Funny for Friday: Shout Out to the J's.

Me and the J's....J-Phil and J-Fred.
Spring Retreat 2007.

I miss those times.
I miss those girls.

"It's your birthday weekend...It's your birthday weekend."

I hope everyone has a blessed weekend.

Especially if it's your birthday weekend...
Cara, Sean, Amy Hayes, Richard Null, Olivia, Christa, Ansley, etc.

Glorious

I will exalt You.
I will exalt You.
I will exalt You.
You are my God.
Because You're with me,
Because You're with me,
Becaues You're with me,
I will not fear.



So let Your name be lifted higher
Be lifted higher,
Be lifted higher.



No beginning and no end,
You're my hope and my defense,
You came to seek and save the lost,
You paid it all upon the cross

You are stronger, You are stronger.
Sin is broken, You have saved me.
It is written, Christ is risen
Jesus, You are Lord of All.

I will exalt You.
I will exalt You.
I will exalt You.
You are my God.


You are my hiding place, my safe refuge,
my treasure, Lord, You are.
My friend and King, anointed one, most Holy.

Happy Monday, Hannah Banana!

A blog with some pictures of our favorite quarterback, besides Peyton of course. I'm not betraying my beloved UT, just supporting Tebow (not necessairily the UF gators).

Here you go Cousin Hannah.


I put this one up just for the orange and white in the background.
Promise.


We like Tebow, cuz Tebow loves God.

Don't call it a comeback!

I started writing on my other blog yesterday.

It's been so long, but I'm finally ready to do it.

I hope you'll join me...you can read it HERE.


J-Phil says 'that means YOU!'

Funny for Friday: Dancin' Queen

If you know me, you know I'm a better dancer than you could ever imagine.

My favorite dance is 'the Hammer.'

Drop the beat yo!

Check out the intensity!


(an added bonus)


*I don't know how I could have forgotten the sprinkler...here you go Rachel!

Bringing back the word 'ultimate'...but was it ever really gone?

I just love the Crowes.

I just love people who come to see me in Knoxville in general.

So far the Crowes have stopped in to see me twice in the past 6 months.

I doubly love the Crowes.

This past week has been a whirlwind of events...starting off with an 'ultimate' busy day of cleaning on Saturday.

If you think I'm exaggerating, than you should have woken up with me at 7 am on Saturday, cleaned the church building, cleaned my apartment from top to bottom, washed 5 loads of laundry, changed sheets, mopped, moved boxes, vacuumed, dusted, arranged, scrubbed, swept, put knick knacks in order, and more...all before 8 pm when I went to pick my friend Sarah Lloyd up at the Knoxville airport. Her plane was delayed for about an hour, but I didn't mind...it meant I got to sit down for the first time that day!

Sarah stayed with me from Saturday night to Wednesday. She was an amazing houseguest, but I did get worn out from sleeping on our loveseat pullout. Nothing compares to your own bed. At least I got to see her pretty face, a pink scarf from France, and fresh Belgian chocolates.

The Crowes came in late Wednesday night, and after a quick change of the sheets and towels in the wash, I was more than happy for them to stay with me for a quick trip. I woke up Thursday morning and went to class (don't act surprised) and took a test. I was done early enough for us to squeeze in a quick trip to Market Square in downtown Knox and a nice quaint lunch.




Being that I have not slept the greatest over the past 5 nights, and was up to 2 am and up at 6 am, I was sportin' the frazzled, puffy eyed look today. We were pulling out of the parking garage and it took me 5 mins just to find our parking ticket (that I had just had in my hand while driving up to the ticket booth)...that was quite embarassing. I threw my purse at J. Crowe in an attempt to inspect my lap. She was a good sport. After finding it (in the little holder in my door where I put everything when I know I'm fixing to need it) and paying, I expressed to the Crowes that I had been worried I would have to pay the ultimate price of the parking garage. That doesn't seem so weird when I type it, but it was a weird statement in the context of our conversation.

Driving down Cumberland at noon you encounter frustrating traffic and people who run in front of cars. One such person was trying to make their way across cumberland while the light was green and cars were traveling at high rates of speed down the street...but that person chose to step out in front of cars and expected them to stop (please be mindful that cumberland is 4 tight lanes with no turn lane in the middle...so there's no safe haven once you're in the street). I was in the middle of telling the Crowes a story, and with no warning, rolled my window down and screamed out "You're an Idiot!!!" to that guy's face as we passed by him at 30 mph. J. Crowe was like 'do you know that guy?' My reply: 'No...but he's an idiot!' Laughter erupted. Thanks random guy in the middle of Cumberland...mainly for not getting hit, but for making a memorable belly laugh moment for me and the Crowes.



These people are pretty precious.

Thanks Matt and J. Crowe for good times on a sunny Thursday in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Now, I'm off to enjoy my comfy, soft, down-comforted bed.

My 8am class is cancelled tomorrow, leaving me with the joy of one 9:05 am class. Needless to say, I'm going to be sleeping late and sportin' bed head to Portuguese.

Happy Friday to you and Happy I Got My Bed Back day to me!

I'm just a fool in love...

...with Valentine's Day.

I can't explain why. I don't know when it started.
However, I absolutely adore V-day.
It's my second favorite holiday, after Xmas.
It's never been about being with someone, feeling bad 'cuz I'm alone, or mushy-gushiness. It's about my favorite colors (pink and red) chocolate, pretty flowers, baked goods, writing cards and folding up valentine's, and being real sweet to everyone around you on that day.

I love every minute of it.

Tonight, I made Valentine's cupcakes while listening
to my Valentine's mix 2010 Volume 1.

Playlist:

1) Better Together (Live)--Jack Johnson
2) You Are the One I Love--Jon McLaughlin
3) Be Be Your Love--Rachel Yamagata
4) How Lucky We Are--Meiko
5) Precious Love--James Morrison
6) What I Wouldn't Do--A Fine Frenzy
7) You & Me--Dave Matthews Band
8) The One Who Loves You The Most--Brett Dennen
9) Candy Coated Valentine--Robinella & the CC Stringband
10) Lucky (feat. Colbie Caillat)--Jason Mraz
11) In Your Eyes (Live)--Sara Bareilles
12) Nothing Fancy--Dave Barnes
13) You Are the Best Thing--Ray LaMontagne
14) Heart and Shoulder--Heather Nova
15) Fix the World Up for You--James Morrison
16) Crash Into Me (Acoustic)--Dave Matthews
17) I Will--MoZella
18) The Very Thought of You--Billie Holiday
19) All Through the Night--Ella Fitzgerald
20) Easy to Love--Billie Holiday

If you want a copy of this musical masterpiece that provokes love-inducing thoughts and feelings, I'll be glad to send you one (if you're not a lucky owner already).

One year, 2 years ago to be exact I believe, I went into Target a few weeks before Valentine's with my good friend Kari Bruce. I never even left the dollar aisle. $98 later, I walked out of Target with bags full of red and pink heart day goodies. Dishrags, notecards, stickers. I mailed, handed out, and saved some for myself. I think that's when my love for V-day fully manifested itself.

This year, I refrained from buying anything Valentine's related apart from cupcake mix and cards. I would like to think of it as a small victory for my wallet, and a great loss for dear friends who would have received V-day care packages.

I am so excited about this Valentine's weekend.

What big plans do you have, one might ask.

None.

I am hanging out with friends on Friday (being forced to watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics) and cleaning and making a red velvet cheesecake on Saturday.

I'll spend the actual Love day amongst friends and God at church.

No doubt I'll be sporting my many pairs of Valentine toe socks all weekend long. Believe it.

Also, I'd like to take this moment to say I'm not a baker.
I mean, I bake, I make a few select items, but I'm not the whiz you see on the Food Channel when I'm in the kitchen. But, tonight when making cupcakes, everything went smooth, fast, and turned out better than I even expected. It even made me contemplate opening a cupcakery.

My beautiful cupcakes.
Chocolate and ButterCream Vanilla.
Cream Cheese, Vanilla, and Chocolate icing.
Pink is Vanilla and Red is cream cheese.
Hopefully I don't have to explain that brown is chocolate.

Aren't they precious?


Chocolate ones...


Decoration Station!

Wha? Wha?

So I've been studying for the past 4 hours and I can't help but stop and ponder some of life's greatest mysteries...

*Why do you people type with Caps and small letters ToGeThEr in one word? Does this bring them joy deep down inside? Do they think it makes their word stand out? I dOn'T kNoW. However, I think it just makes you look like you're in 5th grade.

*I wonder if I'll still make mix cds when I'm 50...

*Would I have flat feet if I never wore flipflops?


*Will I ever have a savings account in the triple digits?

*Why in the world was 'Pants on the Ground' guy at the Grammy's? Is that really all it takes for an invite? I must be doing something wrong...

*Will my belly ever look like the one on the right?



*Am I the only one scared of the 'Kindle?' It's the new handheld electronic book reader. Now you just have to download your book and read it on the screen instead of actually going the extra mile and turning a real page. Does this mean I won't have a Borders to frequent in the upcoming future? Or the smell of a new book? Am I the only one my age not on the futuristic technology bandwagon? ScArY!!!!!

*Why did NBC mistreat my funny, goofy Conan O'Brien...and what IS up with his hair?



*Will it ever stop raining/snowing/sleeing/precipitating?

*Will I still make fun faces like Mrs. Sue when I get older?

The Heart of Life

I was supposed to be in my Honda on my way to Memphis right now.

However....tummy hurts, rain, pending assignments and more factored into the decision I made at 6 a.m. this morning to stay put in Knox. I woke up with tummy pains and rain pounding against my window. It was a good morning to stay in bed. I was afraid to drive 6 hours when I wasn't feeling so hot, and homework and tests in the upcoming week weighed on my mind. I needed to stay here. Get stuff done. Make sure I'm 100% for next week.

My granny is having surgery today for malignant tumors they found in her colon. I called her this morning and told her I loved her and that I would see her soon. She has to stay in the hospital for 5-7 days afterwards, so I know it's going to be a busy and tiresome week for my family. Pray that she heals and everything goes well.

I feel better this afternoon and plan to start on my school stuff and house stuff as soon as I get done writing this. However, I am sad that I won't see J. Phil, have lunch with the ladies, hug my family and miss other exciting events I had planned this weekend in Memphis. But I know it's best to be here, and hopefully I'll get to go home soon.

Here's your funny for Friday:

Mattie Poo and I representin' the blue team on Fall retreat 2006
...there's some monster in the background!

"At least your toe nails look pretty..."

(Warning: Contains gross barfing matters...don't eat and read)

So.

Stomach bug numero tres in less than 2 months.

My poor insides, there is no rest for the weary.

Sunday night it hit. And it hit hard. I began vomiting (don't act grossed out, we're all adults here) and couldn't stop. Every 20 minutes, all night long. My trashcan beside the bed became my best friend. Finally at 9 a.m., after nearly 12 hours of this ongoing slaughter of my esophagus, I caught a couple of hours of consistent shut-eye and the hope that this grossness had passed. After waking around 11:30 a.m. and keeping down a couple of sips of water, I ventured towards getting ready for the day. This venture was short-lived. Not long after waking, I found myself violently ill yet again.

After not having tried to do anything other than drink water (which never stayed down) I was shocked to find that this time I was puking up blue bile. Shock. And awe. What was this? Why is my body doing these things?

After sleeping more, crying, wondering when it was all going to be over, I came to an executive decision. I needed fluids, and I needed them now. I was so thirsty, but scared to drink...I was tired of giving my body a reason to get sick. Nothing was working. I was beginning to wonder if this was the stomach bug or food poisoning from fajita nachos at Pelanchos (which I probably won't be eating again anytime in the next few years).

I called my good friend Amy Hayes.

"Amy...I think I need to go to the ER."

Amy Hayes, being the rock star that she is, graciously picked me up.

I took my pillow, towel, trashcan with samples in case they needed proof that I was the Blue Bile Barfer (or B cubed as Amy nicknamed me) and wore my comfy pants.

We headed to the UT Hospital ER for my very first hospital visit as an adult.

I warned Amy Hayes, "I'm a baby. I'm a big baby. And I'm aware of it." She supported me nonetheless.

Had I been thinking straight and remembered that when you go to the hospital you get poked with needles, I maybe would have laid in bed for 2 more days.

I learned lots of fun things at the UT ER.

• Don't trust the angry patient behind the curtain next to you. (Mr. Johnson...)
• Urine samples get lost easily...even if that urine is precious and hard to come by with no liquids in your body for 24 hours.
• Good friends hold your IV when you have to give the 2nd urine sample.
• The hospital is probably the most diverse place in Knoxville: My nurse tech was Edwin from Ghana, my doctor was Hussein from Iraq, and the guy who threatened me with a catheter was Jake from Nashville.
• There are 2 types of people who go to the ER...those who go all the time, and those who don't. I learned this as I eavesdropped on my roomies who apparently frequent the ER as much as I frequent Starbucks.
  
• I don't like being hooked up to machines. I got really anxious after getting my IV in and heart monitor and blood pressure cuff on...partly because the medicine they gave me made me anxious, partly because I didn't like knowing I was confined. Amy Hayes said I look possessed at one point as I flailed around on the hospital bed yearning to get up.
• The people at UT Hospital are ultra-nice...I told them this was my first time and they treated me well.
  
• That Blue Bile that the first nurse said she had never seen before, magically turned into green bile that the older nurse said is the regular color of bile when you have absolutely nothing left in your system. I bet those nurses get paid the same salary.
  
• I do not want to go back to the hospital anytime soon.

2 IV bags of fluid and some Reglan later, I felt better when Amy dropped me off a little past 12:30 a.m. at my apartment. It was well worth it to be able to drink water and keep it down. I slept in today and have been taking it easy. 6 hours in the ER but at least it makes a good story.

And I couldn't leave you without photographic proof...

So stylish...those bedgowns are on the cutting edge of fashion!

A face only a mother could love.
But like Amy said "At least your toe nails look pretty!"

I do not like needles.
And I didn't like when the nurse pulled the IV out
and hit the plastic tube that was once under my skin, against my hand,
blood droplets and all, to show me it wasn't a needle.
Thanks.