Lots of talking to young women about all kinds of things and lots of sports, none of which I participated in. Most of the emerging leaders and downliners played in a tournament strategically planned out by the Downline staff with 10 different games like flag football, volleyball etc. It was way intense. Adam and Kennon even painted lines on the field for the games. I was so glad I had pregnancy as an excuse not to have to play. These tournaments lasted non stop til about 2am and there was at least one person that needed stitches by the end:( I had to sleep on a bunk bed without my husband and got about 2 hours of sleep. I spent the majority of the night trying not to wake my cabin mates as I ate granola bars in bed and went to the bathroom.

On the 9th Lindsey Brittain came into town. I was glad to have an old friend in town...especially one who does the dishes after dinner...geez, come back anytime LB. Lindsey was hired by Red Rev and Fellowship church to do some photography around Memphis. I will spare you the details, but you can imagine how little a photographer gets done when their chauffeur is a directionally challenged, tired, hungry every five minutes, "I gotta go pee," pregnant girl. She was very gracious. Again, no pictures, except for this one:)

Okay...I gotta go sweep and mop the kitchen...LONG OVERDUE!! Hopefully I can get back to finish updating my eventful weeks before another month goes by and I give up all together:)

Til Later,

All You Care About is My Big Stomach

2008-08-15T08:34:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know that I need to update, but ever since I had my last day of work I have had minimal computer access. My husband left his laptop today so that I could use it, but I have to be somewhere in 2 hours and I have not even begun to get dressed, and if you know me then you know I need about that much time since I take singing/dancing breaks..not to mention I have to stop every 5 minutes and eat.

So I have spent this time catching up on people's blogs and GEEZ, this time almost everybody has had like 3 updates since I last read so I obviously cant get it all in before I leave...oh and did I mention I am also supposed to read two chapters in this two hours?? Geez, I knew I was supposed to read by Friday but not having a job makes you forget what day it is. Anyway, the point is...I know all you people want from me is to see me fat...I can write a life changing blog about how Christ saved my soul and I will get the email..."Yeah, but where are the belly pictures?"

Honestly, I don't take belly pictures...I am not a good pregnant person in that regard, but because of threats on my life I went ahead and caved.

This was my belly around 17 or 18 weeks

Look at that belly button go!

And here it is a couple of weeks ago (24 weeks along)...forgive the sad sweaty face...our air conditioner went out...it was a 110 heat index and 90 degrees in our house...:( I asked Adam to take a quick picture so Dana would stop blogging about me not putting up pictures. His effort was minimal so the photo isn't great, but you get the picture...I am growing...but still rocking the non maternity shorts in this pic!

Okay, this is random but I have to put this up for Ashleigh even though its months later. My birthday was in June and she made me a cake. And it was VERY good! White chocolate cream cheese icing on chocolate cake? Is that right Ashleigh? Whatever it was it rocked my face off. She made it to match my blog:)

And because I was pregnant, Adam went a little over the top on the portions...

But I went for it anyway...

I guess I will end there. I am now in my 3rd trimester headed for the home stretch. Oh boy...we start birthing classes next month...I pray they show a natural birth video so that I can watch Adam's face...it should be good. I am so behind so I am going to jump off, but maybe next time I will post pictures of our house or something. I am going to commit to taking more pictures from now on! Promise!

Til Later,

Things That Make My Heart Sick

2008-07-28T07:17:00.000-07:00

This morning headed to my last week of work, (yes!) I arrived on the 3rd floor and pressed the "up" elevator key. The elevator always takes forever getting there in this 34 story building, but 5 seconds later to my surprise the elevator had arrived. The door opens and there are 2 black men and 1 black woman on the elevator. 1 of the men had on a pair of jeans and a yellow polo, something similar to what my husband wore the day before. The other man had on a t-shirt with jeans and a black wave cap. The woman had on jeans and a t-shirt as well with her hair nicely yet tightly curled in spiral curls. I get in say "hello" and they kindly respond the same.

The elevator stops on the 4th floor and 1 white man enters the elevator and looks around at us as everyone does who enters a crowded elevator. I smile, he doesn't. No big deal. We stop on the 6th floor, 1 white woman and 1 white man enter the elevator in suits with brief cases complaining about a coworker who isn't doing her job right. They enter the tight elevator push their way to the back and corner the guy with the wave cap without acknowledging that they were unnecessarily crowding him out. I looked at him just to get a peep at his expression...it didn't change. They talked and talked as the elevator stopped for the 3rd time in a row. I raise my eyebrows at the black woman as if to say, "This thing is going to stop on every floor." She smiles and says "After floor 7 it'll fly." (NOTE: You only know this if you work in the building since the elevators are divided between high floors and mid floors...it cant stop until it gets to the 20's)

Sure enough we take off and stop at floor 23. The non smiling man leaves the elevator. The white man in the suit who is about 6'6 and fairly large doesn't move to give the others room, but that's okay because at floor 24 they all together shuffle out with quiet "excuse me's." I do my best to give them space, but again, the tall guy doesn't move.

So I am left with the suited up white male and female and we are headed to the same floor. I realize in that moment one or both of them must be lawyers since that is the office next to ours on the same floor. The tall white man says to the woman, "Now, that looks like a group of people headed to trial."

I immediately look at the woman and look away shaking my head. She mumbles a "yeah" and I pray God would let me hold my tongue for the next few seconds until we get to our floor. I exit and mumble something to the affect of "stereotyping idiot," and head with a heavy heart to my desk. (Don't worry, although it proves my heart is black, I mumble this inaudibly)

This makes my heart sick. I realize that everyone stereotypes. Everything in my soul doesn't want to do it, but at times I find myself thinking things I never want to think. But I war against it daily. I would be crushed if someone made assumptions about myself, my husband or friends based on their clothing or skin alone. (This goes for every race) Can we stop doing this? Is it possible? It just grieves me to my core, but I think what grieves me most is that this man in all his 6'6 huge glory thought it was okay to make that comment, once those people left, in front of me, the small pregnant black girl who "probably wont care or will be too intimidated to say anything." I say that because in order to have that much audacity to make such a statement in the presence of another African American he had to have made an assumption about who I was. I would bet my savings that he wouldn't have said that in front of a black man...say my equally as intimidating 6'5 husband?! You can guess why without my explaining cant you?

Okay, so what do we do? If you are a believer in Christ the first thing we should do is repent for how we view those God has purposefully created in His image. We don't just repent in a prayer but we repent with our actions. We stop holding our children tighter when young black men in baggy pants stand near us assuming they are thugs. (FYI: thugs don't want kids...'money and hoes'...maybe...kids? no...Most CNN articles I read usually show older white males as pedophiles and kidnappers, but when we stand next to blue collar white guys we don't hold anything a little tighter) Stop holding your breath when you are near a person who you think 'may smell' because of their different back ground or age. Nothing will contaminate you except for that sinful mindset. Stop getting nervous when people that you "just don't understand" find themselves in 'your space' or 'your world.' Just stop!!!

Choose today who you will serve. If its Jesus then lets act like Him. I don't remember the time Jesus ever held his breath, became nervous when other races came near, or clutched anything tighter. Jesus knew from day one who would capture Him, beat Him and hang Him on a cross but He never flinched at any encounter with them. He taught with His life at every turn. I only hope we can begin to do the same.

The sad thing is, one day someone of another race, class or creed may hurt, wound or even kill you or someone you love. It may honestly happen, but that has everything to do with Satan, sin, darkness and principalities and nothing to do with skin.

I had a friend who I truly love and admire of another race than my own call me one day to confess that they found themselves nervous around a group of black people and wanted to know if they were racist. This person was truly conflicted and would have given anything to change that feeling inside. I respected the honesty, the confession, the realization of the wrong and the longing for change. There is no better place to start then there. My prayer is that after reading this blog we would all search our hearts and begin to understand how we view each other and those around us.

Finally, and I will leave you guys alone...As I was typing this I was thinking of my 92 year old great grandmother who obviously lived through treacherous times in America where black people were mistreated and lynched daily and had ample reason to be afraid of and hate white Americans, but she is neither afraid of white people nor trees. She says she trusts Christ and lives as though she means it. I hope we can do the same.

Til Later,

Finally! An Explanation for Why I Hate This Shirt...

2008-07-17T09:26:00.000-07:00

(NEW DISCLAIMER FOR THE RANDOM PEOPLE THAT ARE READING AND LEAVING COMMENTS ON MY BLOG: This blog has nothing to do with how great or awful Glenn Beck is, but more to do with what I believe based on my time in Cuba. I use his article as a reference point...please study more on the issue for a broader scope)

Okay, I realize not everyone cares, but I read an article from Glenn Beck this morning and was really satisfied that it was finally written.

Alot of you have seen "trendy" teens or "cool people" sporting the Che Guevara shirt over the past few years and maybe in your head you thought, "Hmmm...I am not cool enough to actually know who he is...maybe I should just buy one to be in style." I hope you didn't. I have been to Cuba twice and wouldn't call myself an expert, but I understand what this man means to most non communist Cubans, but living in a country ran by communists they aren't really able to share their opinions either way. Cuba is in dire need of reconstruction and nearly every building looks 200 years old, but you can always find a new billboard or building painted with this man's face on it.

Che helped Fidel Castro over throw Cuban Dictator Fulgencio Batista. (Well Batista got the heck out of town while everyone associated with him was hauled off and murdered) Once that was finished, Castro wanted to make him a head honcho but he chose (not being from Cuba himself) to go off and start new revolutions. He failed and was later captured in Bolivia and executed with the help of the CIA. To most this sounds revolutionary, but you have to understand who he really was and that's a murdering false communist who over threw a country with lies and false promises which led to Cuba being the poor, shackled place that it is today.

Okay, I wont give you the entire Cuban history, but read this article which was written about this man, this shirt and the role it played in releasing the Colombian captives that have been in the news these past weeks. I think no matter how little you care, you will at least be educated enough not to sport this shirt and maybe educate someone else who will.

Sometimes people just need a little help. I know I always want to help the prideful Southern people who I meet in the grocery store who are extremely polite to me while decked out in full confederate flag attire/tattoos. Sometimes its not always that they don't care, sometimes they just don't know.

Heres the article...check it out.

Til Later,

Hocus Pocus Mackus Frocus

2008-07-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I am bored...I thought that since this is the case that I would just start typing on my blog and just share with you guys the things that are running through my mind as I sit in a very quiet office doing nothing. I am chatting my friend Brandon on Gmail and he is responding waaay too slowly...I almost want to just close out the page and feign technical difficulties the next time we chat, but that would be lying...so I will press on.

Some good news...my friend Shannon had her baby a couple of days ago. You remember her? (I blogged about her around Christmas and told about the difficulties they have had getting pregnant and how God just one day surprised them.) She is still in the hospital and I haven't seen her yet. I am really anxious to go see her but we have had some things to do everyday with no opportunity to get there. They waited until the birth to find out the sex. Convinced it was a boy she gave birth to a 9lb baby girl. Geez...I don't even want to think about anything weighing 9lbs being near my "area". I mean its a given that I really don't want a 9lb person using it as their exit strategy but actually, don't even set a dumbbell near it...Anything that's 9lb's please don't come near me. I would go off on a tangent about that right about now but a "Vagina Soapbox" would be an inappropriate topic for a public blog. (Come on people, don't be offended, we all know how baby's make their exits.) I digress.

She had to have a c-section and it was a long tough day, but in the end she gets to take a miniature person home...and well, isn't that the goal? Here they are:)

Shannon is super cute with a dimple and doesn't need makeup...she has short hair and though she struggled to give birth she looks pretty good. She didn't put on makeup before the cameras started flashing, she just went for it. That got me thinking about my upcoming delivery in November. I will be honest, you guys may not get to see the hospital pictures for I fear I will look a hot mess. If I make it through the delivery without drugs, which is the plan (though not a promise) I will cry...not little motherly weeping droplets, but big, fat, ugly cry faced, alligator tears. I will no doubt have what Adam calls my "Jesus hair" from rolling my head back and forth on the pillow yelling obscenities followed by apologies.

Jesus hair comes from a photo of me from the 4th grade that my unloyal mother loves to show people and once put on my birthday cake. I had just returned from a field trip and was so happy that I allowed someone to capture my carefree moments with a camera. I had sand and water on my face, (?) those teeth I mentioned a few blogs ago that faced each other and a shirt that was 3 sizes too big with the Coca Cola logo only instead of claiming Coca Cola as the real thing, it said "Jesus is the real thing." And my hair which was originally in a pony tail had a chunk of hair still remaining in that ponytail, but the rest (that is supposed to be slick and tight) fanned and stuck out around my face like the rays of the sun. (or porcupine) So mixing the two focal points of the photo, bad hair and Jesus, you get Jesus hair.

So, I doubt I will be prepared for a photo op, but Shannon looks good nonetheless.

I was supposed to be sharing my thoughts but now I realize that I need a snack...this is something that I realize about every 30 minutes. I really don't understand how something that isn't even a pound yet can make me feel so hungry so often. I honestly believe that she is in there jumping rope with the umbilical chord, smoking cigarettes and playing solitaire. They peacefully float around on the sonograms, but I am convinced other things are going on or else I couldn't possibly be so hungry. Last night I made Asian barbecue pork chops and succotash (mmmm...:) ) and I ate almost every bite, but afterwards I was talking to Adam and realized my stomach suddenly just felt empty...30 minutes hadn't even gone by!! So I had no choice, I had to put some chocolate chip cookies in the oven to go with 3 scoops of ice cream. I didn't WANT to do it, but I had no choice. It worked. Praying against gestational diabetes I fell soundly asleep without a single growl from my stomach.

Anyway, the point is I have to go. I need to find some food before this girl starts playing Dance, Dance Revolution on my placenta.

Til later,

A Little Detour with an Update

2008-07-02T09:39:00.000-07:00

I will continue blogging about the world revolving around me in due time...It just takes so much energy to go down memory lane, but it all has a point... I promise. But for now I will take a detour.

Everyone keeps asking me for "belly" pictures and I have one...a really good one, but I think we have temporarily lost our camera cord so I can't upload pictures. SO SAD! I have actually been taking pictures lately for blogging purposes but they are all stuck on my camera. I believe we left it in Texas, but its sort of hard to get in touch with the people we stayed with because they are really Adam's friends and I don't have phone numbers and he cares less about it than I do because he actually has a job that keeps him busy, so blogging isn't top priority. So, we'll see.

Lots going on over here. I talk to people sometimes and realize that I do not update on my life. People at church see me waddle by and go, "Oh, you're pregnant?" Or I tell someone to come over and they call me from my old apartment and I say, "Oh, you didn't know we moved?" I just don't tell people things. So I think I will take this time to update...

1. Ugh, to even start typing I want to quit...updates just feel like "old news." (must press on)
Adam no longer works for Crichton College. He now works for Downline Ministries (too much to describe, click on it if you want info) but its a great opportunity and fit. His vision of Red Revolution has been added to his job description there and we will have a yearly conference and concert for Red Rev!!! Yes! (I know alot of you don't know what this is, if you care then just call me...my phone still works or click on it) He is also working with Lifeway Christian to complete a Red Revolution bible study that will be in stores by the end of this year. (I think) He has written the curriculum and now its going through 1 million editors, plus there is a DVD that has to be done etc. So in due time, but I know it will be ready by the first conference in March.

2. Since Adam no longer works for Crichton we moved out of the college apartments. Its bitter sweet. I will miss the kids, but I won't lie...I am not going to miss being awaken every night by one of the following
a. kids who think 4am is a normal hour to talk loudly in the parking lot.
b. nearby gun shots
c. the night club and its patrons 10 feet from our window and
d. breaking up girl fights...that's hard to accomplish when you are pregnant.
We will no doubt also miss the free rent (tear falls down cheek) but God provided. We are renting a house for a year or more from a couple from our church. They are very gracious and though the neighborhood is quite nice our rent doesn't reflect that. This is our temporary "Jefferson's moment" while we wait for the future home we intend to buy to be ready. I am trying not to get too comfortable. Its so nice you forget you're moving back to the hood;) It is very spacious and cute but the best part is that the people that we rent from are our neighbors. They bought the house we live in because they wanted to expand theirs and it was sort of in the way so we technically share a back yard...and its a good thing too:) There's an unbelievable pool (don't think square or round hole with water...think rocks, waterfalls and beauty) a pool house with a kitchen etc. and the most beautiful garden (don't think potted plants, think lady with a horticulture degree) that the owners let us cut flowers from anytime we want. So its pretty cush and they are great. We are actually having dinner with them tonight. Its also exactly a minute and a half from my job and about 5 from Adam's. Thank you Lord.

3. The baby:) Its a girl. We had our sonogram at 18 weeks and it was the best. Its so cool to go from seeing a blob on the screen where you have to lie every time the sonographer asks you if you see something to seeing an actual baby moving and putting her hands in her mouth! I was super excited at the news. Once I found out I kept laughing so much (thanks to Adam) that I kept getting in trouble for moving too much. It was big fun:) Pray for Adam...instead of thinking nursery and sweet little infant he is thinking gun licenses and chastity belts. I would like for him to slow down and enjoy the moment. LeCrae suggested that we make her wear a shirt that says "My Daddy is a Crazy Black Man" so that no one will date her...we'll see. The baby moved around so much that it took awhile for the sonographer to determine the sex, once she did she exclaims, "Goodness, she finally gave it up!" Adam replies, "Not something I want to hear until she's married." The lady was old and didn't get it, but I couldn't stop laughing and moving and she was getting a bit annoyed:)

4. And finally we (or maybe just me:( ) are headed to Texas again tomorrow for a wedding. But its one of my best friends so I am thrilled about it. Its been so hard not being apart of the showers and parties, but I am really glad to be apart of the wedding and rehearsal dinner. I will be in Texas nearly 4 full days and I am going to try to eat and drink everything I miss about Dallas...so if I am running late to any events please look for me at Jamba Juice, Chipotle or Taco Diner!! All my pregnancy cravings are in other states so that has worked out, but I may just go for it this visit. Hopefully I will find the camera cord and bog you down with a months worth of pictures. Okay, that should be all the surface stuff I have to share about my life....

5. Oh! I am quitting August 1st! (AKA Summer's birthday) And the church said, "Amen."

Til Later,

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

2008-06-27T08:47:00.001-07:00

Not sure how I got Jessica Alba, but...I saw this on Hayley's page and thought it would be fun to do.

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Family search - Family albums

So, It DOESN'T Revolve Around Me? Hmmm...Interesting...Part 2 "Kelly Kapowski, Princely and Me"

2008-06-05T11:12:00.001-07:00

Okay, so its pretty clear that the world didn't revolve around me when I was younger. Although Adam has tried to coerce me to do so, I won't tell you about the time my little brother wiped his butt with my favorite socks just to further prove that the world didn't revolve around me. I just won't do it...it would just be too much. But I think you get the point.

But geez, it was so clear to me that I wasn't the center of attention! Yet looking back I realize that at such an awkward elementary/middle school phase it was okay that I wasn't. I don't think I wanted to be the focal point...God still had alot of figuring out to do about what direction He was taking me physically. I had way too much hair for my little head, my extremities were (and are) extremely long and as short as I was my knuckles were surely shy of scraping the ground. My two front teeth faced each other, but that didn't stop me from smiling! My feet were as long as any full grown woman's and I definitely had a fuzz to my face...oh and to top it off I had also acquired the name "Mosquito Bites" as middle school boys cleverly came up with phrases to ruin the lives of prepubescent girls despite the fact that they clearly had struggles of their own.

After countless nights of chanting, "I must, I must..., I must increase my bust!" followed by "the bigger the better, the tighter the sweater, I must increase my bust..." God would later overly vindicate me in that department, but trust me...the names just got even more clever.

So, I told you something changed in me. Man, did it ever. Somewhere between the nightmare that was my middle school career, watching Juan Trujillo and Vincent Stegall (my HUGE middle school crushes) all pass on the above description for cheerleaders and "thicker" black girls, (I couldn't help it I still weighed in the double digits) and watching the very different lives of Bayside High's Lisa Turtle and Kelly Kapowski... I knew I had to change. There would be NO Zack Morris' in my future if I didn't shave my fuzzy face and get some braces stat.

High school was coming up so I went to work. (or at least I tried...I was never good in the makeup/hair department) My brother went to South Garland High, so I naturally followed. The great thing about high school is that it was a fresh start. The even greater thing was that all but about 4 people from my middle school decided to go there. EVEN FRESHER START!

I had officially decided that it was time for me to be cool and get at least some of the world revolving around me. In reality the only thing I actually changed was my clothes since I didn't wear makeup, had bushy eyebrows and hadn't learned any new hair styles. But, fortunately my teeth turned around without braces which is good because 1. we couldn't afford them and 2. braces in high school would have definitely been a step backwards. I also gained a little weight (maybe a pound) and stopped wearing my hair so fluffy. So all in all I was starting to look more like a teenager and less like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

But high school was HUGE and I wasn't quite prepared...Everyone was tall and looked like adults. I LOOKED new and confused. I was putting things in my locker after every class, which apparently you didn't do after a certain grade level. I was going to the cafeteria for lunch... LAME-O! and I was in my seat ready to go way before the bell rang... something you only do if you're actually in school to learn. I was in way over my head trying to become the Kelly Kapowski of a school of thousands of people. So I gave up, stood closely to my brother every morning until the bell rang (luckily he actually talked to me most of the time) and headed to class to work on my Helen Keller impersonation. (I literally looked at and spoke to no one)

Here's the good news...apparently every other 9th grader had equally bushy eyebrows and bad hair BECAUSE a REALLY cute boy named Princely (um...I know) asked me to be his girlfriend! Like, a real cute boy y'all! Sort of a Chris Brown-esque boy with curly hair. Even looking back I would still say he was actually cute and he wanted me to be his girlfriend! Forget that I had only said 'hi' to him in the cafeteria like once and the fact that I am not sure I ever knew his last name...I had never had a boyfriend. Identity here I come!!!

So, I let Princely put his arm around me and walk me to class everyday. No more sitting in my seat before the bell rang! I had someone to awkwardly linger in the hall with! I say awkwardly seeing as how I knew nothing about him and hadn't yet figured out flirting, wittiness or even how to put subjects and predicates together to create "boyfriend sentences." Hallway dating doesn't make for the most gratifying relationship, but Princely was probably having some identity crisis of his own and really didn't care that our relationship consisted of 20 minutes of between class interaction a day. We talked on the phone and might have gone to the movies once, but I wouldn't swear to it under oath. Then one day... he did the unthinkable and we had to break up.

People were taking notice of us. Perfect strangers were telling me how cute my boyfriend was and what a cute couple we made and asking me, "By the way, whats your name?" And I liked it! Though high school is the most ridiculous part of life, the shallowness of it all made it quite easy to make (and lose) friends. Not quite Kelly Kapowski, but Helen Keller was headed out the door. And then he did it...he met me at our usual spot before 1st period and had picked his curly locks into....an Afro! Oh no...it was too much for me. For some reason as he walked up smiling I was frowning. I wasn't quite prepared for the 'worst' part of our 'for better or worse.' I was convinced the Afro had gone out of style a week earlier and now here he was cheezin at me with expired hair! To make things even more difficult, my brother came by and high fived him on his new style and I knew that the new boost of confidence would only egg him on to keep his hair that way. So, I had to do it...I had to break up with him.

Here's why...when you are trying to create a world that revolves around you, you only want good attention from the people of the world. Although my brother liked his hair he wasn't enough. Every tribe, nation and tongue would have to universally like his hair and I believed that the Afro was too ethnocentric to create the universal affect that would be needed to keep everyone interested. So it was over. Just like that. Two weeks of 'Dawntoya and Princely' out the window because of a 'poor' hair choice. I would decide later that our children's names would have struggled because of the complexity of our own and they didn't deserve that.

Okay, so can y'all see how the 'crazy' had begun? When I wasn't aware of the world or its revolving I would wear a mum costume and still believe myself a worthy candidate of my own heart throb crushes, but Princely changes his hair and its one and done. Oh how things had changed...and it would only get worse. But I will tell you about that a little later.

Til Later,

So, It DOESN'T Revolve Around Me? Hmmm...Interesting...Part 1

2008-05-29T09:23:00.000-07:00

It's funny...sometimes my mom says that I was spoiled when I was a little kid and to be quite honest I seethe a bit and get a little irritated when she makes the claim because trust me...I did not feel spoiled. When you are spoiled I envision you being the person that everyone's world revolves around, and trust me, that wasn't me. If my mom spoiled me, then all the damage that my brothers did while she was at work gave me a memory lapse...because everyday I was keenly aware that the world didn't revolve around me.

Example One...Damien (older brother) and Chris (younger brother) and I are playing "Red light/Green light" in the stairwell of our townhouse. I win. I get to the top of the stair case where Chris is waiting to try my beginning hand at gloating. I pump my fists and say, "Yes! I won!" Chris pushed me down that flight of stairs...The world DID NOT revolve around me...

Example Two...M.C. Hammer changes my life...I need "Hammer pants..." Mama buys me a purple paisley pair with a shirt that has a matching attached vest (you know the vest that is sewn to the sides of the shirt so that its only on the front of the shirt and not the back??) and a similar gold paisley pair. I even get shiny black Hammer shoes with ribbon laces...pretty good...BUT she puts them in the closet til school starts so that I can't wear them. I finally get to wear them, a few months go by, I hit a growth spurt and now my Hammer pants are flooding...I need a new pair. But, apparently, Mama doesn't have the cash flow to upgrade my Hammer pants every time my socks are visible. So I have to push through and wear flooding Hammer pants...The world DID NOT revolve around me...

Example Three...In middle school I dressed up for every spirit day. I was definitely awkward and didn't really have a specific crowd of friends and though I cared what people thought, you can look back at pictures of me from then and realize that my self awareness hadn't totally kicked in. Spirit day comes and I am stumped trying to think of the grandest idea. My spirited aunt Yolanda (you know, the one who used to have a Jheri Curl) who lived for these types of things eagerly decided that I should be a "human mum"...I hadn't yet hit high school where every southerner bogged their children down with 2 or 3 mums at Homecoming to prove they were popular so I didn't have a clue what a mum was. For those as clueless as I was, its this...

So in order to transform me into a "human mum" she took a clear shower cap and glued white tissue paper to the top. She then pinned colored tissue paper and streamers to my body along with other whistles and bells. I left the house pretty proud. I walked to school...and well, it rained that day...so needless to say the tissue paper didn't hold up too well. But I was so proud of the sheer genius of it all, because although I had no clue what a mum was, my aunt assured me that others would DEFINITELY know, so I pressed on...well, the other middle schoolers didn't know what mums were either, so all day kids came up to me, looked disgustingly at my shower cap and go "What are YOU supposed to be?" Finally, I was cornered by the only two African American teachers in the school who informed me that by wearing a shower cap to school as an African American I was apparently ruining everything that Dr. King had worked for...prideful I kept on my costume and went sopping wet to class...lip quivering the whole way...The world DID NOT revolve around me.

So, its pretty apparent that some things didn't go my way as a youth...I sort of got the hint that the world didn't revolve around me. I knew I wasn't the coolest or I wouldn't have worn that mum to school, not the cutest or I wouldn't have worn flooding Hammer pants, not the strongest, or I would have punched Chris in the face when he pushed me down the stairs.

I wasn't the most understanding or I would have realized that my mom was gracious enough to buy me 2 pair of Hammer pants when ,in fact, as a single mom she could have easily bought something that would have been in fashion 5 minutes after the purchase, but she did it because she wanted to make me happy. (and because she TOTALLY had a crush on M.C. Hammer and thought the pants were pretty cool herself) I also wasn't the most appreciative or I would have stood up to those 2 ignorant teachers as they put down what my aunt had worked so tirelessly on to create for me to make my day special....she was always doing that... I was aware when I was young that I wasn't the best and that the world did not revolve around me. But, later on something changed and that realization definitely wore off. I will tell you about that later.

Til Later,

Please Vote (For Adam)

2008-05-16T07:19:00.000-07:00

Adam and I have riveting conversations. Night after night we can be found talking about the deep things of the world, questions pondered by the masses...we take them on and talk until our hearts are content. You wont find a household of deeper thoughts than the one at 2788 Madison. Last night for example we talked and talked about the things we had encountered that day...Hillary, Obama, blogs we'd read, California's same sex marriage ban being struck down, Palestine and of all those topics the climactic point boiled over into an argument over who would look worse with a Jheri Curl...Adam or me. Now at the end of this blog I will ask you to cast your vote in the comment section letting me know who indeed would look the worst, but first lets talk Jheri Curl...

If you are unfamiliar with the words Jheri Curl or "activator" click HERE for an understanding before continuing...

The Jheri curl often mistakenly spelled Jerry Curl was, for those of you who are unfamiliar, a BIG mistake in the history of African Americans. As a people we have had some great successes. We have come together to evoke change in times of great suffering...the Montgomery Alabama Bus Boycott and Civil Rights are some great examples alone but something happened in the 70's that would, in my humble opinion, put sort of black mark on our history.

In the late 1970's a man by the name of Jheri Redding invented the Jheri Curl and ruined about a decade and a halve of lives. Some of my own family members were affected by this tragedy...you know who you are...actually, I HAVE to throw them under the bus....so I will go ahead and name them...

1. Ernie Joe Banks...AKA...My Dad... As a young child I realized that my dad thought he was the ladies man of all ladies men...the blue Camero, the tank tops... and he had all this confidence WITH a Jheri curl...(my mom obviously fell for it) As a child I thought that my dad resembled Eddie Murphy (with better teeth) and when I saw Coming to America in the Prime of my youth, the moment they introduced "Randy Watson" I forever had a hyperbolic image of what my dad would look like in the future if he did not take action against his curl.

THIS is Randy Watson...and classic video at that!

2. Yolanda Kay Pace...AKA...My dear aunt...introduced me to fashion and Prince and for that I will always be grateful, BUT under the bus you go!! Becoming South Garland High School's first black cheerleader must have been a joyous occasion, but a smudge was left on her legacy because the only picture I remember of her in uniform was the one of her in the splits with pom poms and a Jheri Curl... (Think Texas summers and cheerleading camp) I rest my case.

3. And finally because I can't dig up enough evidence to prove that my very own mother had one I will end with our family's reigning champion...Ruby Faye Morris...AKA MAW MAW!! Maw Maw literally just got rid of her curl a few years ago. As a believer I often wanted to remind her that Jesus says His "yolk is easy" and His "burden light" and that as a believer she shouldn't have had to carry around the weight of an activator filled curl for over a decade. She is now free and I can honestly say that she has never seemed happier.

Well, even though my family was truly affected I can't blame it all on Mr. Redding...this man had alot to do with why so many people had the Jheri Curl...

His fame was just too great for people not to emulate this look...I will leave you with one man's story of how Michael Jackson's style encouraged his love for the curl...and then I would ask you to vote...and white Americans...I would ask you not to judge because the curly mullet was the EXACT SAME THING as the Jheri Curl...

Listen to the words of writer Michael Venable...

"As a child at Michael Jackson's height, I had everything I needed to be Michael. I had the jacket, the gloves, the socks, the penny loafers, a few buttons, posters and so on. Yet there was one final piece necessary to make my Jacksonian tribute complete. I begged and pleaded with my mom for a Jheri Curl, and she was having none of it. (I thank her tenfold for this now, since I, unlike so many people I grew up with, have no incriminating Jheri Curl photos to haunt me.) Weeks went by; she would not budge. So I decided to give myself a curl.

Right before school one morning, I figured that if I could just activate my hair's natural curl, we'd be in business. Surely there had to be something lying around the house to shock my hair into cooperation! As mom was getting ready I found my muse: a massive tub of petroleum jelly. I dug my hand into the jar and scooped out an entire handful, smearing it all over my head. I repeated and repeated until my head was almost leaning to the side, heavy with Vaseline. (Can you imagine getting ready for work and your kid's school and discover a shiny halo of Vaseline over his head?) In an impressive display, my mom managed to spank me and wash my hair at the same time.

Weeks later, Michael's hair caught on fire in a Pepsi commercial. I remember seeing it on the news, and, Michael being my personal deity, I was nearly in tears. Will he die mom? Will he be ok? She didn't say a word. She just shot me this glance that said, 'See? That's what happens when you wear Jheri Curls. Your head catches on fire.' Needless to say, me and the curl were done."

One person spared...Thank God. If you are still rocking the Curl or know someone who is...its not too late for help. Now go vote!

Til Later,

I Am Spreading...and I Don't Mean the Good News

2008-05-12T11:38:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness...Pregnancy, what a ride...I am a little over 12 weeks in and I am already spreading. My sweet husband claims not to notice much of a difference, but even he couldn't deny the changes when we attempted to head out to the Downline banquet Saturday night. I did not have anything nice to wear. All of my dresses were struggling...even the two that I just bought! Luckily, they still had the tags on them or I would have had to go ahead and let the "kids" out to play for the night in order not to waste money, but Adam believes firmly that the "kids" should be in the house at all times...I normally agree, but I was struggling.

So with about an hour left until we were supposed to pick up Darragh; we attempted to put on one more dress...(I still had no makeup on and my hair hadn't caught a glimpse of a brush, and Adam hadn't showered or even attempted to get dressed) well I stepped into the dress and Adam started to zip and so the conversation goes, Adam: "Okay, straighten your back." Dawn: "My back is straight." Adam: "Okay, well then stand up straight and tall." Dawn: "I'm as tall as I'm going to get." Adam: "Okay, this ain't workin." So bummed out I just stare at him and think of a way to get out of going to this banquet, which was unlikely at that point since we had RSVP'ed in blood and were someones ride to the thing. Well, Adam (who again isn't close to being ready) goes "Okay, you start getting ready and I will go buy you something to wear." AW............ :)

Look, I don't get excited about much...romance and surprises and all those things are fun but if you want to get a reaction, watch me struggle and feel fat and then tell me that you are going to go buy me a dress. It was super sweet to me. We were totally out of time, but if I could just hold up my end of the deal and get ready (which seems easy but I am a STALLER) I knew that even if Adam came home 5 minutes before take off, he would somehow be ready to walk out of the house clean and handsome with a minute to spare. So he walks back in the door with 3 dresses and a skirt. By this point it was about 20 til it was time to go, so I figured he would throw down the bag and run to the shower but he didn't...he prepared to help me try on everything. He bought all different styles for variety and choice:) And out of it all 1 fit well. So he encouraged me by telling me I looked "fine" (and I don't mean "adequate" :)) and with 10 minutes to go hopped into the shower:) It was a cute little black dress that tied across the shoulders and was gathered and scooped in the back. I put those on with my multi colored BCBG's (they never get old even though I get annoyed with them every now and again:)) and was ready to go. Confidence booster in a flash! Thanks babe, I seriously thought that was so sweet. And honestly I really needed that moment.

I have been feeling so lousy that I have been going to work everyday with NO makeup on, GLASSES and a ponytail with a headscarf of some kind wrapped around it. I straight up look like a janitor everyday. I was standing in the bathroom at work the other day and someone told me that the toilet paper needed refilling.... Okay, that didn't happen, but I imagined it in my head. Sheesh. So I am trying my best to get it together. But there is some legend that I should be "turning the proverbial corner" here soon. We'll see, then you always have those Creepies that want to tell you how they were sick their whole pregnancy and then for the rest of their adult life. I'm always like "Girl, you don't have the gift of encouragement." So that's a small update. Keep praying if you will please:) Hopefully I will have some pictures or something fun soon:) P.S....after all that, the "banquet" turned out to be a casual barbecue...so there were like 10 over dressed people out of a 100 or so, but who cares, I had been looking like Aunt Jemima's daughter for so long that I went ahead and rocked my dress with pride.

Til Later,

Try to Keep Up...Part 2

2008-04-30T12:01:00.001-07:00

I am at work right now, sad for a thousand reasons...one in particularly...I just ate a tuna sandwich and Greek salad and one of the two is lodged into my back tooth. Not a major stressor in life, but annoying and I have no toothbrush or floss on hand...I really need to figure something out or I just might cry. Trust me people...I am on edge. I am on edge because I have a test and 4 hours of class tonight, followed by a desperate trip to the grocery store which sounds awful. But very necessary, because another reason I am sad is because I have been eating like 500 calories a day and that is far from the necessary 2000 or so that I need. Normally that would be sort of "anorexic-ish" and "fine" but its a little different when you are carrying a baby. I mean they NEED to eat! They are trying to start a life of their own and a cup of pineapples, 3 carrots and half eaten spaghetti wont do the trick for them. Okay, I know that I flew right by that so I will stop and address the fact that YES, we are going to have a baby...Lord willing:) Fun right?? We are 10 weeks and 5 days. (Thank you Texas (and SOME Memphis) people that can actually keep a secret. I am really proud to call you my friends:) ) We weren't just trying to be secretive, I have never been very good at that. We just wanted to use this time to pray and thank and hope in the Lord. We suffered a miscarriage in September and truly found that "hope deferred makes the heart sick" so we just wanted to be more personal about it this time for awhile while we wrapped our hearts around either outcome and find that now, though anything is possible, we would like for everyone we know to share in our joy. So, though I am adverse to food and struggling eating the baby makes me extremely happy, maybe the hormones are also why I find myself wanting to cry because I have a test...I don't normally like tests, but to date I have never cried about it. So that's another update for us.

I was going to do this grand California (where we went for our anniversary trip) update but I forgot my camera OF COURSE and so that really ruined things. We had so many great Kodak moments and the camera was sitting at home in Memphis. Overall it REALLY was a great time. We needed to get away from everyday life. California was........COLD!!! but we still had fun even though I wore the same thing everyday or a version of it because I packed shorts and tank tops. I am running out of time so I can't tell you about standing in line for 5 hours to fulfill my childhood dream of being on the Price is Right only to be cut 5 people away from getting in and I can't tell you about passing up the opportunity to be an extra in a new comedy because of the stupid Price is Right. I can't tell you about anything, because sitting at a desk for 6 hours makes your butt numb and I get off in 6 minutes so I can't linger. But if the news isn't too old I will tell it eventually but probably not. It was a great time...but its one of those things like a mission trip that rehashing just doesn't do justice to. Okay, now the numbness is crawling into my thigh and I still have this damn tuna/lettuce in my tooth. I better run...I should probably stop saying "damn" before our baby is born... Love you guys!! (And I am continually praying for all my sweet moms who have recently had "Glory Babies" themselves. Love you girls, I rejoice when you rejoice and mourn when you mourn and I can't wait to rejoice with you again!)

Til later,

Try to Keep Up...PART 1

2008-04-24T10:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, this really needs to be like a 50 part update since I have been totally MIA. It is so hard to blog when your head is full. I don't know why. You would think things would just flow, but I just couldn't keep up with all that was going on. Well, I thought it was about time for an update. Well FIRST...Adam and I celebrated 1 year April 20th and I have to follow suit and put up some pics from the wedding. I mean, they are something that you really never use and since I posed for thousands of pictures during that time dangit, I am going to put them somewhere. They are bittersweet to look at. Its such a great day but I would not want to repeat it. Sometimes I trick myself into thinking that I would want to do it all over again, but trust me, I would rather just be married. We both want to die when we think about why on earth we were talked into waiting 8 1/2 months to get married. Dumbest thing ever, DON'T DO IT!!!!! Okay, moving on...This day started off so great and relaxed...I mean I woke up early and just felt easy, breezy beautiful Cover Girl. I mean I had AMPLE time and almost felt too laid back...and then I went and got my hair done...Oh Jesus...after my hair was made up like a Steel Magnolias character I decided not to cry and thought if the makeup and dress don't help then I will take all the pins out and wear a ponytail...which I DID NOT want to do since I had worn my hair in a pony tail for 8 months of mourning while Adam was in Memphis...(I look back and always agree...I should have went with the pony tail) I also didn't want to be "Freak Out Bride" who repeatedly says how ugly she is and find myself being rude to perfect strangers. "Well," I thought, "while I am at the salon I will just get one of these people to do my makeup"...Oh Jesus, I told the girl that I wanted to look like I "had on makeup, but natural"...if you do this for a living I think you get this, no problem...at one point while applying my eye shadow I literally thought she had a "pretend eye shadow palette." The more she put on the less I saw. Although I had a Bridezilla moment and envisioned myself standing up and throwing her makeup kit into a mirror and screaming "If I had wanted Maw Maw to do my makeup I would have slipped her a ten and stayed home!!!" But I didn't, I kindly said "Mam, I am so sorry but you have to stop. This isn't what I want and I am out of time so I have to leave" So with a veil tucked into my "Dolly Parton do" I ran and sped to MAC at Northpark mall...long story short...I emerged as the winner of the April 2007 Drag Queen Contest. I sped to the church and started to get teary eyed and started wiping off the "cheekbones" that the makeup "artist" had given me. Luckily Katie was there to help before anyone else arrived to find the Bride of Chucky scrubbing off ultra light base and powder. After a little cleanup everything was fine for the most part besides the horrible nerves and I was off to marry my hubby...here are some pics...

This was a bridal portrait with the pony tail that I should have worn...I also should have laid sexily in the isle and just had Adam meet me there...pretty natural...

Another natural look...Lindsey, don't sue me for posting these w/o permission

The Girls:) I loved these dresses...AND the earrings:) Such hot girls.

The relentless matchmaker:)

The Guys

Fake dancing...

Mollikwa snuck to the back:) I love her:)

This is pretty symbolic since Tess held my hand every step of the way of the planning! Not sure what I would have done without her...

Everyone watching you was scarier than I thought!

I love Matt:) He is probably saying something ridiculous

Oh my goodness, we were so happy and relieved!

Heading to the reception after the gift:)

mmmm:)

awww:)

Maw Maw, Mama, me and my 92 year old Great Grandmother!

I felt rushed at our reception and wasn't quite ready for the night to be over, but I also couldn't wait to begin the Honeymoon! Good times!! It has been a crazy roller coaster of a first year. Marriage is unexplainably hard and amazing. So glad I get to be married to Adam:) Well, I am going to start a Part 2 asap...lots going on...Get ready to hear about the anniversary and other life stuff.

Til Later,

6 Word Memoir

2008-04-23T10:08:00.000-07:00

I have sooooo much to blog about. Lots going on in our world...not to mention we just got back from California yesterday after spending some time there for our anniversary. Getting out of your city is soooo important and refreshing. But I will update later. But I really have thought about this memoir and I feel that it will look differently than maybe it should, but the only 6 words that are important about me might be... Orphan, adopted as daughter of KING!

Til Later,

I Know, I Know...

2008-03-31T11:26:00.000-07:00

I am slacking on my blogging. But don't give me a hard time, it happens to the best of us. Plus, I like blogs with pictures but I just don't take my camera anywhere, not to mention lately (poor Adam) I have been the most boring person ever. I have had a huge desire to lounge around and watch Disney movies. Luckily Adam joins me and can later be heard around the house whistling tunes from the movies:) Well I still have no energy to blog. I think that work just saps it out of me. I know that I technically don't do anything, but that can "sap" you even more...should that be "sap" or "zap?" So, for now I am just writing an excuse so that people can see something new and think "Oh look, Dawn updated her blog." Only to realize that its just a disclaimer for why I haven't. If I cant find anything to blog about soon then I am going to just find a random topic and make a mini series multi part blog about it. I have wanted to do that for awhile now. But not about really important topics but maybe something interesting that people might need to know about me. Like why I overcompensated and married someone 14 inches taller than me or why I sometimes wish I had narcolepsy. Theres so much floating around in my brain that I am bound to get it on here one day. But for now I need to go stare off into space for 10 minutes and then try to work on 1 Corinthians. I promise something interesting or fun will pop up on here soon, but for now I am off to answer phones! Til Later,

I Am Mad

2008-03-18T09:07:00.001-07:00

I was going to blog today but I can't because I am mad. I just watched Obama's speech on race which I thought was very well said and would have gotten an 'Amen' out of me had I been in the audience, but I hate America's response to it. It just shows how far behind we are. I am not an Obama supporter (or any candidate's for that matter as of yet) but I recognize truth when I hear it. So when I read white Americans saying "Ugh, black people are so hung up on their race. Get over it!" I get mad. Or when I hear African Americans saying "Reverend Jeremiah Wright spoke the truth!" I get mad. I have read all of those things today and am still...you guessed it...MAD! So, being mad for me equals 'fuming wordiness', so I will refrain and will try to post later this week about happy things, like Brittain and Bex coming to visit for the night. Yeah, that will make me happy. But eventually I may have to get a little political on here as hard as I try not to. Not because I have a candidate, because I don't, or a party because I really don't but because Christians vote on "moral issues." But they vote as though abortion and gay marriage are the only moral issues on the agenda and somehow never take into account the poor and needy... the way that Jesus did, so I think we should talk about it. Til then I will be focused on the love and grace that God has shown me and work on showing that same affection to my fellow Americans. I can't wait for Heaven.

Til Later,

The Story of Stuff

2008-03-10T08:31:00.000-07:00

Ashleigh keeps me up on what's going on in the world. I don't really know how educated I would be if it weren't for her! But this little 20 minute video just really got me thinking. And what a witty and great video! So creative and cute. I was like a little kid watching Veggie Tales for the first time. Check it out. No explanation, the title kind of speaks for itself. Just go here and check it out. For Christians especially, I think its worth the education on how to be good stewards. Now, I just need to figure out how to put this info to use, things are popping into my head already!

Til Later,

I Got Tagged

2008-02-27T07:34:00.000-08:00

Look at my fun new page!! Thanks Shauna! If you know me then you know that normally I wouldn't pay 1 red cent for something like decorating a blog, BUT there is nothing I love more than seeing a stay at home mom gettin' her hustle on! Shauna is so generous and crafty and sweet and I love that she is using her gifts to earn some cash for the fam. Sounds Proverbs 31ish to me!

Okay, so I got tagged by Molly and since I have nothing interesting to say on my own today I am going to answer these 6 questions, but be checking out Summer's blog if you need a dose of ridiculousness because I may be posting something on hers, but this time we may be writing something together. I like writing on Summer's blog because then I can say random things and not seem weird for putting it on my own blog. I mean where else can you blog about Cinderella's bunions and get away with it?

The Tag Thingy...

10 years ago: (WARNING: I am speaking as a 10th grader not my present views on life)
In 1998 I was in the 10th grade. I was an idiot in the 10th grade who didn't know Jesus. What I remember MOST about the 10th grade was that I was grounded almost every single month and once for an entire month...talk about an awful year. That was the year the funk hit the fan in so many ways. I still need counseling from some of the things that went on that year. But a story that I do remember is that my world revolved around Nick Gonzales and he, like me, was an idiot as well so...I remember we broke up and he asked Stefanie Harper to the Colonel Ball and I was devastated. (probably not an exaggeration) Stefanie was small, blonde and could stay out later than I could so I knew that had something to do with the breakup. So, instead of skipping the dance I asked Anebal Ramos... the Puerto Rican graduate who I knew was a teeny bit nerdy but cool enough and old enough having graduated to make Nick jealous enough. So, I went out and bought a royal blue valour dress with diamond cut outs around the decolletage with rhinestones and had some pumps dyed blue. (I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit) We always had a big ceremony before the dance honoring smart, pretty and funny people like our world does and I was nominated for something, but I didn't know what. It was my first nomination and I was proud...Nick had been nominated for Most Handsome the year before and I had been his date. I prayed that he wouldn't be nominated for the category again with Stefanie as his date or she would surely win the night's Competition in My Head since Anebal was looking a little nerdier than anticipated. So, I sat and waited and prayed that Nick would trip and fall as he walked down the isle to be nominated for whatever category that he was there for. He was nominated for Class Favorite and I had a sigh of relief because in my high school looks were definitely more important than personality. Then the category for Most Beautiful came and I almost didn't hear my name as I was praying fervently for Nick's demise. Most Beautiful!!! YES! It was exactly what I needed to make Nick realize how wrong he was!! I walked up in my valour attire with the other 4 nominees and mouthed the name of the obvious winner along with the rest of the girls..."Heather Dunn" and went and sat down. I glanced at Nick on the way back to my seat and knew as my rhinestones sparkled in the light that I had won...until I got back to my seat and saw a starry eyed Anebal and realized that the night had just begun. UGH HIGH SCHOOL!!

Things on my to-do list today:
My Type A is low today so I haven't made a list. Adam is still out of town so my days have been full of TV which we NEVER watch and junk food...so my list would look something like this:

Possibly go to Michael's to look for some fun paper for a project for the kitchen.

Clean the house while simultaneously watching Oprah try and take over the world. (What the crap is this New Earth stuff???)

Try to hang up the new mirror I bought without breaking it...almost drop it...put it down and wait for Adam

Watch American Idol...see one good singer and wish I had done something else.

Watch Once with Dana

Pick Adam and Danny up from the airport at MIDNIGHT!!! (If I don't get mugged and shot)

What would I do it I suddenly became a Billionaire?
Wow, a billionaire...so dramatic...I would start figuring out how to keep it quiet and then Adam and I would probably do lots of research on places that we could go to figure out how to give it away to hurting people, countries and schools etc. We would probably become the Christian Brangelina and adopt lots of kids and have lots kids. I would pay off my mother's and grandmother's homes and pay for any family members who need some sort of rehab or counseling. Invest, go shopping and buy a house to fit all our kids in, but I think we would mostly just give it away to people who can't help themselves all while sharing the gospel.

Three of my bad habits:

procrastination
lack of discipline
I am a walking tornado. When I get home from work I drop everything right where I stand and walk away. But when I clean it is like something out of a magazine. I don't joke around when it comes to scrubbing, so that makes up for it.

5 jobs I have had:

Receptionist, Director of a Contemporary Worship Service, Assistant Manager, Fashion Expert at Express, Babysitter in a gym nursery

5 things people don't know about me:

I love children's books and always read them instead of magazines when I wait at a doctor's office.
You know those girls you see on Thanksgiving at half time of the holiday football games dancing while some celebrity like Kelly Clarkson or Beyonce sings? Well I did that twice, only it was Randy Travis one year and Reba McEntire the other:( The year I decided that I would skip it was someone way cooler like Shania:(
I used to sing country at the Garland Opry and I honestly think its the style of music that I sing the best. (And secretly like to sing!)
For about 5 years I have wanted to cut my hair really funky and short but am afraid to. Its a reoccurring thought that I have had probably 5 times a week for 5 years.
When I was a teenager my most unhealthy heart sick crush was on Justin Timberlake.

I tag Amber, Liz, Bex, Lauren W and Summer...it obviously doesn't have to be as long as mine.

Til Later,

Another Day to Love

2008-02-20T11:25:00.001-08:00

My head hurts and I should be doing lots of other things instead of blogging. I am leading worship at our churches women's retreat this weekend as well as giving my testimony and you would think they asked me to give someone else's testimony because I am so nervous and can't figure out which angle to tell it from. I am a rambler, as you all know, and I have 15 minutes. So pray for me if you think about it. If it's appropriate then I will post the outcome.

Valentines Day...Adam doesn't like it. He thinks its some economy boost scam or something...a day where men who have been lazy for 364 other days go to Kroger and buy pre packaged cards and flowers and take their girls to over crowded restaurants. (My interpretation) But he is also too much of a romantic to let it go by...so I am sure every year we will repeat the trend of dissing V-day and then having conversations like the following ME: "Hey babe, on my way home just calling to check in." ADAM: "Don't come home until 5" ME: "Baaaaaabee! I just got off. Its 3:00 I am hungry and I have to pee." ADAM: "Don't come home until 5:00. I am not ready." ME: Baaaaabe! I thought you hated Valentine's Day! What are you doing? (whiney "I have to pee voice") ADAM: "Okay, I have to go to a meeting, dont come home until 5. I love you. Bye."

So, holding my pee and fighting off hunger pains I picked up Theresy and headed to Starbucks (Don't worry Fair Traders...I didn't drink any coffee...but I did have a crusty piece of banana bread that almost chipped my tooth...does that count?) and we went over Titus like we do every Wednesday. That is always fun. 5:00 came and I headed home to see my Luscious.

Back Story: (WARNING: This story contains bathroom humor)

On one of our first dates...(I am actually too hungry to write this...ugh MUST PRESS ON!!!!!!!!!!!) (Okay, I went and got an apple (BORING) so I can at least continue on) as real live "boyfriend and girlfriend" we went to Ben and Ashley's apartment for dinner. That's another story to tell later... Well Ashley, as a new wife, cooked King Ranch chicken with the works...I ate a lot, maybe out of nervousness...maybe politeness? Not sure, but it didn't treat me right. My stomach was not doing so well...I needed to go to the bathroom...the long kind...And obviously in a new relationship, heading to the bathroom for unaccounted for periods of time is more than bold and a little too comfortable...its a narrow road and few travel it. So, I wait...stomach churning... while old friends reminisce and want to hear beautiful stories of a new romance all at the expense of their dying guest. Wanting to scream "Take me home now!" I grin and nod and answer politely and shortly most questions thrown my way. It was awful. It literally felt like the longest night in the world. I became delusional...paranoid even! I really thought someone was going to stand up and yell "Why don't we have a slumber party?!" The night was never ending. Adam had been preparing me for a surprise earlier in the week. He said that he had decided to incorporate 2 of my favorite things into a surprise and would give it to me after dinner. So, when he announced that it was time to leave I almost leapt for joy. We had driven separately, so my plan of attack was to head out to his truck, get my surprise, speed home and pray Lauren was nowhere near the bathroom. We say our goodbye's and head outside and Adam says, "Okay, lets leave your car here and ride together to my house." IN DENTON!!!!!!!!!!!!! We were in IRVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Literally an hour away. I tried to talk about common sense and how he would be so tired after driving me to Denton and then back to Irving and then back to Denton, but being newly in love...he wouldn't hear of it. I decided that I would just break up with him, head home and call him tomorrow and give some spill about how the fear of moving too fast had caused me to react insanely. But remembering that would be lying; I got into the truck and we headed for Denton. When we got there I told Adam that I didn't "feel very well" and that I was tired and would need to get home soon. Translation: "Make it snappy Lover Boy before I slip off into your bathroom and take this relationship to a new level its not ready for!" He agreed and began the presentation. He played a song called "Bout Time" (very fun, very cool Christian hip hop song about relationships) and began the presentation. My Love, who was on a year long fast from sugar had slaved over brownies and ice cream (MY 2 FAVORITES!) and chocolate sauce all day making some restaurant worthy dessert for me. He didn't just plop ice cream on top of brownies, no step by step he had to cut a brownie into a perfect circle and add ice cream in that same circle and then freeze it and repeat the cycle. And keep it all cold as he worked. Covering it with chocolate sauce and ice cream and strawberries. He is very meticulous and it took him awhile and was also a stumbling block. So he brought it out in all its glory and I almost died. I wanted to run as far away from that chocolaty goodness as possible. Its not like he came out hand in hand with a little spawn of Satan but I had reached my limit! The sight made me so happy that he had worked so hard and made me want to puke a little all at the same time. I was in pain. I put on the biggest fake smile ever and thanked my new boyfriend for all the effort and beauty that was before me. I ate 2 bites, told him it was time to go and he ended up giving the rest to his roommates. So sad! I TRIED YA'LL!! I really did! I always regretted not getting to enjoy the beauty of what my taste buds could have relished in that day.

Back to the present: I get home at 5 and my Luscious turns on the song "Bout Time" and presents me with this

And I was happy! This is me after we went for Sushi with Shannon and Jeremy. Just holding my fork...waiting anxiously to finally be able to finish what I had started almost 2 years ago! Let me tell you, we ate it all! Every single suculant bite!...and we did it on the couch, watching old Martin reruns...now free to do and say whatever we want whenever we want and go to the bathroom whenever we want!! I LOVE MARRIAGE!! And I love my Sweet:) I know this was TMI for some of you, but hey honesty is the best.

Til Later,

Detroit

2008-02-15T10:03:00.000-08:00

Okay, well I made a big enough deal about the travel to Detroit, so here is an update! Okay, well before we ever got into the car, our marriage was almost over. Adam wanted me to make pork tacos...um...for the road. He thought, "Cost efficient," I thought, "Pork tacos...in the car...for 12 hours." I laugh now at the thought but, at the time, it wasn't funny. My sweet husband would drink water out of a shoe if it saved money on a cup. But that's why we will never be hungry or in debt:) Gotta love him. So our marriage was saved and then we packed our bags to which he responded "Dawn, you are going to Detroit for the weekend, not on a mission trip." But it was cold and I wanted to make sure that I had everything that I would need, especially my Cuddle Duds. Which...Adam...loathes!! He has even gone so far as to hide them from me before, but I got them back.

RANDOM SIDENOTE: I bought the Cuddle Duds for a New York vacation with Mel to wear under my jeans for warmth and it really worked!!! Now every time the temperature hits 45 or below I put them on. The only problem is that they are old, fading from black to gray...oh and they are HUGE. Like, crotch extends to mid thigh, huge. So although they are really supposed to look like tights they somewhat resemble the M.C. Hammer pants that I wore in the 5th grade. Hey, when you're single you just pull those bad boys up and fold them over to make them fit and move on. I never dreamed that someone would actually ever see them. But he did and he even went as far as to buy me new tights as a replacement, but they are not as warm and cozy! To make it worse I decided since Detroit would be so cold that I would just wear the tights and put the baggy Cuddle Duds on top and THEN put on the jeans. Morning Conversation: ME:(Walking across the living room like a runway model in Cuddle Duds and white socks) ADAM: "Dawn, those are awful! Those are going to cause a divorce." ME: "DRAMA, why?" ADAM: "Irreconcilable differences." END RANDOM SIDENOTE

So, warmer than necessary, we jump into the car around 6am and start our drive. Laughing and joking and, get this, LISTENING TO MUSIC!! Even though Adam felt like he was falsely represented in the previous blog, he took note of the comments and we listened to music for the majority of the trip. (Okay, I admit the part where I said we talked about the progression of graphic design from the early 90's til today was just for humor, but I figured everyone got that, nonetheless here is the disclaimer that I promised My Sweet!:)) So, basically the way up there was long but enjoyable. We stopped at Cracker Barrel (of course) and I took a 2 hour nap. Thanks Love, for driving 10 1/2 of the 12 hours. The weekend was great. We stayed with Adam's brother and his wife in their new home. Best hosts ever. Aaron LOVES being Adam's big brother and does it well. It's fun to watch them say the same things at the same time and do the "cackle laugh" that they both do. The most important part of the weekend was Adam's mom's party which was such a blessing. She was so happy that she was glowing. I opened the party with a song (because Adam's siblings have to make a program for every event) and then it was a time of memories and encouragement and Uncle Milt's barbecue. (Uncle Milt was killed about a year ago at the very place where the party was hosted. He was an extremely Godly man who opened the shop that he owned to young kids and former criminals to give them a second chance and fresh start by allowing them to work for him. Two teenagers, one of whom he had given the fresh start(an employee) killed him in a robbery attempt. His wife and children still run the restaurant and she is the most selfless, forgiving and Christ-like woman! It was a great party. And a great reminder through Adam's mother and Milt's wife of what you can do in Christ that you could have never been able to do or withstand without Him. Adam's mother has a very courageous story that made the outcome of getting her Masters from seminary at 55 a very beautiful God glorifying time. It was a great day.

30 degrees and snowy...not so bad...

4 degrees and snowy...pretty bad...excuse the black dot on the camera...it does that sometimes

Kevin, (Adam's cousin who looks SO much like Adam to me) Aaron, (Adam's big (6'8) brother) Nate (Adam's nephew)and Adam

Angie, (Sister in Law 1) Me, and Ebonique (Aaron's wife/Sister in Law 2) Ya'll I love them. I wish I could be around both of them a ton more.

Adam's mom cracking everyone up!! This family is a ball of laughter.

The Thomasons:) Still loving the sound of that.

So, it was a great time. We went to another birthday party Sunday and stayed with Adam's dad for the night. We got about 3-4 hours of sleep, ate breakfast, Adam pumped gas in the 0 degree weather and we headed out for our 12 hour drive. It was awful. I almost cried 3 times simply from being tired. Adam let me nap, but he said the whole time he was yelling at his eye lids to stay open but they were not obeying. You guys seriously don't know the miracle it is that we didnt wreck. Both of us were useless and nothing would help. It literally didnt get better until about the 8th hour. We stopped and ate and had a little more energy. After 10 hours, I took over and my sweet guy went to sleep. It was good to be home. We had a great time but are NEVER driving to Detroit again!! (Lord willing:) Okay, well I was going to post about Valentine's Day, but I know that I am a long blogger and will just wait til next week:)

Til Later,

White Privilege

2008-02-12T10:56:00.000-08:00

Okay, well I will update about Detroit sometime this week, but I HAD to post this. I feel that this is a very important sermon. If you don't know me and just read my blog for fun then you don't have to really pay attention, but if you are my friend and love me, for the sake of the gospel and the future hope of a Red Revolution (at least in our own lives) and even insight about views into my culture and background, please listen to this sermon. I don't normally do this but I want my friends to listen to this. I was out of town and hate that I missed it, but when I listened to it, I felt it was very important. I don't feel that I need too many disclaimers because my friends know where I stand on many issues and where ultimately my heart lies. This may be uncomfortable for half a second but this will touch the believer's heart. Knowing alot of your backgrounds I think this will be beneficial for our walks together. Would LOVE to hear your comments after the fact.

Go to www.fellowshipradio.org

It should be the first message by Ben Parkinson entitled "Being White in America." It's a part of our Black History month sermon series. Also, at the end Ben played a video that is important to see. You can find that here but skip ahead to the 3:20 mark for the segment that he showed. I am so excited to chat with you guys about this. I hope you will find some time in your day to listen to this. I dont like listening to sermons by people that I dont really know, but after about 10 minutes you'll be totally engaged.

What a breath of fresh air to hear a white male boldly talk about things that people don't want to talk about...not just for the sake of conversation but for the sake of the gospel. Praise the Lord.

Til Later,

Oh My Lawd Have Mercy On Us...

2008-02-07T08:22:00.001-08:00

Hey ya'll!! Thanks for being so encouraging in your responses to "Trashcan Head." One of my friends forwarded it to everyone in the world, so apart from the comments on the post I got a lot of feedback that encouraged me to take the hill of keeping my head as freed up from trash as possible. It's so crazy to hear some of the responses. At times I even giggled a little when people would say, "Well crap, are you saying I can't do this?" or "Not sure what it looks like to live that out daily." I love us:) Always looking for a rule! Haha (or a way out):) But, I would say practical application for me is...just stop. So, I know that doesn’t work for everyone and isn't breezy for me, but I think that's the practical application for most things in my life...I know what I should do, but don't do it...and that's my bad, so I need to work on that...

And onward we go!! Well, Shauna, my blog stalker reprimanded me for not posting so I am succumbing to her pressure and blogging. The bad thing for you is that I am a little sleepy and a lot bored and really feel like rambling...I will try to stay on topic though. The whole point of this blog is that my husband and I may need your prayers...we are headed to Detroit tomorrow...for a 12 hourish travel...together...by car...a Honda Civic Coupe. I am sure for most people this is a "no big deal" kind of scenario. I picture the "Lauren's and Jerry's" of the world waking up early, brushing their teeth side by side singing road trip jingles, Jerry putting on flip flops in the dead of winter, Lauren grabbing some otherwise unknown to be invented cordless electric heating blanket and the two hopping into the Kia laughing and drinking Starbucks as they drive off into the distance. And that sounds beautiful, but I have come to grips with the fact that since I took my first road trip to Memphis when Adam and I were engaged; that I HATE driving as a means by which to reach another state. It always sounds good in my head, but the moment I get into my sleek little Civic which I bought for my single 5'4 self (don’t anyone roll their eyes...I've decided that I am definitely 5'4) I realize I never imagined that a muscular 6'5 man would have to scrunch inside for a 12 hour road trip. At least you know that I was living in the moment rather than the future when I bought that car...although I was struggling with my "singleness" at that time, if I had come home with a "gold mini" that would have been a key sign that I was in desperate need of a reality check. But 5 months later when I met my future husband, I knew on sight the coupe was a mistake.

RANDOM SIDENOTE: My car has yet to recover from the many January road trips. I still have things we brought home from that trip in the car, not to mention the books that I may take somewhere but never want to carry back up stairs, not to mention my scarf and one glove...oh and lets see... not to mention the layer of dust on the dashboard because I don't want to use my "fun money" to get it cleaned...hence "fun money" and also in the car is the dry cleaning I put in there yesterday that never made it to the cleaners. Well, of course my "Dozen's Husband" (Remember the game you played when you were little where you made fun of people, yo mama jokes etc. etc. well it was called the Dozens) took my car for it's normal "Pre Road Trip" oil change this morning and saw the calamity that was my car (that he definitely contributed to) and began to make fun immediately. Morning Conversation ME: "Hmmm, I can't find my curling iron, maybe I accidentally left it in the car." ADAM: "Along with everything else you accidentally left. This girl opened a Forever 21 in her car and didnt tell nobody." (referring obviously to the dry cleaning)...(in a weird voice) "How much is this dress?" "Can I purchase this sweater?" "How much for the slice of pizza under the front seat?" END RANDOM SIDENOTE

My butt hurts just thinking about this trip. I mean it literally goes numb after being in the car 45 minutes. Anyway, no two people could be more different when it comes to life, let alone road trips...I like the first 4 hours to be filled with as much music as possible. Loud rap to hype me up for the trip, followed by some R&B so that I can work on my imaginary American Idol audition, (you aren’t the only one LC:)) followed by some old school country so that I can reminisce on the days when I took the stage at the Garland Opry (don’t even think about asking) followed by some really melancholy music so that I can try to force a "cry" so that I can act out a scene in an Oscar nominated movie. But of course this all happens when I drive alone...I normally end up mellowing out, realizing I am ridiculous, and spend the rest of the trip worshipping the Lord for putting up with me. But my husband...when he drives and I am in the car...wants to talk. And I mean about everything...life, work, theology, the gospel, the state of the world, the presidential election, the California Gold Rush and anything else that pops into his like Pumpkin Pie Head.

And that’s when the struggle begins...if I am not driving I prefer to be drooling, but in order for Adam to stay awake I HAVE to stay awake. He can’t really function if I am sleeping and if I do fall asleep I may wake up to find him reading a news article on his Blackberry while driving, and then the fight is on. I can’t take the driving/reading thing. And although he is one of the best drivers I have ever met and claims to be a "Ninja" when I say he shouldn’t be doing that (How that fits in I don’t know) I still don’t like it. So, I stay awake and eat gas station cupcakes and talk about the progression of graphic design from the early 90's til now and pray that he won’t pull over at the Western Sizzlin' buffet. But somehow we make it through and Lord willing we will make it again. I hope to take lots of pictures. Adam's mom graduated from seminary and it’s her birthday so they are having a big party, so the Prodigal Son and his new wife are going to head home for the first time in over a year to join in on the fun. It should be great. I really like Adam's family. They are all funny and nice and nice and funny and funny some more. Being in a room with them is like "Raaarraaaaaraaaa hahahahahaaa Raaarrarrr haahaa" and I like families like that because that's how my family is. Not afraid to be loud and fun. People may get their feelings hurt every now and then when the jokes go too far, but isn’t that what families are for? Testing out your hurtful jokes?? It should be a good time... If we make it!

Til Later,

Trashcan Head

2008-01-28T09:31:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I didn't take any pictures this weekend because Adam and I really didn't do anything. We lounged around in love. This may sound obvious, but I am glad that I married someone that I loved. I think in the past, though I had great claims and excuses in my trashcan head as to why I wanted to marry someone, love was probably never the final conclusion. I never really said aloud that I wanted to marry the men that I dated (except 1 possibly 2 that I can think of) but, let me tell you, I did the cursive writing name test, concocted weddings in my head and did every harmful thing possible to create a marriage idol. Well, thankfully God ignored my idiocy (save the repercussions of having idols) and gave me the true desires of my heart. We have our days as sure as Jesus is the Son of God, but we both seek to have a God glorifying marriage and try to take a machete to our flesh when it rises up. Tough to do, but worth it every time.

That's a total side note. I am blogging because I have actually been thinking a lot lately as I read the scriptures about my ultimate standard and this trashcan head of mine. (The one that almost landed me in a loveless marriage as well as many other horrible fates) Don't try to think too deeply about what I could mean by trashcan head, I literally mean that my head at times doubles as a trashcan. Yes, trashcan as defined, "a bin that holds rubbish." Pretty simple. Over the years my earnest heart has been to know and love, enjoy and to be whisked away by the things of Christ. At no point in my life have I been more aware that I long for that to be my reality then at this point in my life. I have a husband that loves the things of the Lord, I am in a discipleship training program that puts the importance of spirit over flesh in front of my face twice a week and I have a spirit inside of me that testifies to the truth. I am surrounded, but some days I refuse to surrender and just come out with my hands up.

I have a job that is a blessing, but on days that I don't look closely I call it boring, brain cell depleting and other creative complaints that no American has ever thought to call their job. And it really is just sinful. I spend my work days in between answering calls looking at CNN.com to find out that, "yep, the world still sucks," and guess what happens to me then... I go home thinking someone is lurking to kidnap me because I read 50 stories about abducted women. I daydream that terrorists will crash into my building because I work on the 32nd floor and I pray and get upset that celebrities die without Jesus when people are dying around me without Him everyday in my very own neighborhood with no more than a tiny pang in my heart. When CNN is just too much for me I go to people.com or concreteloop.com to just "escape." These sites are really just gossip disguised at Hollywood updates. Why I care what Angelina wore to the SAG awards or that Cindy Famous is normal like me because she goes to the grocery store is beyond me, but I read it...open my trashcan head and add more rubbish. How does that affect me? I start thinking..."I really could be a famous singer and still love Jesus, surely I can promote the Lord in between promoting myself for a living...surely theres a way!" This is what I do at work most days, save a few spiritual moments when I see that this place could be a six hour quiet time or six hours of organizing my life or thinking of how to be a creative wife, but as quickly as those thoughts enter my head, I push them out, compact the truth that I learn throughout the week and make room for more trash. And its literally killing me.

When I dwell on things other than the Lord, the world begins to etch its way into a spot in my life marked "STANDARD." Although cognitively I know that the world is not the standard, the more I indulge in those mindless things the more they set up shop in my head and slowly flow down into my heart. Honestly, I can only compact this trash into my head so far until it begins to make room in my head by filling up my heart. I hate this. This is one of my many childish things that I want to put away as I strive to be like my Example. One of the verses that I have been thinking on this past week has been Philippians 1:9-11 "And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ, having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." I am not approving what is excellent. Some days I do, but by the grace of my Lord I want to to go from some to most. I know which scriptures to jot down on this blog to create the illusion that I am near to getting the hang of this stronghold, but that would just be me pretending like I know what I need to focus on, when though I do, I don't. I want my life to match my doctrine. (1 Tim 4:16 NIV) I want to empty my trashcan head and fully soak in and LIVE the things that I know glorify the Lord. My doctrine is fine. Pray for my life!

Til Later,

The Wrap Up and the Wedding

2008-01-17T09:37:00.000-08:00

Well Geez, there is so much that I want to blog about that I am getting overwhelmed! I guess if I would blog regularly that wouldn't be a problem. I am not going to blog about New Years as I had planned, but I will say that we just chilled out with a big group and Adam led us in a great time of talking about the Mercy of Christ. He just focused on our abilities at times to create New Year's resolutions apart from Christ focusing on the new calendar year as though we have a greater fresh start when the reality is that the Lord's mercies are new EVERY MORNING. It was really refreshing and a great reminder. He had us write down the things that we had resolved to do in 08 in our own strength and had us nail them to a cross. Really just as symbolism that apart from viewing our goals in light of clinging to Jesus' work on the cross and its hope and redemptive power there was really nothing we could accomplish on our own that would be worth anything. Love you babe! Thanks for always leading not only me but, our community, well.

Some of the guys that were there...look at Danny...sheesh

Some of the girls...I was about to die, Adam and I went to dinner before hand and I ate WAY too much sushi, plus wine, plus some awful chocolate dessert with ice cream that I couldn't stop eating.

Moving on...As much as I love Texas...I AM OVER IT!!! Or at least over driving there! Because of Christmas and Melissa's wedding I found myself driving there 3 weeks in a row. I knew that would happened but figured it would be fine. Well it was fine until the weekend of the Bachelorette party. I had to drive by myself and I promise God added 100 miles to the route. It took forever. There were a few times that I wanted to cry, but I had to get myself together. But I was soooooooo glad to be apart of Mel's bach party and just her whole wedding in general! It was sooo much fun:) My sweet Smelly is married!

Matt was out of town so I stayed with Lauren. It was really fun:) We had a little girlie slumber party with Lauren B. the first night and ate pizza and cookies! I didn't go to bed til almost 3am! Even after that long drive!!! I think one of the Lauren's spiked my coke with No Dose.

Snuggle Party!! Later that night a trail of crumbs on the comforter led to the breakfast bar that Reid was eating that morning which was underneath my pillow:)

The girls heading to the Bach party...Lauren C was looking hot! Bachelorette Barbie??

We had a lingerie cookie decorating contest and a panel of married women that Mel could ask questions to. Here is Mel in all her "Fun Haired Glory" judging the cookies.

The Lauren's won...

Mel's bridal brunch! The old roommates from 1031! I love this:) We moved out LESS THAN A YEAR AGO and 3 of us are married and one is well on her way, but I won't say which one it is...

All the girls. Mel looked beautiful for every occasion. I give her new "trendy classy" look a definite thumbs up.

And then there was the wedding. It was really beautiful! The gospel was preached and people were shown Jesus in such great ways throughout the weekend. Mel was as beautiful as always. I didn't take alot of pictures at the wedding, I was too distracted by the fun and there was this other girl there, Lindsey Brittain, who takes pictures a little bit better than me so I let her do what she could. Hope they turn out okay. Congrats Mel!! I am so happy for you! Let the fun times begin:)

Tess and I... I love her more and more everyday!!

Me and Mel:)

I love being a bridesmaid for all the fun behind the scenes moments:) What a great weekend!

And just for fun...Tuesday night my honey and I went to see LEBRON JAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh and the Grizzlies and Cavaliers were there too. We had to hurry and eat something in the car because we wanted to see the team warm up and we might have missed something cool. We didn't...but Adam stopped off at a little Italian restaurant and I told him, "Hey babe, just get me something like a small slice of pizza..." With that in mind he went inside and came out with a slice the size of my head.

Struggling...its actually bigger than it looks.

But of course... I got the hang of it and ate the whole thing!

Adam ate a huge sandwich in the car too and then at the game decided to eat this...

Like this...

It was a fun time with my sweetie:) I was sneezing everywhere because I had day long allergies and he kept laughing and saying "Awww My Love is sick!" LeBron beat the Grizzlies and scored 51 points. He pretty much babysat them and taught them some moves...almost to his demise. Because of the amazingness of Rudy Gay (Grizzlies player) they had to go into overtime!! And then LeBron won:) (oh and the other guys on his team scored some points too.) Okay that's all y'all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for hanging in there!!!

Til Later,

Christmas Thru New Years Part 2

2008-01-07T11:38:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I was telling you about the December festivities. I could go on and on. So much happened. We went to Texas for Christmas and stayed for like 5 days. That's a long one for us. Christmas Eve night we had a get together with my family. It was good to see the whole family, cousins and all. There were almost more kids there than adults. My aunt pulled out the old school photo album as most family members do when they want to impress the new son-in-law and Adam got a kick out of making fun of not only me, but my whole family. My Uncle Tim made some homemade wings that blew Wing Stop out of the water and we just ate and had some old fashioned fun. Some pics...

My oldest brother Damien, his son...my sometimes sweet, always cute nephew DJ and my hubby:)

Another one with my "wing cookin" Uncle Tim

This is my cousin Gabby who is named after me...we share the same middle name... She stood by me and continually struck a pose until I took a picture of her...Watch out Paris Hilton!

Adam and I committing to take more pictures together

My mom and all her sisters. (L to R Yolanda, Bridget, Mama and Sheenon)

The famous Maw Maw...known for the "Stretch and go again" and many other quirky things. Adam and I stayed with Maw Maw Christmas Eve but had to leave the next day due to the "pillow protectors" that she had on the guess bed pillows...it sounded like we were sleeping on bags of potato chips all night so after throwing one across the room in the middle of the night we decided to head over to finish off our week stay at Lauren and Jerry's! Sweet Maw Maw will be 72 in 2 days. Happy Birthday Maw Maw!

Auntie Toys and Christina...one of my favorite people:)

My brothers and I...The Terrible 3...Damien, Chris and Dawntoya (oh and my other nephew Chris who is my little fat face)

And finally the kids playing (or jumping on rather...) Dance, Dance Revolution.

I love my family, that's why I posted so many pictures. Some are lost, some love Jesus, but all love me and Adam and we love them and have a future and eternal hope for them all from youngest to oldest. We have had hard days and some good ones in between but they are my first and oldest friends and I love them:)

Okay, so Christmas Day we didn't take any pictures, but it was eventful. The gospel was shared in a real way that day, so we will see what comes of it. Adam and I ended the night with Summer and Brittain at the movies seeing The Great Debaters. Adam and I really loved that movie. Its one I am buying for sure.

We stayed at Lauren and Jerry's and they were the best hosts ever even though they weren't even home. They left us a sweet note and CASH!!! for dinner, now that was a fun surprise! Thanks again y'all!

We had a lot of fun but it was a roller coaster...we had lunch with the Chandlers which is always more than fun...

Thanks Lauren for sending the pic...the hostess did "struggle" shooting this, but hey its better than nothing:)

Other highlights...I visited my dad, grandparents and sister and Adam and I got into one of our top 3 worst fights (God is working on us:)) I had some mall time and cheesecake with Summer and we celebrated Darragh's 30th birthday with a surprise party. Talk about HAVING NO IDEA! It was the most fun because I have never seen anyone THAT SURPRISED! She cried and was so happy:) It was fun to see. Good job LeCrae and friends.

A teary eyed Darragh hugging a friend

Darragh was "out of control" happy and smiley:)

Adam and I at the party...he is so handsome to me:)

And finally...oh my Lord...This was an old school dance party and Adam vowed that he wasn't leaving without "breakin' a sweat" and boy did he keep his promise. Y'all this brotha thought he was on Soul Train. At one point we had a soul train line and he got out there and did a move and literally jumped into guy splits on the right leg and pulled up and quickly did the left splits like he was James Brown. I ran off the dance floor screaming. For an example check out the end of this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l89xJPi2U_Q

My Babe gettin' his dance on...

Well, there is actually going to be a part 3...I know that you probably don't care that much, but once I start I cant stop. Love you!

Til Later,

Christmas thru New Years Part 1

2008-01-03T10:58:00.000-08:00

This is my M.O...I don't post for weeks and then I post the longest blog ever to get the pictures off my camera. I am sure this bogs down the person who wants to read an update but not a novel. To you, I apologize. For the rest who have boring jobs or spare time...this is for you. Okay, so before Christmas we went to several parties. It was actually fun and really this year I felt no "Christmas Burnout." I only took my camera to like 3 parties. Here are a couple.

We had our community group "Dirty Santa" Christmas party. I have done White Elephant but never "Dirty Santa" where you could've literally given a half eaten sandwich with a bow on it and I think it would have been fine. No one would trade because everything was so horrible. Our gift was the only one that was stolen and became frozen so I am proud of that. My favorite gift of the night was that of the newly married Sarah and David. They claimed to have gotten horrible wedding gifts at their shower that could beat any one's bad gift stories but I didn't really believe them...well I for SURE think they won. They put their least favorite wedding gifts in the Dirty Santa and one of them were knitted pillowcases of a kitten in a basket of flowers. What the *(#&$*#&? Okay, sorry but that is awful...READERS...PLEASE DO NOT KNIT THINGS AND GIVE THEM TO YOUNG NEWLY WEDS UNLESS YOU WORK FOR KARL LAGERFELD AND HAVE A REAL TALENT FOR SEWING THINGS THAT COULD BE RELEVANT IN OUR CURRENT DECADE. Oh David also said for his birthday his "unique aunt" got him an old rock that was obviously not his gift of choice, but became even funnier when he did research and found that it was fossilized coyote poop...

The happy couple Sarah and David

LeCrae and Darragh were the lucky winners

LeCrae then used his fame to exploit a young impressionable fan by telling him that Kitten Pillowcases were "where its at." The kid fell for it, Crae signed it and now that kid has bad decor in his bedroom.

And just for fun, our community group babies:) Jeremiah and David. Jeremiah belongs to (well God) Rosheka and Steffon Smith and David is Darragh and LeCrae's.

Let's see...then Shannon and I had a cookie exchange. I was totally stressed out about this...Molly Abrigg gave me a recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies and they were not looking like cookies. They actually turned out sort of plastic looking. But Shannon swore that she loved them. It wasn't Molly's fault, I just think something went wrong:) I thank you Molly for your help. It was a fun group of about 12 girls from the ages of like 19-35 so that was unique but really fun. We had a really good time. I didn't do well taking pictures, but here are some random pics...

I took this picture because I wanted a before and after of the table once it was full of cookies...the only problem is I didn't take the after picture.

This is Liz whom I love...she was acting out a famous name to other guests...Darragh and I won this game and Liz was not happy about that at ALL!! Anyone who knows Liz loves her or makes fun of her. She seriously longs to live a sitcom or a movie...she wants to go to a diner where everyone knows her name and do "fun" things and have "Friends" type friends. I love to watch her create these moments! Everyone needs more Liz in their lives:)

Okay and this is Shannon. She and I hosted the party together. You might remember Shannon from the previous post when we almost got into a fist fight over "mom sweaters." Well I took this picture of Shannon because I stare at her often because I think she is so beautiful. If Shannon even had an inkling of how beautiful she was she might be an unmanageable snob:) (probably not) but she is so naturally humble and sweet. Shannon was looking even more beautiful to me that day because she was gaining weight:) I wont out all of Shannon's life but she is 12 weeks pregnant. I call this a miracle of God. Ordinarily it is indeed a miracle but Shannon and Jeremy have been married for 5 years and could never get pregnant. It just wouldn't happen. Well Shannon went to see a fertility specialist and went home with nothing more than an "I will see you next time." Well she missed her next appointment because she was in Hong Kong and missed the one after that because she was pregnant. Nothing but God and a little whole milk. Adam and I had prayed for them about this specifically and are so excited for them. Congratulations. LOVE YOU SHANNON! DON'T BE EMBARRASSED WHEN YOU READ THIS!

Okay, well I will post Part 2 of the Christmas and New Years activities on Monday. I am driving to Dallas (for the second week in a row) to celebrate Melissa's bachlorette party! WOO HOO!! Adam is en route to Colorado and Matt C is out of town so I will be staying with Lauren C. So that should be a fun slumber party!!!!!!!!!!! Til Later,

Office Parties...Woo Hoo!

2007-12-19T11:45:00.000-08:00

Last night Adam and I got dressed up for a fancy dinner with my coworkers at a great little steakhouse in Memphis called Folk's Folly. I wish I would have photographed the food because it was delicious. Most people ate Filet Mignon and grouper but I branched out with the rib eye and I think I ended up with the meal of the night. There were family style sides of potatoes, squash and spinach and we had our choice of Cheesecake (which I didn't have even though it looked incredible)or brownies and ice cream. If you know me you KNOW that I had to have the latter. Even after putting away a steak I still had to eat as much of that chocolaty goodness that I could. I didn't take any pictures of my co-workers because I thought that would have been odd to just keep snapping pictures, but they are nice people. Adam and I sat by Ben and Ashley. Ashley used to work at the company but I took her place once she left to have her baby. I was glad that she and Ben were there though. We definitely had some good times and jokes amongst ourselves. These people handle millionaire accounts all day and took us to the most expensive place in Memphis so every now and then Ben would do his "stuffy rich guy laugh" just for fun. I liked it:)I only have 6 coworkers, so it was quaint but fun. Here are a couple pics...

A candid of new parents Ben and Ashley...Sloan was asleep in a car seat in the corner...he never woke up!

A more "serious" picture of the Washers...

I then asked Ben to take a picture of Adam and I...not sure why I did that...I began posing and this is what we come up with...

I am smiling big and he only shoots Adam

seriously Ben??

And because he says that "jokes aren't funny the 3rd time" he finally took a normal one...

Okay, well that's all for now
Til Later,

One Big Overwhelming Update

2007-12-18T08:33:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends,
Well, I haven't blogged in awhile because we never take our camera anywhere. This week we went to one of the best and most beautifully decorated Christmas parties that I think I have ever been to.(7 Christmas trees, decorations everywhere, a chef turning out every amazing entree and cake and pie you could dream of and me avoiding small talk like the plague) Adam and I put on our Christmas best and were shining bright, but our camera was sitting at home in our dark house. But it was so fun. One of our pastor's wives hosted it at their home. She is a party queen and so much fun. You can't really describe Beth. It was a good time. Wish I had pics. Everyone really dressed up and I love a good party where you feel free to put on your best. Anywho, tons of other things have been happening but since I don't have pictures I will spare you, but it has been a roller coaster. We have some good things going on as well as the ongoing struggle of living out a marriage that seeks to glorify the Lord. Adam and I are daily trying to have a biblical worldview...sounds easy enough...NO WAY!!! It changes EVERYTHING!!! It's so challenging to no longer cling to the world but rather be conformed into the image of Christ and head down the narrow path. Its not legalism, but rather a pure excavation of the heart. I feel every scrape. The 4 verses that we are looking at in our marriage right now are Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few." Colossians 2:8 "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ." 2nd Corinthians 10:5-6 "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete." And finally, Ephesians "...so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes." If you get a chance, read through those this week and see what they may be saying to your heart and life. Hold your heart and life up to them and be honest about what you hear.

Well I have added some older pics just so I can get them off the camera:) Here is what we have been up to. (This is so random and in no way all that we have been up to) We went to see the Grizzlies play the Houston Rockets awhile ago. The Grizzlies were the worst team in the league last year and I am not sure that they are any better this year so I really went to see Tracy McGrady own them, BUT the Grizzlies TOTALLY won! (But not before T Mac did a freaking 180 dunk on Rudy Gay, I almost jumped onto the court) Adam just wanted to see Yao Ming.

The only man...ahem... black man at that... I have ever seen sporting a Yao jersey...ahem...over a leather coat...

Adam forced me to take like 20 pictures of Yao, but I just posted the most clear picture. Sorry babe. But look how close we were! That's no zoom baby!

Adam and I at the game...Why do you make that face Sweet?

I really can't believe they lost, but T Mac can't beat whole teams by himself HOUSTON!

Adam and I started our Thanksgiving tradition. We made a meal together for brunch/lunch and once we were done eating we snuggled on the couch while my sweetie taught me some things about the life of John the Baptist that we want seen in our own lives and marriage and then I sang over us and we worshipped on the couch just the 2 of us.

Here is our "fat free" brunch of fiesta spoon bread, cheese grits, red eye maple seared ham, REAL bacon:) and our version of chard. It was good to our souls!!!!!!!!!

We ran the St. Jude 5k. Adam refuses to run long distances but he found a good cause and signed us up and 2 days later I was dying on a 3 mile run asking the Lord to twist my ankle in a pothole, but it was "fun." Danny and Ben ran with us too. Its time for me to workout. I kept thinking "3 miles is NOTHING! I have ran a half marathon!" But that was totally like 2 years ago and I haven't ran an inch in at least 9 months. Even though he later revealed that he thought it was payback for my arrogance he stayed by my side the whole way:) ahhh LOVE.

What's a race in Memphis without a fake Elvis?

Even more random...Heather and Jaxon came over so that Adam could cut fabric for a head wrap for her and teach her to tie it. (My husband is a different species) And I just thought they looked funny:)

Its supposed to look like this but smaller...

Lessons...(note: Heather covered up half of her face:) )

Jaxon rolling on the floor

And the last pic I have is just Adam and I chilling last week at the Crichton Student Development Christmas party. That was fun:) 4 different kinds of chili, ice cream cake, cookies, Nintendo Wii and a bible trivia face off between Adam and Danny. It was a fun night.

Okay, I think that's it. Thanks for being patient.
Til Later,

So Much to Blog About, So Few Brain Cells

2007-12-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

No Summer, This is the Longest Post Eveeerrrrrr!!!

2007-11-20T08:46:00.000-08:00

Okay, well today I am blogged out. Now that I have a meaningless job I literally look on every kind of blog that you can imagine. I won't sell myself out and name them, but it can be pretty fun. I learned in Downline last night that you should always "bloom where you are planted" and boy did I agree with that! If we stay in Memphis or head back to Dallas or even move to Detroit (which was rated this week as the most violent city in America) you better believe I will continue to disciple girls and share the gospel. But my job seriously seems meaningless and I am wondering how to "bloom" here. I know that God can use me, but the bottom line is NOBODY ever walks by my desk, and the only way you can talk to people is if they walk by... so that is how I justify wasting my life away online. Which I actually don't mind so much:) Trust me, I try my hardest to be productive. I read scriptures at work, memorize verses, read Downline material, look up recipes, pay my bills, on down to googling the joke of the day, but still I have plenty of time to read that the new Balenciaga shoe is $4,175 and looks like Lego's to me.

(I tried not to like them, but B's combo is great...she rocked them)

It also gives me time to contemplate on things such as "Why did Michael Vick turn himself in to begin serving his sentence right before Thanksgiving, you know that jail lunch is going to be wack...and...Why does this brother feel the need to have a box of 64 Crayons around his neck?

Sean Kingston aka A Hot Mess (Summer's new favorite phrase)

Anyway, bottom line, I am all blogged out, but I feel that since I took pictures of random things that I should put them up. I won't be as elaborate and long winded as I normally am, but here is what we did LAST weekend (I am always so behind)

Adam took me to Texas De Brazil...which I NEVER thought he would do because he has said in the past that I really don't eat enough to go and spend that kind of money. But I did pretty good! Usually mass amounts of meat don't fall under the category of "my kinda thing," but for some reason I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the salad bar and meat were so good! I had a craving to go back like 2 days later but I didn't have and extra $100 lying around. We got one of the meals free because of Adam's birthday, so that was good...and lets be honest, why we went.

Me eating meat...Adam really is too tall to take pictures...he has to hold it at his chest which always either 1. cuts off people's heads or 2. makes women think he is aiming at their breasts. (inappropriate but true)

Overwhelming...I officially don't like lamb...

We asked a guy to take a picture of us, but I think he thought we said, "Hey, will you just randomly start snapping pictures when we aren't ready?" But we were grateful;)

That's better, except that my "hanger loop" is making a run for it

Saturday we cooked dinner and went to the hospital to check in on Vanja, BJ and baby Jonathan. I don't have any pictures because, I'm not sure, but I don't think Vanja was feeling like a Cover Girl after having her baby without an epidural. Trooper. But they have a fat and healthy little baby:) Can't wait to see him tonight! Maybe I will take pictures then...

Sunday I had girls from Crichton over for something called "Sisterhood." It's for believers and non believers. Its something that I am not sure how to explain yet, but right now it is just a hang out time with food and questions. These two groups of girls have certain views of each other and normally don't hang out, so this is a time for everyone to get together. We answered questions like, "What is something that you lied about when you were younger that your parents never found out about," or "What was you most romantic date," etc. It just gave us ideas about where we were, where we came from and where we are now. I decided to step out on a ledge and put myself out there when I answered some of the questions to show the girls that I know are struggling that I am not some perfect girl and led a very different life before I was Mrs. AT. It was actually quite funny...for a second some of those girls COMPLETELY forgot that I was Mrs. AT (aka campus Spiritual Life Director) and told some stories that made me blush...but each time we meet the plan is to go deeper and deeper until we find ourselves knee deep in the gospel asking very black and white, now or never questions. You can pray for this time which is mainly student led (I just facilitate) but alot of these girls don't know Christ, don't trust the Christian girls and are living some pretty intense lives.

Lindsay and Quita messing up my newly cleaned kitchen...I disciple Lindsay and she just started discipling Quita! A little Downline already!

Me and Brittany...discussing the topic at hand

Me and Tandria...tough shell, soft heart...or as she calls herself "street, but sweet"

Prashonda and Brittany

The Girls...Terese in the green started Sisterhood

Oh and this week I went to Texas and saw many of my beautiful friends and stayed with the gracious Pattersons. (Adam now adores Natalie and thinks being a mother is the highest calling) While I was there I went to see Kim who used to do my eyebrows and got them waxed after like 5 months. Almost cried...they are beautiful:) Ashley and Ben had their baby. (Ashley did the work) After 29 hours of labor Sloan Jeffery Washer showed up looking beautiful at 6lbs and 15oz. And we had our community group Thanksgiving. Another great weekend:)

Okay, well to be blogged out I sure did ramble...even though I swore I wouldnt...oh well, what can you do?

Til Later...

Movies+3=0 Brain Cells

2007-11-12T12:33:00.000-08:00

Last week Adam and I had our fair share of movies. I go to like 1 movie a month, if that, but last week we saw "Why Did I Get Married?," "The Assassination of Jesse James," and "American Gangster." I was going to blog about those experiences but last week I was so overly opinionated that I annoyed myself, so I wanted to spare you. I will say this though, Adam doesn't like Tyler Perry, (Actor and writer of "Why Did I get Married," "Diary of a Mad Black Woman" etc.)and the only reason he even went to this movie was because LeCrae and Darragh saw it and LeCrae liked some aspects of it, so he trusted him enough to see it. So, at the beginning of the movie we made a deal that he wouldn't sigh heavily and make comments until after the movie. He did a great job:) I probably shouldn't say he doesn't like Tyler Perry but rather he believes that he exploits black people in his movies. And I agree, but sometimes I think its funny. Just know that when you watch those films that all black people don't act the way that he portrays them, in the same way that all white people who are into NASCAR probably don't live and act like Ricky Bobby in Talladega Nights. (Emphasis on the "probably") It's best to keep in mind that no one people group can be lumped in with "all" at any point. The movie was okay. It had some great convo topics, but isn't necessarily the relationship therapy that I continually hear people talking about just because it mentions the "80/20" rule. If you want to learn about that, go see the movie:)

We also saw the "Assassination of Jesse James" which I would actually recommend. But you definitely have to be in the mood (girls) to see it. Its kind of slow and "ho hum" and without Brad Pitt (who I wasn't paying attention to because I was already sitting next to the finest man in the world) you might be tempted to doze, but its just a great re-telling of the story of the man's assassination. I think it just paints a great picture of the cycle of sin. They focused alot on the man who killed him and I believe Casey Affleck should get an Oscar nod for the role.

And finally the movie that I still can't get over...American Gangster. This movie (which is based on a true story of the crime life of Frank Lucas) is why I failed to blog last week because it really just had me kind of upset. Denzel Washington is so dazzling in every single movie that he is in and can make you fall in love with any character, but even his charm would not allow me to root for this bad guy. He just literally got away with murder, not to mention all the people his heroin killed. I found myself googling him all week to see pictures of his family and trying to get the real story. The movie was very "Hollywood" and only about 20% actually happened the way they recorded it. I will paste a link below if you want to read the New York Times article that led to the writing of this movie. The man is now "up in age" and in a wheel chair and still seemingly as heartless as he was in the 70's. The movie claims that he got 15 years for his crimes after putting away "bad cops" but he actually served 3! He later went back to jail for 7 years for selling again. There are some great lines in the movie which I won't quote and ruin for you, but they gave insight on the way we tend to view ourselves better than we are in this fallen world. This movie just really made me aware that there is no justice apart from God. It's crazy how a man can commit every crime but get off by dropping a few names. It all just seems to be a game. Michael Vick should have hope. Before Mel Gibson loses the rest of his mind, I want him to make another great movie about the faith. Some stories are worth retelling to magnify and glorify a person. Jesus was the Perfect Candidate, Frank Lucas...not so much.

The article that started it all...
http://nymag.com/nymag/features/3649/

He also has a daughter who suffered while her parents were in jail, to hear her story...
http://www.glamour.com/news/articles/2007/10/druglord?currentPage=1

Ps...I should have known it was going to be bad...look at the ghetto movie ticket Adam got when he went to go buy the tickets...The girl just wrote the movie, the time and her first name. I just knew we were going to get tackled trying to enter the theater with this busted ticket.

Okay, that's all...Til Later...

Fishing and Other Fun Things

2007-10-31T07:28:00.000-07:00

Well, since last weekend was Red Rev and we had friends and family in town, we thought we would go low key this weekend, but it was pretty fun. Friday night Shannon and Jeremy came over to play Scrabble. I am not really sure if they actually came over to play Scrabble, but since Danny bought Adam the Onyx Edition of Scrabble we now have to force everyone that comes into our home to play. FYI, that makes the 3rd Scrabble game in our 6 month marriage that we now own...I guess if you find something you like, go for it. So we played Scrabble while at the same time, almost ending our friendships. After the real game of Scrabble Jeremy and Adam began making up games with the tiles and fought about how the other person's game didnt make any sense etc. Shannon and I tried to calm them down but found ourselves in a fight of our own. Shannon is from Minnesota and has only been in Memphis a few months and accused me of hating all of her winter sweaters especially the red one with the white snowflake. Apparently that sweater was like $170 from J Crew and she refused to allow me to lump it in with other seasonal sweaters. Out of nowhere she screamed "That does not mean that I am going to end up wearing Mom Jeans!!" I knew immediately that this was about my sharing HBA (Heart Butt Association) with her and the fear that rises up in any woman who fits any HBA description. I have tried my best to reassure her that some of her sweaters were fine and that as a member of the HBA I would warn her when she was on thin ice. After that Adam shaved Jeremy's golden locks out of nowhere. That was a first for him. Shannon cut her hair awhile ago so maybe he wanted a change too.

A little Scrabble

Jeremy a little too excited about winning and his future cut

Shannon and Jeremy before the cut

Shannon and Jeremy after the cut...our camera had a black spot:(

Once the Iwaszkoweics (tough I know) left, Adam and I were really tired and debated our early morning date. We wanted to make a crock pot breakfast and head to the lake early for my first fishing experience. We were so tired we almost ditched the whole idea (or maybe that was me) but instead we just decided to ditch the breakfast.

A tired Adam looking up crock pot recipes before we ditched the idea

The next morning we (I) got up a little late but we headed out to buy fishing poles and to fish. I have to admit even though we were out there for like 4 hours or so and didnt catch a single fish, I think I could actually enjoy it if I had the hang of it. But as a disclaimer we spent most of our time scouting out a place and not much time fishing. After we gave up on the lake we chose that morning, we went to "Catch Em Lake" or as Adam called it "Catch Not a Damn Thing Lake" and tried to fish there. LUCKILY we didnt catch anything because apparently we parked in the wrong spot and went in FOR FREE!! We didnt even know we stole lake time until we were leaving. We met a man who caught 6 cat fish and was headed to pay for them. He was nice and gave us some fishing tools for the future. We never got his name, but we liked him.

toothpastefordinner.com

Picking out poles

The first lake...it had been drying up all summer

Heading up the trail to the lake...shortly after I ran and got a blanket and some really nice gloves:) Adam called me "high class" and he wasnt being sweet.

Adam working hard on my "baby" pole

Working harder still...pretty cute:)

me catching nothing

The man w all the fish and who informed us we broke a law

That night we had a pretty funny dinner. Adam made pork chops, mashed potatoes, green beans and Vanja brought over macaroni and cheese and we had a good time talking about our favorite old school movies and other things that I can't share. Ashley, Ben, Vanja, BJ, Darragh, LeCrae, Rick, Danny, and babies Love, David and Jaxon all showed up for the fun.

Does Ashley look like her baby is due in 4 days?

Pregos eating all the food

Darragh, LeCrae and David

Vanja (also due in a few days)and BJ

One of the quieter times of the night...Ben said we were so loud at one point he just started yelling wordless noises and no one noticed

Sunday after church we went to watch Jeremy coach the last Crichton soccer game of the season.
One of our favorite kids, Isaac, was there. He is from the Sudan but he, his mom and four siblings moved to Memphis. He tried to take Adam down for about 10 minutes but couldnt even move him. Once he gave up Adam showed him our secret handshake. He loved it:) Then we headed to Memphis Pizza Cafe and ended our night at Ben and Ashley's new home with a few other friends (mostly who were at our house Friday night) to play games and eat fajitas. Love these people...FUN TIMES!

Shannon and I at the game

Isaac learning the shake

Me Ashley and Sloan (inside belly) after Mexican

ox-y-mo-ron n. A rhetorical figure in which incongruous or contradictory terms are combined

2007-10-30T11:40:00.000-07:00

Adam and I were headed to the grocery store Sunday night for some refried beans...which Adam HATES. Ashley was cooking fajitas so that was our addition to the meal. However, thats not the point. The point is, we saw one of our fellow brethren rolling through the parking lot, leaning to the side, BUMPIN' the new 50 Cent album in a Toyota Yaris...Hmmm we thought..."Can the two co-exist?" Let me know what you think...Is this an oxymoron?

The exact color and car in question...

50 Cent

The Red Revolution

2007-10-24T10:32:00.000-07:00

Well, the Red Revolution was this weekend and I seriously lack the words to describe it. It almost feels like when you go on an incredible mission trip and people ask you to unpack all that happened and even though you long to share what God did, you literally feel like they just should have been there. That's the Red Revolution. I will say this, it was SUPERNATURAL and God made it happen. But here is my best recap of the weekend...Friday we started the load in and just felt the buzz in the air that the day that Adam has been planning for a year was finally there. The guys from Nashville (our "rockers" for the night) began to arrive and it just felt exciting to meet all the guys. Then the Reach Records artists started to arrive and it just felt like family was home. It was such a great day of anticipation. Hearing the rockers rehearse songs from the "Amped" album (which the lead guitarist produced)got everybody going crazy. They were a godly band that lacked NO talent. Probably the most together, cleanest, but intuitively talented band I have heard play... ever. THEN....Lauren and Bex came into town! I call that moment a "soul kiss" from God. It felt incredible to have friends from home drive 7 hours to come support us. Fast forward to Saturday morning. Liz and Ashley cooked breakfast for about 45 people and we all just ate and talked. Saturday afternoon the girls and I chilled and I practiced my song for the night in front of them while the artists and my sweet honey went to the Memphis museum Stax. This is a place that tells the story of the racial tension of Memphis and the how the only people that seemed to come together after Martin Luther King was killed were the musicians. Stax is a former recording studio, now museum, where people like Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes and many others began their career. Basically, the Red Revolution started at Stax with the artists going on tours of the museum with people that would come to the concert that night talking about racial tension and the church. And then the show started. I was so NERVOUS!! But that was crushed immediately! Adam was up first to explain why we were there...not just for an amazing concert but to learn through rap, rock, spoken word, video, song, an incredible drum line and a powerful message that we are as 1 Peter 2:9-10 says, "...a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, set apart so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him that called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. You were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD...!" and most importantly he said, we were there to worship! Once that was said, I stepped out to sing the 1st verse twice of the hymn "I Love You Lord." It was incredible! The people were so ready to go, I could hear them yelling the Amens! while Adam was speaking and while I was singing. They had come so hype! So ready! And the night excelled from there. Amazing. I normally stress when I am apart of the process of making a concert happen, but once I sang, I took a seat in the audience and sang every word with the rockers and rapped every word with the rappers and when the two came together after performing separately all night for the last 6 songs that make up the "Amped" album I was on fire!!! Rebekah leaned over to me and said "Oh my goodness, they should always perform together!" Our point exactly! Check out theredrevolution.com and ask yourself the question..."What color am I?" "Am I black, white, Hispanic or RED because Christ died for me and my brothers and sisters in Christ?" We must unite and see the beauty of culture in each other but recognize first that culture is beautiful but created by man. God can be seen in all cultures, but when you allow it to lord your life instead of Christ or let it dictate who you fellowship with and love inside the Body, well then, it has taken its undeserving place in a hierarchy that God does not recognize. Don't lose your culture, but recognize that Peter would say that it is sooo secondary that we are considered "not a people" until we are a people in the chosen race of God. That is primary. God's glory is so huge that it can't only be manifest in the hood or the "burbs." Lets stop being boring and branch out, or more importantly BE THE BODY! Til Later!

a little rehearsal

Trip Lee, Sho Baraka, Tedashii, and LeCrae...Men with serious hearts for the Lord!

My hubby and the guys headed to Stax!

Adam leading the guys in a devotional to prepare for the day

nearly 800 people came out to celebrate RED of all races AGES! and gender

Adam did everything from plan the event to designing the t-shirts we wore! I am not sure, but I think he was pleased with the night.

BIG WHEEL! The crowd pleaser Jesus Musik had everyone excited. I literally saw a 60 year old white mother of 2 doing the motions while rapping!! ONLY JESUS!

People writing on the graffitti wall their committments to go home and be change agents

Already the Worst Blogger Ever

2007-08-28T11:59:00.000-07:00

Well, I don't have anything great to say today, although that doesn't mean incredible things aren't happening in our lives, but I just realized that I have not blogged since I started this. Lots of that honestly has to do with the fact that Adam and I are still in the Stone Ages and are trying to do life without the internet. But today I am at Reach Records waiting to record for Sho Baraka's album. I am clueless when it comes to this kind of stuff. I have written a hook that people seem to think is "tight" or at least that is what they keep saying, but as much as I love Hip Hop I am struggling to be confident in my writing ability when it comes to that genre. So, we'll see what happens. I am headed to Texas again this weekend but I am not that excited about it since I will be leaving without my husband. He is headed to China with a team from the Village. Yes...I am the one who went to the Village for 4 years and wanted to go to China but someone who went there like 3 times gets to go, but I am really not bitter and this really isn't ruining our marriage. Honestly though, Adam is the better of the two to go. He has a heart for people like you wouldn't believe. I still wonder why God was so gracious to me in giving me Adam as a husband. It's a lot to be a good steward of. I can't wait to hear what God does. But I guess I better go pretend like I know what I am doing...which I think they will discover quickly is not the case. I will see all you Texans this weekend at the famous Clore/Drew wedding and then some pool side time with the rest of my homies. I know thats corney...that may prove that I am not ready to record anything Hip Hop let alone blog.

Til later...

We're Here

2007-08-04T11:33:00.000-07:00

Well Hi! Guess what I did? I dug up my old "Blog Smog" blogger and have now begun what I have been so excited to do, and that's to blog about the quirkiness of mine and Adam's life. It has been a whirlwind but I can't update you because I am on borrowed time. Adam and I don't have Internet yet so I won't get to blog about as much as I want, but don't worry, I will figure out a way to continually join the fun. We have loved reading every one's blogs. Them Chandlers proves that Lauren should have been a journalist and written editorials. She is a great writer. Lauren W just has me laughing and shaking my head like she always does. I loved seeing pictures of Lily and now love hearing from Nat Pats heart while checking up on who LB is making famous through her photos. But my favorite might be SummyV and Dawnyt:) It's just what we normally are...ridiculous, yet at times pretty thought provoking. So, I am now glad that I will have free reign to peep into your lives. Til later...

BLOG SMOG (Check out how I've changed since then:))

2006-01-23T08:49:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my blog. This is my first blog and I hesitate to write it. Normally I wouldn't even consider "blogging" because honestly I don't even really know what that means, but this is a school assignment, so I have to write about something. But as I begin to evaluate what's important to me, as the assignment suggests, to "blog" about, somewhere in my mind I've branded "computer things" (Obviously I don't speak the language) as something that I would never fully engage in. Of course I have an e-mail account and love to check out things online from time to time, but I'm speaking of the latest internet crazes that begin to consume people's lives and precious office hours. I mean, lets be honest, I am way to cool to "blog", waste 3 hours of my life on "My Space," or care to read up on what every else thinks.

This sounds selfish and horrible doesn't it? Before I've introduced myself I've been branded as a snob with much resemblance of a character from "Sweet Valley High." But I wonder, as I build up the courage to put my own thoughts out into "cyber space," (I'm conforming already) is everyone so conceited or self absorbed that they think I care to read about their one sided opinions on The War in Iraq, George Bush, Fundamentalist Christians, why people are going to hell, why Beyonce shouldn't marry Jay Z, why Angelina should marry Brad, or why PB& J is the greatest sandwich on earth?

I feel like I want to call a press conference to let everyone know that "NO ONE CARES!!" I laugh out loud as I picture myself taking a seat, tapping the mic to make sure that it's on, and taking the time to thank everyone for coming out. I'd clear my throat, take in a deep breath and say "I won't keep you all long, but I've called this press conference to inform you that everyone can cease all blogging at this point. I've recently discovered as I've been reading blogs online that no one really cares what you have to say. People are self absorbed and are really just reading your blog to make sure that it still sucks in comparison to theirs. Once they've discovered this, they will now exit your blog page and start one of their own to try to once again one up their blog nemesis. This is neither helpful nor beneficial to society and your efforts would be at better use in your own personal diary. I am aware that beneficial and helpful are synonyms and could not think of any other words to use. You may scratch one from the record and choose the word of your choice. I will not be accepting any questions, but thank you for coming out today."

As I laugh aloud at my own joke; I realize in horror (slightly dramatic) that I am, in my own blog, doing the very thing that I think I'm too cool for. I don't mean this blogging assignment, but rather informing you all of my "blog press conference dream" because I think its funny and because I want everyone to know how my mind works even if its about something kinda dumb. It's the same as informing you of my views about the war in Iraq. I want you to know. I may not realize it, but I too have a deep longing to express not only my opinions but my absolute truths to not just a few people, but the entire world! Is that so bad? As I sit and think about how times have changed I realize that people have been blogging for years in just a different way.

As I scream from my high horse "That no one gives a rip about what anyone has to say," I realize how incredibly wrong and ignorant that statement is. Looking up the definition of "blog" I discovered the meaning of this word is simply that "its a publicly accessible personal journal for an individual." Whereas initially I'd say, "How about everybody stick to a non publicly accessible personal journal? Hence the word personal." If that's really all a blog is then I now see that I long to be apart of people's "blogs" and I always have been. Ludacris made public his personal thought that "You can't turn a ho into a house wife cause ho's don't act right." Now I don't know if I agree, but I loved hearing him say it over a sick beat. Being a music lover I've been happy to be apart of so many's personal yet public thoughts. From Alicia Keys, to Jay Z, to Karen Carpenter I may not have agreed or have even enjoyed EVERY song but I have been glad to be apart. I'm glad that so many have gone from personal to public. I'm glad that on January 1, 1863 for regardless of the reasoning, a man in charge of a nation went public and announced that all slaves in states or parts of states would be freed. I'm glad that a black Baptist minister decided to go public on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial August 28, 1963 to let the world know that he "had a dream." And I'm so glad that in a world where it's almost obscene to say that you follow Jesus someone made public that if I accepted Him as God and lived my life according to His plan that not only would I have eternal life after death, but that I could have the best possible life and the fullness of joy, peace, and love in Him right now. These along with so many other personal thoughts that went public have changed the course of my life forever. So, while I spend my days thinking "Blog smog, people are wasting their energies," I realize now that I'm thankful that people do. Apparently people have been "blogging" for years only it stood for something other than "web log" it stood for so much more. Some of it is hilarious on a not so funny day, some of it makes you smile and remember that people can be so smart and so sweet. Some public announcements make you aware that people are geniuses and some outright morons and some just make you aware. In my case, some set not only you, but generations of your family free. Some make public, dreams, that help fight for you before you could fight, some save your life, and One saves your soul. So am I wrong to say "blog smog?" It wouldn't be the first time that's happened. I guess I should say "blog on." Cliche? Sure. Can I say whatever I want in my own blog? Absolutely.