The South

Where tea is sweet and accents are sweeter; summer starts in April; front porches are wide and words are long; macaroni and cheese is a vegetable; pecan pie is a staple; Y’all is the only proper pronoun; chicken is fried and biscuits come with gravy; everything is darling and someone is always getting their heart blessed. -unknown

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Have I lost it?

I actually found myself saying this phrase today...

"Brooks, stop eating my salad, and eat your fries."

Friday, June 20, 2008

Talent

Whew. I am looking forward to being at home tomorrow. I have literally been busy since June 1st. We had VBS at church, (which I will get back to in a minute), then the family, minus Reese, went on a whirlwind trip to Arkansas. And just a side note, I appreciate being from Alabama even more after that trip. It was just so flat and different. I was happy to get back home. Then 4 days back at work and I left again for a girl’s weekend at the beach. We had a great time, but as soon as I got back home, it was back to work. I think I am just getting old!

Back to VBS……..This was the first year I helped with one of the rooms at VBS. Julie taught in the room I helped in and I was blessed just being a part of it. I met Julie when we were paired together as college roommates. I studied business and she studied education. We had a few classes together but they were only ones that you would call core classes. I say all that to say that I have never watched or listened to her teach before. Her ability to teach the children and grab their attention was amazing. It was even more amazing to watch her teach 5th and 6th graders one night, and then the very next night teach Kindergarteners and 1st graders. She has used the talents that God has blessed her with, to teach others about God and the wonderful stories we read of in the Bible. She is an amazing and inspiring person and I know that the children she comes in contact with will always remember the things she has taught them, because I’ll always remember them too.

Monday, June 16, 2008

Girls Getaway!

We had a great time in Orange Beach this past weekend. We had such a good time, that we are already planning the trip for next year. I really appreciate my husband holding down the fort while I was gone. I was gone for half the day on Father's Day, so we are going to celebrate this coming Sunday. Here are some pictures from our trip...

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

The Wedding

Brooks was invited to be the ring bearer in Brent's cousin Meagan's wedding last weekend. We left Reese with my mother and trekked up to Arkansas with Brent's mother. We had a wonderful time. The wedding was at a plantation home that was built around 1833 and is still in the same family. I would have loved to spend a whole day looking around inside. It had millions of dollars worth of antiques in the home. (And I am not exaggerating.) Brooks did a wonderful job! They had the family and the parents of the flower girl and us sit up on the "veranda" for the wedding. It was such a different perspective to see the wedding from. (We were almost behind the bride and groom.) Brooks had a great time dressing up in his tux. I was sure glad to get back home and see Reese. I wasn't expecting the reception I got when I went to get him from my parents. He screamed and wanted his Pop instead of me! He soon got better and has been his normal self ever since.

I have so many things I want to write about but don't have the time right now. I am leaving tomorrow afternoon to go to the beach with almost all the girls from work. I can't wait! I genuinely love all the girls that I work with and know that we are going to have a great time. I am hoping life will settle back down once I get back.

Marlsgate Plantation




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Monday, June 9, 2008

100th post 100 things

I have been super busy over the past week or so, and have really missed checking on everone and reading their blogs. We had VBS at church, then Brent, Brooks, Melany and I went to a wedding in Arkansas in which Brooks was the ring bearer. I will post some pictures about our trip and the past week in the next couple of days.
But because this was my 100th post, I wanted to do something different for it. I had read on Allison's blog where she had posted 100 things about herself. I really enjoyed reading it, so I challenged myself to do it too and this is what I came up with. This post probably ended up being more for me, but I am proud that I did it.

100 things about me...

1. You can type my first name using only your left hand.
2. I hate fake southern accents in movies. Can’t they get someone who has a real accent?
3. I have worked at the same job for going on 9 years now.
4. I have changed desks at that job 11 times. This is not that unusual where I work, they seem to like to keep us on our toes. My “group” is in a suite to ourselves now and we love it.
5. I love coconut flavored things but not coconut itself.
6. My first plane ride was just last year.
7. Brent and I are planning on going to Indonesia, (including Bali) and Singapore next year for our anniversary.
8. I do not have a passport.
9. I need to get started on number 8 if I want number 7 to happen.
10. I loved New Kids on the Block. I am anxious to see what them getting back together turns out to be like.
11. I admit I did look up their concert info recently.
12. I went to one of their concerts in 7th grade. It was great!
13. I have attended a Christian school my entire life.
14. That wasn’t true, I went to the East YMCA for Kindergarten.
15. I met Brent in college.
16. Looking back, I had a microeconomics class with my ex-boyfriend from high school in it (we were together a pretty long time) and my future husband in it. If I had only known!
17. I knew I would get married to Brent pretty soon into our relationship.
18. We were married on a Friday night.
19. We had a dessert reception-YUM!
20. I love pens. I made myself stop buying them for work and decided I would use up all I had before I bought any more. That was about 2 years ago!
21. I do not like confrontation of any kind. (almost to a fault) I don’t even like to see other confrontation even when it doesn’t involve me.
22. I am a morning person because I have to be.
23. I do not like talking on the phone except to friends and family.
24. I love purses.
25. My grandmother only had girls, and my mother only had girls, so I was terrified when I found out Brooks was going to be a boy. I now realize I had nothing to be scared of.
26. Speaking of Brooks, I never even missed a meal while I was in labor with him.
27. I loved being pregnant both times.
28. I love the majority of 60’s and 70’s folk music.
29. I do not have an MP3 player.
30. I do not feel old enough to have a child about to begin school.
31. I was the youngest in my class for a long time.
32. In my kindergarten picture I had the remnants of chicken pox.
33. In my second grade picture I had two black eyes.
34. Julie and I were just placed together as college roommates, and now I cannot imagine her not being a part of my life.
35. Some people think that my mother is her mother instead of mine.
36. I still know how to fold a note like we did in elementary school (so that you pull the little tab). I recently used that skill at work. (Don’t ask!)
37. My mother made my lunch ever day while I was in school.
38. My mother-in-law and I are taking a CPC class. (Certified Professional Coder)
39. I love Deadliest Catch, Psych, Monk, Grey’s Anatomy, The Office, and House to name a few.
40. I also love Ocean’s 11, 12 and 13, The Last Samurai, Across the Universe, The Sound of Music, to also name a few.
41. I really like Matthew McConaughey.
42. I don’t like to read unless it is a true story.
43. I apparently like to collect scrapbook supplies. I say collect because I am not using them.
44. I would love to take a photography class.
45. I love to watch Brent playing with the kids.
46. I like October.
47. I failed to mention that I work for an anesthesia billing company. I love it.
48. I can type fairly fast.
49. My favorite color is green.
50. I think my favorite food would have to be Mexican.
51. I LOVE ranch dressing.
52. I was almost named Jennifer.
53. I am bad about starting a project and not finishing it.
54. I am in the middle of making a crocheted blanket. We will see when that gets completed.
55. I have a smart husband. I am not just saying that either. We were both business majors in college so we had a few classes together and he never studied. I had to study hard.
56. I do not like root beer.
57. I don’t like any kind of soft drink floats, so a root beer float is horrible to me!
58. I love the beach.
59. I love sweet tea. It has to be sweetened when the tea is still warm or it is just not the same.
60. I am not a big fan of country music.
61. I will reminisce though when an old country song is played. It makes me think of sitting in the den and listening to music with my dad. If I was lucky I got to put the BIG headphones on.
62. I have only taken a fish off of a hook one time, and that was only because Brent made me do it.
63. I hate being late, and I don’t like that quality in others either.
64. I have greenish brown eyes. My husband would disagree though. My eyes are green around the middle and brown around the edges. The only way you can tell that they are green is if you get really close. Brent says no one would ever get that close. I still say they have green in them.
65. I am very emotional.
66. Brent and I went to Savannah on our honeymoon. It was wonderful.
67. I cannot drive a stick shift.
68. I lived in the same house my whole life until I went to college.
69. It takes me awhile to get settled in bed at night and I think it drives Brent crazy.
70. I cheered briefly in high school and college.
71. My first car in 1993 was a 1980 Buick Regal that only had 29,000 miles on it!
72. I never had to take my car to get the oil changed until I got married. I don’t like to do it.
73. I love to swim.
74. I have never been camping.
75. I love the Olympics, especially the opening ceremony.
76. I love musicals.
77. I still like all of the old Muppet movies.
78. I have small feet, although they did grow some when I had my children.
79. I cut Brent’s hair. At the time we bought the clippers, I thought $30 was a lot to spend. Now I am happy when I think of the money we have saved over the past 5 or 6 years.
80. I love blogging.
81. When I am away from the computer for a few days I feel lost.
82. I started dating when I was 14.
83. I kissed my first boy when we were in first grade (behind the petition in class)! I cannot believe I did that.
84. I like genealogy. I have compiled quite a bit of information on both mine and Brent’s side of the family.
85. I have a 5-generation picture of Brooks, Brent, his mom, grandmother and great-grandmother.
86. I took pictures of both my children for the first year of their life, once a month, in the same spot. It is fun to look at them now.
87. I love almost any kind of corn or potato chip. They are a weakness.
88. I love Brooks’ red hair and was surprised by it.
89. I have one dimple. Reese has one too.
90. I love ice cream. I craved it when I was pregnant with Brooks.
91. I don’t like housework, but who does?
92. I got D’s in handwriting in elementary school.
93. I also got in trouble for daydreaming a lot.
94. I am 90% sure we are done having children.
95. I always re-think that when I see new babies, but I have to tell myself that those little babies turn it to children. :)
96. I am really glad I am almost done with this list.
97. I was almost done with it and then lost it all on my computer at work. That was discouraging.
98. I have loved getting reconnected with old friends through blogging and I always enjoy reading what is going on in their life.
99. I am proud of myself for doing this list, and all in all it was fun.
100. I am not going to disclose the last one, I have to have some secrets!!!