Fall Party- Pumpkin Carving!

The beginning stages of a beautiful Clemson pumpkin. Not sure what kind of goofy look I have going on here.

Benji hard at work....he is displaying his "tooth." Apparently you should put a tooth in your lid so it is easy to place back on correctly. Not sure a tooth as large as his is necessary, but he was proud of it.

The whole gang and our finished works of fall art. Super fun!

super cute.

My sister finally did it...she got her nose pierced! I keep saying she got a "nose ring" and she keeps correcting me...."It's not a nose ring" she says. Either way....she looks super cute with it!



She keeps telling me I need to get one and I have at least 2 reasons why that is not a good idea....
A) People will finally have something to distinguish us by and I will never hear the end of it if I copy her and do the same. I am still hearing about my haircut and how that has hindered people's ability to tell us apart.
2) I argue that it is cute on her, but would not look cute on me. She disagrees, but I hold strongly to this opinion.

Eyebrow ring?.....NEVER!

This is not okay...

Seriously? It is still 80 degrees outside, Halloween hasn't happened, we are over a month away from Thanksgiving, the time has yet to change, the leaves are still mostly green and I have yet to enjoy fall fully....it is NOT time for stocking stuffers and Frosty yet!

the most bizare thing I have ever seen.

I think that I have probably said a statement like, "The most bizarre thing I have ever seen" on more than one occasion, but this time it really is true. I was sitting outside of church in a meeting and I was listening to what the other person was saying, when all of a sudden something caught my eye. I turned my head to see a person running down the sidewalk (this is some 40-50 yards away) in a black, spandex body suit that looked exactly like this....



It covered their entire body....head and all. From what I could tell, it looked like they wouldn't even be able to see or breathe. They had on tennis shoes and they were running....like out for a jog kind of running. Although for all I know they could also have been a bank robber running from the police and that actually would have made much more sense. They stopped in front of the church, bent over trying to breathe I suppose and then kept running. My coworker and I were in awe....I watched until they were out of sight and it took me a while to regain focus.

I have no idea what that could have been about. There have to be much better ways to increase sweat production if that was the goal. Any thoughts?

pumpkin spice creamer

One of the perks of this time of year is the plethora of yummy seasonal items one can buy and enjoy. Amongst my favorite, is this guy...



I have been stalking the creamer section of Kroger for weeks wondering when it was going to make its appearance and wondering why they were making me wait so long. I got impatient, so last night I looked up the Coffee Mate website to see when it was coming out. They have this feature where you can look up individual flavors, put in your zip code and find the one closest to you! As it turns out, Target was the only place carrying it, so today I stopped by to purchase one. It will be a happy moment when the first taste of that hits my mouth.

Just another reason why Fall is favorite!

in contempt of court.

I have had my share of traffic violations in my short driving experience. About a month and a half ago I was on my way to work to unlock doors for Bible studies and I got in this really long line of traffic in front of a school. It was the week school started and it was about 7:45am so traffic was horrendous. There are 2 lanes that go straight and one that turns right. I needed to turn right, so I got into the far right lane and started heading up, but apparently I got into that lane too early and unfortunately for me there was a police man sitting there who kindly pulled me over to inform me of my mistake. I will argue this intersection is confusing because the turn lane is very long, but apparently there are certain points where you can only turn into shopping centers and you cannot go straight. There is old paint on the ground that use to indicate this and there use to be yellow pylons that wouldn't even allow you to go straight, but those are all gone now. Anyway, this seems to be a common mistake and since I got pulled I have watched tons of cars do the exact same thing I did. After sitting in the parking lot for 30 minutes, I was finally issued my ticket and set free. The damage was $116.50 and/or a court date to plead my case.

I knew the court date was the first week of October. Up until the night before the court date my plan was to go to the court hearing and plead my case and then I decided I was too busy so I would just pay it. I got home, sat down on the couch with all the info and the ticket said you could pay up until midnight the day before your case. My case was Thursday, October 6th, so I sat down to pay the ticket and the website said that paying the ticket online was already closed. Now this irritated me since it was 10pm....a whole 2 hours before online payment was supposed to end and this meant I would have to spend my valuable time in court the next morning and I didn't want to do that. I just happened to look at my calendar and that is when I realized that TODAY (Wednesday) was OCTOBER 6th....NOT TOMORROW! I had missed my court date! I had failed to pay my ticket and I had just totally missed my court date because I'm a moron. I wasn't busy...I wasn't dead...I was sitting at Panera that morning enjoying a cinnamon crunch bagel and coffee, while all the while my name was being called in a Snellville courtroom and I was being held in contempt of court! I might have almost had a heart attack. The document said that failure to appear in court may result in the suspension of your license and/or a warrant being issued for your arrest! YIKES! My roommates tried to focus my panicked attention on the "and/or" part of that phrase, but I was unconvinced. A WARRANT! Seriously! I work for a church and there is a warrant out for my arrest simply because I am an idiot, didn't pay attention to detail and all day long thought it was Oct. 5th. Whoops! A very big whoops!
So, the next morning I drove slowly, careful to obey all traffic laws, pulled up at the Snellville City Hall the moment it opened and 15 minutes and nearly $200 dollars later walked out, not in handcuffs and not having to hail a cab. Apparently it is expensive to be held in contempt. My blunder cost my an extra $70. The court clerk said I could get a new court date, explain to the judge what happened and maybe he would wave the extra fees. What would I say?....."Umm, judge, well, what had happened was....I wasn't here because I was eating a bagel." I hope the city of Snellville buys themselves something nice with my cash.

The Wests

When I look back over the course of my life there are people who I have met who just stand out over the rest and have had a significant impact on my life. The Wests are two of those people. I met them in May of 2006. They were on my M-fuge Nashville camp staff. I met them just 6 days before my dad died. Carrie and I had been paired up as prayer partners for the summer and I remember how much time she spent praying with me and for me...for my family...just sitting with me and listening. I might not have made it through that summer if it wasn't for them. I have seen them from time-to-time over the years since then, but last year, when I moved to Houston, they happened to live 10 minutes from where I did off of the same exit. It was a huge blessing to be so near them again, if for only 8 months. They ended up moving last November, right before I did, and are now in Missouri.
They both came into town yesterday for the Catalyst conference, so I got to spend a few hours just eating with them and catching up on life. They truly are amazing people, who love the Lord and who have loved me well over the years I have known them. I am thankful for their presence in my life.

first signs of fall...

Well Fall is here. Yay! I can't tell you how excited this makes me. I have this smile that rises up from inside when I walk out into the 60 degree temperatures and I can't make it stop. I LOVE IT! A couple of fall activities/first signs of fall have happened already and there are many more to come, I am sure.
This is one of them...


...Cali and I found this on our walk the other day and were very excited about it.

I have also eaten pumpkin spice pancakes (recipe found here), worn a hoodie, drank a few pumpkin spice latte and been to a Clemson football game (well tried to go to a game, couldn't get in....this will be a separate post story).

Tonight is also a very special occasion. My roommate and I are having a "We Love Fall Party" at our house. The evening will be full of fall food, fall treats and fall activities, including but not limited to; pumpkin carving. We are excited about it. Should be fun times.....with many more fun fall times to come!

Go Gators!

I love this time of year and one of my favorite parts about this time of year is college football! Since, I went to Clemson, a big state school, I love all of the Saturday game-time to do. My friend and new roommate, Amy is a huge Gators fan and had never been to a game in the Swamp. This past weekend her dad got 4 free tickets, so we packed up some stuff and headed down to Florida. We went to the gamer with her dad and her older sister. This was also my first Gator's game. It was super fun. We got great parking, great seats, did some minor "tailgating," walked around in a sea of orange and blue fans, laughed at all the funny Gator paraphernalia that they make these days, like sequence dresses with diamond gators on them and purses with orange and blue ruffles. It was supposed to rain, but the rain held off. The Gators won in grand fashion beating Kentucky 48-14. Really, really fun.

musical houses.

I have lived in Atlanta for 8 months now and in that 8 month time period I have had 3 addresses. I lived in the guest bedroom of my sister and brother-in-law’s house in Loganville, GA for a few months. They are wonderful. Cali and I thoroughly enjoyed housing with them and the Bassetts.


I then moved into a house with 3 other girls in Lawrenceville, GA for several months. Pictured below are these lovely ladies. They are each amazing. They are super fun to be around and I am very glad that I know them. It just wasn't the best place for Cali. As it turns out, having a dog can make finding a place to live quite tricky.
I just moved back to Loganville into a house owned by my friend Amy, with these lovely girls...


Since I seem to be playing musical houses these days and unfortunately, I am certain this is not my last go round, I am considering getting a P.O. Box. I mean, all of those $1 postal service address change fees are adding up.

the terrible 2's

Since she was a little puppy, my dog Cali has had a separation anxiety problem. You saw a little bit of it here and here. She destroys things and she salivates excessively in her crate and at back doors, when she is outside. This has been a massive source of stress for me as a dog owner. I can't crate her because every time I do, whether for an hour or 5 hours, I come home to a soaking wet dog and a soaking wet crate. I can't not crate her with a free conscience because she tends to periodically destroy things.

A few weeks ago, I crated her at my friend Amy's house and to my absolute surprise, came home to a dry crate. I thought this was a fluke and the next time she was crated...same thing....DRY. Since then, her crate has been dry every time and her salivation at back doors has decreased. It is an amazing thing! Maybe since she is almost 2 she is growing out it....maybe. One can hope right?

This song about the character of God is beautiful. If only I could lean into this truth today...

"A refuge for the poor, a shelter from the storm
This is our God
He will wipe away your tears and return your
wasted years
This is our God
So call upon His Name
He is mighty to save
This is our God

A father to the orphan, a healer to the broken
This is our God
And he brings peace to our madness and comfort
in our sadness
This is our God
So call upon His Name
He is mighty to save
This is our God

This is the one we have waited for
Jesus Lord and Savior
This is our God

A fountain for the thirsty, a lover for the lonely
This is our God
He brings glory to the humble and crowns for the
faithful
This is our God"

Fall!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today marks the first day of my favorite time of year! Can you guess what it is? If you know me, you can. It is the first day of FALL! You wouldn't know it if you are a Georgia resident because today you are experiencing 90 degree temperatures still, but there is the hope that those will subside and give way to amazing, crisp fall mornings very soon. This will be my first fall season back in the southeast. I enjoyed my years in Texas, but the thing I mourned there the most was the lack of an official fall season. The southeast does the fall quite well and I am super excited about it!
The official season change happens at 11:09pm this evening. My roommates and I plan on ringing in this season with pumpkin chocolate chip cookies to celebrate! Sounds like a great idea right? Here is a list of my favorite things about this time of year. These are in no particular order...

1. It is college football season. Go Tigers!
2. The temperatures outside feel amazing and make me feel alive! You can be outside all of the time and that makes me happy.
3. The leaves...the orange, red and yellow colorful leaves cannot be beaten. It is, in my opinion, the most beautiful thing nature does all year.
4. Hiking and camping. It is the perfect time of year to hike and camp and I could do those activities during every free moment I have if it were possible.
5. Pumpkin things....pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, etc. Yumm!
6. Cotton season. When I was a kid this time of year meant we got to jump in the cotton wagons on our farm. My dad would fill them up and we would play and play. It was one of my favorite childhood things.
7. Sweatshirts and fleece jackets.
8. The holiday season. Fall gives way to the beginning of the holiday season, which I just think is fun. It starts with Halloween and moves into Thanksgiving and then, of course, Christmas.

rest in peace ottoman.

Whenever I am driving and I see a random piece of furniture on the side of the road or interstate, I always wonder how it is possible to lose an entire chair, sofa or mattress and not even realize it. I mean, isn't it funny to drive by a sofa on the side of the road? I think pretty condescending things like, "Idiot. Why didn't he tie down his crap? Why didn't he come back and get it?" Well...you know that whole Biblical idea of being judged by the measure you judge....well I am that person now. I moved some furniture yesterday in the back of a truck. Lauren and I loaded it all by ourselves and were really proud of our efforts. Drove it all 25 miles to it's new home. Unpacked it all. I drove to church that night and then back to the house afterwards and had no idea I was missing anything until my friend said, "Hey. Where is the ottoman?" I looked for it......no where. I then reasoned that I hadn't packed it and called my sister who reassured me that I had, in fact, packed it. This left the only other option being that my ottoman was somewhere on the side of the road, where it had been for the past 6 hours, unbeknown to me. I hopped in my car and road up and down the route to no avail. The precious ottoman to my chair is gone. Someone must have picked it up and probably at this very moment has their feet propped up on it. This is sad for many reasons; the first of which being that that is my favorite part of that chair and one of the reasons I bought it. I wanted a big chair and ottoman I could put my feet up on. It matched and everything. Sad day. I now have to buy one.

I will say, that I would have loved to have been driving along behind someone (at a safe distance of course) and seen an ottoman fly out of the back of a truck. I think that though it was tragic for me, maybe it was funny to someone else.

in need of marathon motivation.

I am seriously struggling with my marathon training. I started out quite hopeful because training for my 10k back in May went well and training for my first Half Marathon in August went well. I finished that race in a faster time than expected and thought that would put me ahead of schedule for marathon training, but I may have digressed since then. Here is what I have realized....
training for a full marathon is much more difficult and time consuming that training for a Half. The longest I ever ran before the half was 10 miles, which took about an hour and a half. With this one I have to run that weekly at least once, plus a longer run on the weekend. I am finding that I don't really want to run for 2 1/3...3 hours....EVER. It is hard to find routes that long where I can get water and food and a bathroom if necessary, that aren't 18 laps around a park. I also don't want it to consume my life, which it very easily can. I knew going in to this that I would probably really like the half and want to do them more and that the full might be a one time thing, so I can say I did it. So far this is very much the case. I am having to remind myself why I am doing this. I am not doing this for my comfort or even for my own personal achievement. I am doing it to help cure diabetes. I am doing it in memory of my dad and in honor of my sister and brother. I am doing it to sacrifice something in hopes of sharing in what they are experiencing and have experienced.
Keeping this perspective for the next month and half will help. An Ipod or a running partner or someone willing to ride beside me in a golf cart and hand me water would probably help as well. I would settle for just one of those things at this point. 16 miles is boring and difficult without those things.

an amazing acheivement.

My sister and brother-in-law are amazing! Back in the beginning of the Spring Lauren decided that it was time to fight back against Diabetes, so her and Trey signed up for a JDRF Ride 70 mile for the cure around Lake Tahoe. The race was scheduled for Sept. 12th, the day before a year to date of her diagnosis as well as her birthday. Not only did they have to train to ride 70 miles, they had to each raise $4000. The blew that figure up and raised well over that. There ride was a week ago tomorrow and they rocked it! They were some of the first people to finish the ride. I could not be more proud of both of them for their sacrifice, their commitment and their passion! They did something truly great and inspired tons of people!

They already have plans to do it again next year and are trying to recruit other people....myself included. You can continue to view their story here.

Lauren and Trey....I love you both!

i want a garden.

So...my sister has a garden...on the side of her house! It's pretty awesome. She has basil and she makes her own pesto with it. She has tomatoes growing out of her awning. She also has SWEET POTATOES! That is right...sweet potatoes. She can grab a shovel, walk around the side of her house and dig up a load of sweet potatoes. I have been asking if I could have some so today we dug up this bunch!
I wasn't satisfied with that arm full...I wanted to keep digging, but Lauren said I had to wait. These are going to make excellent sweet potato fries! So exciting! If I ever own any land....I will totally plant a garden!

a book recommendation.....

If you have relationships (and unless you live in a cave somewhere (which would mean no internet, which would mean you wouldn't be reading this) you should have some relationships) this book is a must read. It is not just a book for "leaders".....it is a book for everyone! There are an endless number of books on leadership, relationships, communication, conflict resolution, etc, but this book might just be the best of them all. It is the legs to "Love thy neighbor as thyself....or...as I have loved you." I often read that verse and say, "ok, but how do I do that?" This book is the how (obviously not an exhaustive how, but extremely helpful). It opens your eyes to the number one issue in relational conflict....YOU! Now, I realize that most people would balk at that because the last thing we want is to know that we are the problem...we want books on how to fix the other person, but that is not helpful to us. The book explains things in a way that opens your eyes to the reality that most of the time the way we handle things ends up fostering in the other person the very thing we are warring against to begin with.

Go ahead....go buy the book. Read it! You will see what I am talking about.

In honor of tomorrow...

It is football season, which means it is almost fall and both of these things make me very happy....as does this video!




GO TIGERS!!!!!!

what the heck is a Ho Ho?

My boss at church asked me recently if I would head up the kids portion of family camp this year. I agreed because I like camp and it sounded like something I would enjoy. It is also 3 days in the mountains and if you know me....mountains is all you have to say and I am in. Anyway, I went to Walmart today to buy the list of supplies I needed for all of the kids games. Someone else came up with the games, so I wasn't familiar with some of the items I needed. One game in particular is called, "bobbing for Ho Ho's." You needed bowls, milk and of course, Ho Ho's. I didn't know what a Ho Ho was. I actually thought that it was one of those generic bag cereals...you know, like a knock off cheerios. I walked up and down the cereal isle and I could not find anything that said "Ho Ho's," so I considered getting Honey Nut Scooters instead (who comes up with these names?). Lauren happened to call me while I was in there so I asked her and she didn't know. Then I asked her to google it and she was hesitant because of what might come up when she typed in the words "Ho Ho's." She googled it anyway, but with no luck. So, I then googled it on my phone and got lucky. Apparently, Ho Ho's are not cereal at all. They are Hostess snack cakes! They are Hostess' version of Little Debbie's Swiss Cake Rolls, which I LOVE! Who knew? Walmart did not however, have said Ho Ho's.....so I bought little chocolate donuts instead.
You learn something new everyday. My sister was right though....you should be careful when googleing "Ho Ho's." I did it when I got home to find this picture......
....and I also got a picture of Santa......laying face down...naked except for a Santa hat.......and I will NEVER be the same again.