Giveaway: Start With Me

I'm giving away a copy of John's latest book, Start with Me.

If you'd like a chance to win a copy, please leave a comment below. I'll randomly choose a winner next Wednesday, September 29 at 8PM MST. I can probably even talk the author into signing it for you. *wink wink*

Survey Says

Thank you, thank you, thank you for playing along with my survey last week. I loved reading your answers. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to read all of them because the survey host only allows me to read the first 100 answers for free. If I want to read the rest, I have to pay to upgrade my account and I don't really want to do that. So...I'm just going to go with what I have.

Pretend for a minute that I'm Richard Dawson, host of the popular 70s/80s game show Family Feud. Pretend that I'm him when I say: And the survey says....


1. What is your least favorite household chore?
Bathrooms - 38%
Mopping - 24.5%
Unloading the dishwasher - 15.3%
Dusting - 12.2%
Other - 10.2% (laundry, vacuuming, tidying up, loading the dishwasher, sorting papers, all of the above, ironing, windows, putting laundry away).


2. What's the best movie you've seen lately?
17% of you don't watch movies.

The other 83% of you mentioned some good ones. Here are the ones that were mentioned the most often.
Inception
Ramona and Beezus
Toy Story 3
Eclipse
The Blind Side
Book of Eli
Eat, Pray, Love
Invictus
Temple Grandin

That last movie? Temple Grandin. Put it in your Blockbuster/Netflix queue if you haven't seen it. John and I watched it last week and it is excellent. You can click here for a synopsis. 


3. What's your favorite form of exercise?
Walking - 53.6%
Exercise? What's exercise? - 14.4%
Hiking - 9.3%
Yoga/Pilates - 8.2%
Running - 8.2%
Aerobics - 7.2%
Other - 8.2% (elliptical, jazzercise, varied cardio, tennis, water aerobics, biking, stepper, kayaking)


4. If you found a $20 bill in your pocket today and you weren't allowed to save it, what would you do with it.
Such great answers. Lots of you would buy books or coffee or treat the family to ice cream. Lots of you would go out to dinner or take a friend to lunch. Some of you would buy something fun--iTunes, candle, new shoes, clothes, craft stuff, or get a mani/pedi. Some of you would give to missions or give to a friend who could use some financial encouragement. And some of you would use it to pay bills or buy groceries.


5. Choose one word to describe yourself.
Tired. Moody. Fun. Friendly. Tenacious. Happy. Joyful. Overwhelmed. Responsible. Christian. Pregnant. Social. Dependable. Wordy. Easy-going. Loner. Crazy. Luscious. Blessed. Busy. Loyal. Passionate. Perfectionist. Scattered. Content. Tall. Funny. Sarcastic. Over-scheduled. Different. Quirky. Creative. Flexible. Over-scheduled.
So fun to read all your words. If I had more time I'd list them all here. Oh, and whoever described themself as supercalifragilisticexpealidocious cracked me up.


6. Are you a blogger?
Yes - 54.5%
No -  36.4%
I want to be! - 9.1%


7. Tell me three things that you love.
God. Jesus. Family. Books. Coffee. Chocolate. Fall. Knitting. Football. Snow. Church. Cooking. Peace. Games. Movies. Diet Mountain Dew. Being at home. Sex. (That was my husband's answer. I was sitting beside him when he took my survey. He listed it three times because he has a knack for subtle.) Creating.  (Funny that answer followed sex, eh?) My dogs. Being at home. Food. Free time. Grandchildren. Gardening. Tortillas. Christmas. Reading. Scrapbooking. Outdoors. Decorating. Coke. Wine. My job. Photography. Road trips. Cheesecake. Sushi. Sonic. Shopping. Hoodies. Sunsets. Flip flops. My pillow. Mountains. And so many more wonderful things!


8. Do you know me in real life?
Yes - 30%
No - 70%
Lots of you said you feel like you know me and that makes me smile.


9. What time do you wake up on weekday mornings?
4-5am - 8%
5-6am - 37%
6-7am - 38%
7-8am - 16%
8-9am -1%
I generally sleep past 9am - 3%


10. Why do you read this blog???
You guys blew me away with your answers. Thanks for your kind words!

I enjoyed reading everyone's answers so much that I want to try this again soon! Thanks again for playing along!

A Happy List

I'm having a really, really good and super productive day! I'm feeling unusually HAPPY so I thought another happy list would be appropriate.

I'm happy that my hair is finally long enough to wear in pig tails. Or dog ears. Or puppy ears. Or whatever you call them. It probably looks goofy to others, but I like it, and my layers in the front don't fall out like they do when I wear a ponytail.

I'm happy that Glee starts tonight. I'm getting together with some friends after our kids are in bed to watch it. Sooooooo excited!

I'm happy that I'm going to Arkansas this week! I leave Thursday morning! I get to see my new nephew, my sister, my mom, my brother, and LOTS of cousins, aunts, and uncles. Oh, and the Razorbacks!

I'm happy that John's new book comes out TODAY! I'm going to do a giveway soon--stay tuned.

I'm happy that my fantasy football team is ROCKIN'. I'm having so much fun with it!

I'm happy that we're going to celebrate two half-birthdays in our family tonight. John and Abbey will be exactly 43.5 and 8.5 tomorrow BUT we have church tomorrow night and I'm leaving the next day so we'll be celebrating tonight. I thought about making a cake and giving them each half but John has been craving banana pudding so I made some this morning. I don't know if the pudding will hold any candles, but we'll definitely sing "Half-y birthday" to them.

That's enough for now. What's something you're happy about?

PS: Because a couple of y'all asked so nicely, here's a pic of my pigtails!

Searching for Gold

We set off yesterday in search of some Colorado gold.

And boy, did we find some!

Since I'll be in Arkansas next weekend (Woo Pig Sooie!) and we have plans the weekend after that, we knew we had to seize the day if we wanted to see the aspens in all their golden glory. I was worried that we wouldn't see any color because things at our elevation are just beginning to change. Not so in the high country though. I kinda think that things will peak this week and after next weekend the leaves will be gone. {Note to local friends: Go soon!}

It was a beautiful day to be outside and we ended up at Mueller State Park. We haven't been there in several years but it was just as beautiful as I remembered. We enjoyed a couple of short hikes and the nature pond, where everyone but me saw salamander. We stopped at The Donut Mill in Woodland Park on our way home and ran into Santa Claus (from The North Pole). He was in his street clothes handing out candy canes. Abbey got a kick out of that!

We had a really great day. And a great weekend! Hope you did too! Oh, and please don't let the gorgeous fall foliage in the pictures fool you. It's been really HOT here lately. Who took my nice cool weather away?

Grouping

Grouping: a planned arrangement of things. Or in the case of this post, a planned arrangement of random thoughts without smooth transitions between topics.

Today I had the chance to spend my entire day at home. I love days like this but they're few and far between. I had high hopes of tackling my bedroom closet but got distracted by a couple of other things, one of which was technical support with the cable company and the other was this...

A COMPLETELY EMPTY INBOX!!! It feels just as awesome as it looks!

John usually takes leftovers for lunch each day but we ate dinner at church last night (more on that in a minute) and didn't have anything for him to take so he asked me before he left for work if I wanted to meet him somewhere for lunch. I was so excited about not having anywhere to go/be today that I opted out. It wasn't one of my better decisions. 

If you follow me on Twitter, then you know that I referred to yesterday as my day-o-crazy. Oh my gosh. it was BUSY. I did manage to find time to time for a hike with some friends near the Air Force Academy and on our way back to the trailhead we saw a coyote cross the trail not too far in front of us. I thought it was cool until my friend wondered aloud if it could be rabid. She grabbed a big stick to keep us safe. Grin. I love seeing wildlife. The little gaggle of girls that I drive home from school a few afternoons each week is always on the lookout for prairie dogs, and I see a black-footed fox quite often on my morning walks. I love coming in and telling Sarah that I saw the fox (again) because she always always replies "F-O-X" like the little boy in You've Got Mail. Speaking of that movie, I pulled it out today in hopes of watching it but I was having technical television difficulties. If not tomorrow, then I'll watch it on Saturday!

Jumping back to church...

Our Wednesday night program kicked off this week. It's one of my favorite things about our church. There are two (short) adult studies offered with a dinner break sandwiched between them. It's super great to have a night off from cooking and to get to sit and visit with friends and eat food that someone prepared! (I'll take a turn and do the cooking in a few weeks. But not by myself. There are usually several of us that volunteer in to cook/serve together.) The kids all have activities during that time too, so it's just a good fit for our family.

During the early study, we talked about the story of the Good Samaritan and shared examples of what that looks like in our everyday walk. Who ARE our neighbors? John isn't able to arrive in time to join me for that early study so I was telling him about it when I got home. He reminded me that he wrote a book along those lines last summer.

DUH! I'd completely forgotten. And here's the cool thing: It releases next week!

We got an advance reading copy in the mail last a couple of weeks ago and I'm ashamed to tell you that I have not read it. He was writing it last summer when I was back and forth between Arkansas and I just never made time to sit down with the manuscript. Talk about feeling like a LOSER wife. Ugh.

I was motivated by our discussion at church so I started reading it before bed last night and it's really good. I know I'm biased because I'm married to the man, but seriously y'all, it's GOOD!

I love everything John writes. Especially this poem he wrote about Abbey. He read it to her tonight and she was grinning from ear to ear. I couldn't resist taking their picture because it was so stinkin' sweet.
Notice which hand John's wedding ring is on. Remember why?

Speaking of Abbey and church makes me think of something funny she said the other night. She's been asking to look at our family photo albums the past few evenings. She was looking at some pictures from Easter 2001 (the year before she was born) and everyone was dressed to the nines because that's just what you do in the South. She studied the page for a few minutes and said: "Man. We used to take church so seriously". That cracked me up. We wear jeans and shorts and hoodies and flip flops to church these days and she was so amazed by John's suit, Will's blazer, and Sarah's fancy dress and hair bow. She has NO recollection of that kind of church attire and that's what she meant by taking it so seriously. It still makes me laugh.

I have LOVED reading your answers to my survey! Thank you guys for jumping in and making that fun. I'll share some of the answers with you over the weekend. You guys inspire me!

Peace out, peeps!

Clearly I have too much time on my hands...

Just for fun I created a survey JUST FOR YOU! It only takes a minute or two to complete it. Humor me, please. You'll have to use the side bar to scroll through all 10 questions. Your answers are completely anonymous and I'm the only person who can see your answers. If I have too much time on my hands again tomorrow, I'll share the results! So yeah, please indulge me so I don't feel like a total dork. (Smile.)

If you're reading this post in a reader, you have to click thru to my blog to see the survey. :)

**Based on some emails and comments I've received, the survey isn't showing up for some of you in the body of my post. If you can't see it, try this: Click here to take survey

My Tuesday Tip

I think whoever came up with the idea for this digital bookmark is brilliant! Have you guys seen these? Sarah used a gift card she got for her birthday to buy one this summer. The bookmark tracks the minutes/hours you spend reading. 

I find it somewhat humorous that my child who never needs any sort of parental prompting to read thought she needed a timer, but she loves knowing exactly how many hours she spends reading each week. Especially since she has to turn in a weekly reading log for her Language Arts/Literature class. One of Sarah's peers asked her last week how she managed to read so much in a week's time. She told him it's because she isn't involved in sports, unless you count Xtreme Reading--that's her sport. I love that girl!

This bookmark also has the option of setting it to count down. Our third grader is required to read 15 minutes each evening. We can set it to count down and beep once her 15 minutes are up!

Sarah bought her bookmark at Borders and I think it was around $10. I think this would make a great gift for school age kiddos

The company that makes the bookmarks also makes a portable digital metronome. Cool! Sarah is taking piano this year so I'm thinking a metronome might be fun to put in her Christmas stocking!

Class is now in session

These are a few of my favorite pics from the weekend.

John and I believe that it's important for our kids to learn how to work, play, and REST. We try really hard to build rest into our weekends. Rest can take a lot of different forms, including the time and space to let kids be kids and let their imaginations take over and creative play unfold. Abbey played "school" with her dolls all day Saturday. Literally from sun-up to sundown. It made me smile every time I walked past her room and saw scenes like this:

Our weekdays during the school year are full. By the time our kids get home from school, finish homework, eat dinner, and shower, there are precious few minutes left in the day for them to play and just be "kids". I think that's one reason I love weekends soooooooooo much and why these pictures just make my heart happy.

And by the way? The "teacher" thought it would be fun to give me a cursive test. I got 13/26 letters incorrect. Seems I've taken a little too much creative license with my cursive alphabet since my second grade days with Sister Florentine. :)

Bunco!

I hosted Bunco last night. My neighborhood Bunco group is THE best ever. I guess we've been playing for 3-4 years now and I can't remember ever having a bad time. Ever. We usually laugh so hard we cry and last night was no exception.

I saw this conversation game on a blog that I stalk love and I've been trying to find a group to play it with. Y'all, it was hysterical! I took some time earlier in the week and wrote down really random and  goofy sentences then gave one to each Bunco guest last night. They had to work their sentence into conversation at some point during the night with the goal of pulling it off. Here's a sampling of some things overheard:

Does anyone know where I can buy a Chia pet?

I love Lady Gaga. P-P-P-Poker face.

I always try to color coordinate my underwear with my outfits.

Football sucks. I hate it. (Funny, because I hosted a football-themed Bunco).

Who farted? (Because we're such a mature group.)

I love kittens. I wish I had one. (Ripped that one from Darby.)

Oh. My. Gosh. Some people were so sly and totally pulled it off. Others got busted immediately. It was hysterical at the end of the night to go around the room and listen to everyone's sentences. I highly recommend this game. And hopefully you'll have fun coming up with wacko sentences. That was my favorite part.

Anyway, I decided to shake things up a bit and go with a football theme. Everyone wore their favorite team's jersey or a t-shirt or their teams colors. I told the non-football lovers that as long as they didn't wear pink or lime green we could probably find a team for them. :) 

I'm going to the Arkansas/Alabama game in a couple weeks so when I saw this Swanky Sooie t-shirt last month I ordered it right away. It came yesterday afternoon...just in time for football Bunco! I love it (but wish I had gone with my gut and ordered a smaller size.)

I meant to take a pic of our group, but I forgot. We're an eclectic bunch. The Broncos, the CU Buffs, the Razorbacks, US Air Force Academy, Green Bay Packers, Nebraska Huskers, and even a German soccer team (football, no?) were well represented. 

Deena wanted to know what I served. Here's my Bunco menu.

Mississippi Sin Dip (my very favorite, not-at-all-fattening dip!)

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Assorted cheese and crackers

Veggie tray with dip (ranch from a jar thickened w/some sour cream)

Rice krispie treats

Rolo Pretzels

Fall mix

Assorted beverages

And lastly, some decorations! My friend let me borrow a ton of football stuff (thanks, Heather!) and she even cut these cute footballs with my Silhouette machine (that is still not Mac compatible. Sigh.) I wanted to tie some ribbon on that football garland but should have planned that more than a few hours before kick-off, I mean Bunco. My local Wallyworld didn't have anything to match what I had in my head so I just left it plain and it was still cute!  And that sign above it is one of my chalkboard Wallies. I used the other one to post my beverage menu. Can't say enough about how wonderful those Wallies are!!!

If you're a part of a Bunco group, then you know how much fun it is! If you're not and if it sounds like fun, then why not start your own? Here is a great post explaining how easy it really is! Hope you all have a great weekend. Football, anyone? :)

10 on the 10th

It's been feeling very much like fall here lately and I think I'm finally ready to bid summer farewell and welcome my second favorite season. Here are ten things I love about fall. In no particular order.

1. Tracy's Fall Mix. Oh my goodness. This stuff is so yummy. There's no recipe really--it's just a blend of candy corn, peanuts, and Reese's pieces. I was pleasantly surprised to find candy corn at the grocery store on the very first day of September so I picked the ingredients up to make a batch of fall mix for Bunco tonight!

2. Football. I think I could seriously sit and watch football all weekend long. My husband got the artist gene instead of the sports gene so I mostly watch with Will. Will and I even joined our neighborhood Fantasy Football league together this fall. Neither of us really know what we're doing but we're having fun so far!

3. Jackets, sweaters, sweatshirts, and layers! I really never pack those things completely away during the summer, but you know it's fall when you need to wear a sweatshirt all day long as opposed to just while you're sitting outside in the evening. The fact that I've needed one a couple of days lately makes me smile.

4. The colors. Orange, gold, brown, green, red--fall colors are my favorites!

5. Vegetation. I love pumpkins and squash and gourds and vines and apples and pears and pecans and acorns. Our next door neighbors have a garden and one of their pumpkins is growing on our side of the fence. I see it every time I look out my bedroom window and it makes me happy. I'm keeping an eye on it because we've had a few nights with temps in the 30s; I don't want it to freeze!

6. Cooking. I am so ready for some fall comfort food. I really try not to turn my oven on in the summer any more than I have to. I also can't stand eating "fall/winter" foods like soup and pot roast in the summer. I love to cook but I love it most in the fall.

7. Aspen trees. I like maples and elms and hickory trees too, but aspens are my very favorite. Their leaves turn the most beautiful shade of gold which is so striking in contrast to the white bark. The slightest fall breeze causes the aspen leaves to quake ever so gently, and it's one of my very favorite things in the world. Stunning. Yesterday afternoon, John and I planned a mountain drive for an upcoming weekend--all we need are for the trees to cooperate and turn colors! I hear that's beginning to happen at higher elevations. 

I took this picture in Cripple Creek, CO a few years ago. 

8. Crisp air. I love opening our windows and feeling the cool breeze blow through the house. I think crisp fall air even has it's own unique smell. 

9. Time change. I know lots of people don't like it getting dark at 5pm, but I love it. I love having an early dinner then putting on warm pjs and settling in for the night. Plus, after a summer of re-runs all the good television shows are back on in the fall! (I'm looking forward to Glee and Friday Night Lights. And really wishing we had a DVR).

10. Pumpkin Spice Lattes from Starbucks. I love the gingerbread lattes too but pumpkin spice is my fall favorite!

If you're feeling listy today, link up with a post of any ten things on your mind. The possibilites are limitless! Hope you all have a great weekend. Peace out, peeps.

PSA: Grab a pen and WRITE!

A couple of weeks ago, I was cleaning and organizing my kids' closets and came across several books that my dad had given to my children. He loved to give them books and thanks to him we have a wonderful collection of Children's Classics.

I held my breath a little and opened them one by one, hoping to discover a handwritten inscription inside each cover. No such luck. Every single one was blank inside. And I felt completely crushed. 

My dad gifted Will with several books about The Civil War (one of his great passions) and I would so love for Will to know why my dad chose those books for him. Sure, I can explain it to my son (and I plan to go back and write in each book) but it would have meant so much more for Will it it were written in my dad's hand--from my dad's heart.

I regret not asking him on the spot to jot a note and the date inside the cover every time a book was unwrapped! Because life is so short and you never know what tomorrow may hold.

Inscribing books makes them even more special! I'm so thankful that my mom did this for me growing up. Here are a few pics I took of some books that I treasure.

This book (below) was giving to me by some neighbors I had growing up. I still remember them! My girls love The Pooh Party Book and I love it's yellowed and worn pages. 

My long-time friend, Susan, gave me this book for my 9th birthday. I'm 100% sure that if she hadn't inscribed this book I would never have remembered that. This book was one of my childhood favorites. It contains three of Frances Hodgson Burnett's classics: A Little Princess, Little Lord Fauntleroy, and The Secret Garden and I bet I've read each of those stories more than a dozen times! 

The inscription below is from  Dr. Seuss: My Book About Me which I've blogged about here. (This book makes a great birthday gift for young children!

We moved to Colorado in the middle of the school year and Will's first-grade class gave him a copy of Max Lucado's You Are Special as a going away gift. I absolutely LOVE that every child signed this for him. It makes me smile (and sometimes cry) when I pull this book out to read from time to time. What a treasure!!!

Sometimes, there is a block like this on a book that makes it easy to inscribe it. I bought this book, The Pumpkin Patch Parable, while on a trip to Colorado Springs. I think I want to go back and write that I bought this for the kids at the Glen Eyrie bookstore! By the way, The Pumpkin Patch Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs is an awesome book for this time of year.

Did anyone else have this book of nursery rhymes? Looks like I got it when I was one year old. Amazing to think that book is almost as old as I am!

Consider this your Public Service Announcement. WRITE IN YOUR BOOKS! If you give a book as a gift, simply write who it's to, who it's from, the date and maybe the occasion. If it's special to you, write a little note about why and include that as well. If you receive a book that is special but is blank inside, then write your own note inside. I promise you will never regret it! 

My neighbor's mother-in-law takes this idea a step further. Not only does she inscribe books she gives as gifts but sometimes she'll adhere a photo to the inside cover that reminds her of the recipient. For example, if she gives a princess book to her grand-daughter, she might include a note AND a picture of her granddaughter in some fancy, Cinderella dress-up attire. It's just another way to make the gift even more special. Imagine what that little "princess" will be reminded of when she opens that book twenty years from now! 

So...go ahead. Grab your favorite pen and write in a book TODAY! 

I heart long weekends!

Our weekend was wonderful and having that extra day at home with John and the kids yesterday was icing on the cake!

Our friends we camped with earlier this summer went back again this weekend. I really, really wanted to join them but John ix-nayed the idea. I may not remember a lick of French from high school, but my pig latin is flawless. We did the next best thing and set the tent up in the backyard and let the kids sleep out there on Saturday night. Jack the beagle joined them for popcorn and a movie. Fun times. I chickened out of sleeping out there with them since our overnight lows have been in the 30s/40s. Brrrrrrrr.

I think all five of us slept in each morning of this long weekend. Hooray! John likes making breakfast on the weekends and one morning he made scones for us. The girls made the "Welcome to Scone Palace" sign for the kitchen. Love it. John's scones are the best.

Sunday night, John and I went to Denver with our friends Sam & Amanda for an Over The Rhine concert. It was A-MAZING and I enjoyed it immensely! John loves OTR but I'd never heard them until that night!  Wow. My inaugural experience was super. And The Soiled Dove? That place was fabulous!

We also pulled out the pool for one last summer dip (forgot to take pics), went to a Camp Rock 2 premiere party, watched movies and some football, lazed around, did some cleaning, finished up a few projects and just enjoyed being together. I guess summer is "officially" over now, and I'm a little sad, but I'm excited about fall! It's my second favorite season. Now, don't let me catch any of you guys wearing white shoes until next Easter, okay? :)


Here's to a short week, peeps!

O to the B to the U!

Ouachita Baptist University will always hold a very special place in my heart. Ouachita (pronounced wash-i-taw) is a small liberal arts college in Arkadelphia, Arkansas and it only took one visit to a summer camp (shout out to Super Summer Arkansas!!!) on that beautiful campus for me to fall in love with OBU. I knew immediately that Ouachita was the college for me. I was so absolutely certain about it that I didn't even apply to any other school!

Things took an interesting turn for me during my first few days on campus. A hunky senior took notice of little 'ole freshman me and went to great lengths to find out my name and phone number. Click here for the longer version of that story! I ended up dating that hunky senior my entire freshman year and marrying him two years later.

After we were married, we moved out of state for John to begin seminary and (gasp!) I did not graduate from OBU. I have to remind myself of that sometimes because it honestly feels like I did. The relationships I have from my years in Arkadelphia still feel so strong. The third floor of Perrin was my first home away from home, and the friendships formed during that freshman year have endured to this day. One of those freshman friends lives just a few miles down the road from me here in Colorado! How amazing is that?

John and I had the privilege of returning to Arkadelphia after college when he was called to pastor a church there, and I got to fall in love with Ouachita all over again. Our church had a huge ministry to students and it was such a joy to get to know them and have them in our home. I love it when the Ouachita Circle arrives in our mailbox because I feel like I know so many students from decades other than the 80s/90s! It was also a joy to get to know the faculty and staff. Our next door neighbor was an OBU basketball coach, our music minister (who doesn't love Randy Garner?!?) was the Director of Admissions, our across-the-street neighbor was one of John's OBU roommates and his wife was our pediatrician! It felt like one big happy family all the time and I loved it!

I think the most profound thing I've walked away from Ouachita with is relationships that seem to continually intersect with my life. I think all OBU alumni (and friends) have similar small-world stories.

We moved to Colorado seven years ago for John to co-pastor a church with one of his OBU friends. God had other plans for us once we arrived, but I'm still amazed by the way that God used that relationship to move us across the country!

Two particular OBU friends journeyed with me through my dad's illness and death last year. We reconnected at a time when each of us were hearing the words "cancer" and "father" in the same sentence. God used those friends to comfort and sustain me in the midst of some really dark days, and I am forever grateful for their friendship. Another OBU friend of ours is a doctor in NWA and he just happened to be on call the day my dad died. His presence and prayers that morning were a gift and blessing to my family.

My sister was a year behind me in school and she also went to Ouachita. Her/our OBU friends were the first to rejoice with me when she gave birth to her baby last week! And there was much rejoicing!

God continues to allow my life to overlap with the lives of Ouachita friends. Sometimes it catches me by surprise the way He orchestrates it all, but I know it's not a surprise to Him. I'm grateful for the deep and lasting bonds that were formed at OBU. My life is richer because of them. And I would love for my children's lives to be enriched in that same way. I'll be lobbying hard for Ouachita in just a few short years. It is truly one of the most special places on earth!

I know there are lots of OBU alumni who blog! If you're one of them and want to link up or just want to read what others have to say about OBU then click HERE!

Ketchup

Ketchup? Yeah, I should probably just say catch-up, but ketchup is more fun. Isn't ketchup a weird word?

My sister had her baby! James Michael arrived Tuesday evening weighing 5lbs 15oz. He had some breathing issues and was in the NICU (still is actually) but he's doing GREAT now and is off of oxygen and may get to go home in a couple of days! I'm going to see him in about three weeks and am super duper excited! He is C-U-T-E. And I rarely say that about newborns.

It is REALLY starting to feel like fall here. We've had extremely chilly mornings for a couple of weeks now, and our high temp today is supposed to be 70! I love it. John usually takes our middle-schoolers to school each morning but today I volunteered to drive them so that I could swing by Starbucks. There's just something about forty-five degree mornings that screams pumpkin spice latte! It was delicious.

Despite downing copious amounts of Emergen-C, I finally succumbed to the cold that has been pestering me. Yuck. I'm hoping it's short-lived. I went to bed at 8:45pm last night and I never do that. I have some time at home this morning and was actually excited about getting caught up on some stuff around here but it's hard to get motivated to do anything when you feel terrible. Blech. I'm hoping to squeeze in a nap later. Or sooner. Sooner sounds much better than later.

I am so happy to report that I've been walking and hiking for a few weeks now and am finally pain-free! I do have a little bit of pain if I forget to stretch really well after working out, which is huge motivation to not forget! I am sooooooooooo grateful to be on this side of my injury.