Hello, blog world. I am a terrible blogger. Mostly because I never do it. And I'm obsessed with reading Pioneer Woman.

Today I am procras, I mean, writing a research paper. I've done ok today considering I'm scared to death of it. My other counselor friends convinced me I'm a perfectionist because I'm afraid to start because I'm afraid of failing at it. I would rather study for a test every day of the week than write this. I know, I'm singing a different tune from those English/Journalism days! Maybe that's why I didn't get the best grades?

My topic is Examining Dual Relationships in a Church Community. Help.

In other news, our garage door is fixed, I got my spring schedule, two people in our family are with child, I skipped church for the first time in 2 years (glory be!), I got A's on both midterms, we haven't gotten a pumpkin, and Pandora.com is a life saver. In more news, we still recognize quesadilla night every Thursday night, I am currently caught up on laundry, Jack is into mideval fiction, and I got a new student to tutor.

There. I feel better now for contributing a little something to the blogosphere. Back to citing everyone on the planet and calling it writing.

Happy Fall Ya'll

I still don't have anything that says Happy Fall Ya'll! Two years ago when we were first married, I just broke down crying one day because I didn't have any fall decorations. So Jack, in all his wisdom and understanding, said, "Wellll... go buy some things?" So I did and I love them still. Two whole years later. I'm going to put out some decorations today. I don't do loads of things, but just a few pumpkins here and there. I do love fall. I'm still sort of in shock that it's actually here. I feel like it should still be July.

This is the first weekend both of us have been at home, just us, since August! It's been very quiet and lovely. Today we will watch football, well, Jack will, and I will study. Study.... I love it so.

School is still awesome. Linda asked me what my favorite and least favorite parts were and I said, "Well, I don't think I have a least favorite!" And the president of the school had a meeting with us the other day and said, "If you all don't speak up, I will assume everything is perfect." And I gave him an encouraging nod. When you start your class day off with prayer requests and prayer and all your teachers love God and love their work, how can you have a least favorite? I guess the only thing I wish could be different is that I could spend more time with Chattanooga friends.

On another note, for those of you who like Old Navy, sales, deals, or clothes, please know that Old Navy is having 50% off their clearance. I got a long sweater thingy for $9. There were shirts for like $5 and $6. Go there! Get things!

Ironically, I am cleaning out my closet this weekend and am deciding the best thing to do with all my stuff. I'm giving some things to a friend and then hoping Planet Exchange will buy some stuff! Any other ideas?

I will leave you with this one final thought:



Amen and amen.

It's Been a While...

But I've been busy. This month is really the craziest we've seen in a long time. Thank you, Lord for Harry Potter and pool days! We are headed to Atlanta for a class for me and work/church stuff for J. After that, the schedule should calm down since my intensives for the semester will be over.

In the meantime, this is why Richmont is the best school on the planet. We watched this in class today:





Please enjoy, compliments of Dr. C, the coolest professor you ever did see.

Oh Boy Mucinex

Today was a new day in our lives. Jack discovered Mucinex and I discovered the Oh Boy sandwich at Tomato Head.

Mom and I went to Tomato Head in Maryville today. For those of you not familiar with TH, first of all, that's a shame, and second of all, it's a great local place focusing on fresh, organic, vegan/vegetarian food- sandwiches, salads, pizza, calzones, quesadillas. Come to Knoxville and we'll go.

I have always eaten the Southwestern Salad or the chicken quesadilla. Sometimes pizza. I have never gotten a sandwich because I generally do not like sandwiches or the sandwich bread. But today I branched out and got one. I got the Oh Boy. I know why they call it Oh Boy. Because that's the first thing you say after your first bite. Here is the description:

fresh spinach free farmed chicken benton's bacon sundried tomato monterey jack

poppyseed dressing mayo heated

I discussed this sandwich with Cousin Patrick who is known around these parts for his intense love of the Oh Boy. He's convinced it's the Benton's Bacon. He said it changed entirely after TH started using Benton's Bacon. ( I did 3 seconds of research and see that Benton's Bacon is in Madisonville and is $21 for 4 lbs.) And also the homemade wheat bread that is toasty on the outside and squishy in the middle. (My stomach just growled.)

I think I will need a few more Oh Boys to decide what makes it heavenly. The poppyseed dressing is always a delight. Poppyseeds are one of those secret ingredients like cinnamon. Almost anytime anyone asks what the secret ingredients are, it's either poppyseeds or cinnamon. (I stole the cinnamon part from Seinfeld.)

Anyway, I think Knoxville rejoiced with me when the Oh Boy fan club gained another follower. Seriously, come to Knoxville so we can eat Oh Boys together.

Next, Jack discovered Mucinex. I had some in our medicine drawer that I had forgotten about, but he took some and is a new person this afternoon. That is certainly not as exciting as the Oh Boy and poppyseeds and bacon, but I'm glad he had a good day as well.

This is what I'm doing rather than studying. Writing about bacon.

Oh, and please check Pioneer Woman today- HILARIOUS.

Let me just say....

.... (in typical hyberbolical fashion) that I LOVE RICHMONT. I can't believe it has taken me until now to begin grad school here. My first day of class was yesterday and I was continually blown away by the welcoming atmosphere, the passion of the professors, the kindness of all the students. When my first professor opened up the class and the day with prayer requests and prayer, I thought Where AM I??? Is it a school? A church? No... it's just Richmont. Being awesome.

I have Ethics, Personal and Spiritual Life of the Counselor, and Clinical Assessment. And two other weekend courses I'm sure I'll talk about later. I am trying to convince Hubs we need to move to Chattanooga so I can go to class every day, not just one day. It might take some work, considering our whole life is in K. But.... I'm a good convincer-er-er.

I will blog more about my exciting new life. Exciting in that my tail bone hurts today from all the driving, sitting in class, and sitting to read today. Exciting in that I am starting to learn new words. Exciting in that I am obeying God although I don't know where the heck our lives will be in three years. God is good. And big. Gooder and bigger than me.

Our Quick Getaway

So last Thursday night, Jack and I decided we should skip town for a night. Friday morning we packed up the Jetta and drove to Abingdon, VA. It's about 2 hours from here. It was really fun to spontaneously get away. We stayed the night at a B&B called The Shepherd's Joy.

Apparently, the lady "Joy" has lived here all her life and she and her husband "Jack" have turned it into a B&B. I think she channeled Mamaw in her decorating style.


The thing that we didn't like about it is that we had to eat breakfast with the other guests. At 8:30. Breakfast with people you will never see again is not our idea of a good time. But we obliged. Thankfully, one of the other guests was also a pastor and I don't think he wanted to eat breakfast with us either, so he and his group weren't too inquisitive. If you run a B&B, you have to give people the OPTION to eat alone or with people. Or in the company of others but not at the same table. There are lots of options. And lots of other times. Times that are double digits. And "Joy" really wanted us at 8:30, but I think we surprised "Jack" when we came down at that time. Oh well. At least it wasn't a hotel.

Our little room:


Does this not remind you of Etowah?


Jack looking over things:

We ate at Willa Jack's. Delish.


My dinner: grouper topped with crab and shrimp in a wine butter sauce. Ahhh-MAZE-ing.

Jack digging into his salmon. (Mine was better but he didn't admit to order envy.)



I was really proud to be staying at a mamaw's house:


The next day, Saturday, we went to play tourist. We visited an old mill in Abingdon. It was extremely crowded with an over 70 tourist group, as was every other infamous establishment in Abingdon. This is Jack at the mill. I asked him to stand in a certain place and he cooperated without really knowing why. Bwhaha.


We partook at the local winery and did a brief wine tasting. It was nothing like California, but it was nice.


Jack outside the winery. And the edge of my face.


And finally, us at the local Soda Shoppe in town. We had to get a coke float before we left!


It was a fun time to get away and a good end to the summer. Or start of the school year.

First day of class is Tuesday for me!

Domestic Goddess

Since this is my last week without working or schooling, I'm doing some last nesting things before it hits next week. I love to be busy, don't get me wrong, but I just want to feel "ready." Nesting.

This is what I did today.

Before:

After:

This is the fabric for those of you who are interested:


And then....
this is my favorite domestic project I have ever done! I almost forgot to take a before picture, but here is a little peek of the before:


Our friends gave us an armchair. Great size, comfy, etc. So I wanted to recover it. I wanted to use little to no money. So I thought, "what is big enough and soft enough to cover a chair?" Sheets, of course! So I used back to college sales, coupons, and store credit and paid ZERO for a pair of jersey sheets and a throw pillow. And... (drumroll please)....



That, my friends, is a chair covered with sheets. I tucked and tucked and used upholstery tacks. Of course, now I can't get it in the room where it's supposed to go, but that's what husbands are for.



And this is the little secret...



Sorry about the picture, I don't know why it won't flip. But the next time you are over, don't look at the back of my new chair!

Granola Recipe

Here is the recipe:

1 cup honey
1/3 cup canola oil
1/8 tsp salt (I don't use)
4 cups of old-fashioned rolled oats (or a little more)
1/2 cup of almonds
1/4 cup flax seeds
1 cup cranberries, craisins, or raisins (or any dried fruit)
A dash of cinnamon and/or nutmeg (I do both, generously)

I vary these ingredients depending on what I have. Sometimes I use sunflower seeds and the original recipe calls for pumpkin seeds. Also, the only thing I really measure is the oil and honey.

Heat oven to 300 and grease a baking sheet. Combine honey, oil, and salt in small saucepan. Set over medium heat and stir until hot and blended about 2 minutes.

Mix oats, almonds, and various seeds in large bowl. Stir honey mixture again. Drizzle over oat mixture while stirring. Continue stirring until oats are thoroughly coated.

Spread mixture on baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Stir. (This is when your hair catches the scent.) Continue baking, stirring every 5 minutes, until golden brown, 10-18 more minutes. I go for 10 or 12 minutes.

Cool and stir in raisins or dried fruit. It takes a while to dry and cool. That's when it will become crunchy and like granola. I stir periodically while it's cooling then store in an airtight container.

Wah lah! Let me know how yours turns out!

My hair smells like granola....

..... because when you spend a lot of time at home, you might make a lot of things in the kitchen. So instead of spending $2.80 x 2 every week at the store for boxes of granola, I have been making it. It's really good! And easy! But the smell gets in my hair when I stir it. I could think of worse hair scents though.

Anyway, yes, I have been at the house quite a bit. I have actually gotten a job though! A tutoring job. I'll be working with a company whose clients are learning disabled and will go to their home a couple of times a week to work with them. I wasn't looking for a job whatsoever, but this came around and it is a financial BLESSING, let me tell you! It starts in a few weeks. I was planning on subbing and going to school, but now I will do this about 12 hours a week and go to school on Tuesdays.

Aside from getting a job and making granola, I registered for classes. I have 11 hours total and only have to go to class one day a week thanks to some weekend intensive courses. I'm really excited about it and feel the relief starting from finally beginning to do what I have been MADE to do. Praise God. It's something I pray for you to find too- your true calling.

Jack asked me what I was doing this afternoon and I retorted "wishing it was this time next month." I'm getting really tired of not being busy! I'm at my best when I have a schedule and it's pretty full. Granted, we are planning a retreat for 18 people this weekend, but that doesn't count. And never mind that our house is practically ready to sell because I've been able to do a lot. And forget the fact that I'm extremely rested and have almost read all 7 Harry Potter books. And please ignore the fact that this is the only day since May that I might have even thought the word "bored." I shudder at that word. I thought that word today so I went to Target and I didn't need that word anymore. Shudder. I bought a baby gift and paper towels. It was exciting. And I caught a whiff of granola every once in a while.

This part is for my cousins and mom and aunt:
I was cleaning out my nightstand yesterday that was FULL of cards and letters. Jill, there were so many from you! There were tons from my mom from when I was in college and lots from Mamaw when she "felt good." I suddenly found myself weeping over the letters from her. Her handwriting. It was a good feeling, although unexpectedly sad because I didn't realize I miss her so much. I opened a "Thinking of You" card; she had written on lined paper and put it in the card, but on the card itself she wrote in the bottom corner

"In Spirit, as you go- I will be with you."

It was what I needed in that moment on that particular day, and the Holy Spirit used Mamaw's words from 10 years ago. And I knew that indeed she was with me, through her letters and cards. It was a very sad but Holy moment.

Now that you are weeping too, please know that I also found this in my nightstand:

Daily Bread

I am trying to be good about updating! (ahem, ML!)

I woke up anxious today. Actually, I went to bed anxious and tossed and turned all night. I fell asleep and then woke up again when a HUGE storm came through right around midnight. I think it went on for about an hour. I really felt like we were going to be Dorothy and Toto and just get swept up in it. It ended but I was awake enough to not feel sleepy anymore.

I was thinking. And thinking. And tossing. And turning. And thinking.

THINKING!

I hate it when I can't switch my brain off.

We have had so much going on lately. Nothing bad. Just enough to stir up some questions and doubt and fear and guilt. It's hard not working, and it's our choice for me not to work. I got the syllabus for a class today and it's GOOD I'm not going to be working during school (except for subbing.)

I know it's good to wrestle with things. I want challenges. We both do.

I will close with these lyrics from Jill Phillips' song "Daily Bread." It 'just happened' to come on today when I needed to hear it the most.

There’s a restlessness in the soul of man
Nobody’s tamed it yet
You never fail to keep any promises
But somehow we forget

That you’re always right on time

You feed us all with a silver spoon
And like your foolish kids
We start worrying about what we’re gonna do
When the hunger comes again

But you’re always right on time
With an open hand
You have exactly what I need
Daily bread
Daily bread

You have the wisdom and the patience
We need the grace to see it clear
Too soon and we take it all for granted
Too late is more than we can bear

So you’re always right on time

With an open hand
You have exactly what I need
Daily bread
Daily bread
Daily bread

Linky Link

Click here and it will direct you to Steven Bridges' blog post about Bo and Laura's wedding. Wow. So beautiful.

seven seven OH seven

Yesterday was our 2nd anniversary. I started to mix it in with the 4th of July post, but thought it needed one all by itself.

What a lovely day it was. Jack worked tirelessly writing and studying for his sermon. He worked without ceasing to bring home the bacon for our little family. I slaved over the yard, pulling weeds, spreading some new mulch. I sweated as I cleaned up the garage and pruned the holly bush. Yes, it was a lovely day indeed.

We even got the hole in our ceiling fixed.

It was from water damage from all the rain. But now the roof is fixed and the ceiling, so I look forward to the next rainy day.

Anyway, after all the home improvements and hard labor, we went down to the Old City to Pasta Trio. Have you ever been there? It was so weird, fun, and interesting. I've never been to a place where we got there before the chef. We arrived at 6:30; he arrived at 6:45. We wanted to eat then because we were going to try to make an 8:20 movie. Not happening. The chef was also our server. He had trained at Johnson and Wales, so at least we had that going for us. He said he uses all fresh ingredients, blah, blah. Some other people (servers, hostesses?) came in around 7 carrying boxes of groceries.... I had just ordered scallops thinking "oh, maybe he got them from the Shrimp Dock or something." Nope, I saw frozen scallops in the groceries. Sigh. Let's just say we got there at 6:30 and didn't eat until 8. It was fun though, we weren't mad. Just hungry.

This is Jack waiting. And waiting. And waiting.


I must say, though, as bizarre as the experience was, the food was really, really good.

The frozen scallops:
I played with this on iPhoto, so please forgive the funky-ness.

We left Bizarro World and drove around Old North and Forth and Gill. It was lovely. We stopped by to see Patrick and Caroline for a few minutes at their Old North house.

It was a really great 2nd anniversary. I'm excited to see where we will be in our lives on July 7, 2010. God has been so faithful and so good!

Happy 4th

This was at our 4th of July get together with the King family. Good times were had by all, like Camille.

This is Ellen, thinking of what she should do next.


And the four little girls in their sweet dresses. I love this photo and the way iPhoto enhanced it!

Day #2

Hey, hey, look at me posting two days in a row. I'm sumthin'.

Check Pioneer Woman for today. Especially if you are a girl. Or woman. And if you have a daughter. Or are a mother. Symbiosis. Something men can't understand about their wives relationships with their mothers. They don't need to understand, though. It's a special, secret sort of thing women have. I remember when I was a freshmen in college EVERY female I knew had daily phone calls with their mother. The first time my mom came to visit, the girls in my dorm were jealous. One girl stomped out and said, "That's it. I need to talk to my mom!" Some days now, two years into marriage, if I haven't talked to my mom I feel like I've gone most of the day without brushing my teeth. I could talk to her for thirty seconds and feel better. Just to touch base. Just checking in. Just brushing my teeth.

I spent some time at the pool today and it was perfect. I am reading Harry Potter and today was one of those days that I was like "this is what this summer is for... this is special, I'm not going to get used to this because I'm not going to have it probably ever again." And I didn't feel guilty and I kept reading.

I am making Chess Bars and brownies for the weekend. They are smelling pretty darn heavenly right now.

I wish NPR had a TV station because that is the kind of news I want to hear about! People, interesting stories about a whole gamut of things, and world news.

That is all.

Please Pass the Ketchup

This post really isn't about ketchup so much as it is about catching up from the past month. I have such high hopes of posting every day but then life happens and I forget. Or I spend blog time reading Pioneer Woman or My Charming Kids. If you need other blogs to read besides this one, please spend your time on those. They are great!

Anyway, lots going on on Red Bay Way.

• I got a Mac. My amazingly thoughtful and resourceful husband got me a Mac. And a free iPod Touch came with it. Amen.

• I turned 27.
  

• I've been cooking a lot lately. Jack planted an herb garden and we're waiting for the tomatoes and peppers to come in. I've been rockin' out the homemade popcorn, salsa and granola. If Jack didn't require meat, I could live on those three things.

• I've been saving my favorite part for last: Bo and Laura got married!!!

Jack at the rehearsal dinner.


Watching the slideshow of the kids (B&L).

Cutting the cake. The gorgeous, delicious cake.

Sorry this picture is giant. I stole it from Facebook. But it is mom and me. If you were wondering.

Another one stolen from FB. It's Bo and all the boys. He had great groomsmen.


Somehow we always wind up together. My lil family.


This is one of my favorites because it is the sweetest picture of Laura and you notice that somehow Bo ended up with a mustache on. Hilarious.

That has to be all for now because I hate blogger. I think it was invented by Voldemort. Yes, that is a reference to my current reading selection:

It is an amazing summer so far. I'm "off" until school starts, both for subbing and grad school. It's such a gift and blessing that I am able to have this time to do so many things (or not) before our life really changes with my school. That's why I am cooking, painting, and reading Harry Potter. Oh, one last thing before I die a slow death from uploading photos on Blogger.

This is one of my newest projects:

Before

After

Isn't it amazing what a little fabric can do? The idea came from here. It was so easy and fun, I can't believe I had gone so long without any window treatments. Next up is the kitchen window!

Thanks Cousin Jodie for the majority of the wedding pictures :)

Fix It

Ok, I was so excited to figure out how to post a link to the video clip, but I guess it is too big for the space. Bummer. I'll leave it anyway. If you have any advice, pray tell. Please and thank you!

Also, we made the plunge and switched from Comcast to Direct TV. So far so good and we are saving a LOT of moolah.

Yesterday I was subbing in the freshman English class. These kids are so immature and just have a long way to go. I've been in their classes a lot, so they are getting to know me better. I called roll, and then went over the instructions for the class. I found myself saying, "What does QUIETLY mean?" We came to the conclusion that it means "minimal whispering." They were going to be doing some group work, so minimal whispering was a big deal. At one point, it got really, really quiet. One boy immediately said, "I'm sorry." I said, "For what?" He said, "Were we being too loud and you told us to be quiet?" I laughed and said, "No, you are just being angels and working hard." And then it was over when some one said, "Mwahaha, Angels and Demons! Mwahaha!"

There are so many funny stories, most of which I can't repeat and most of which I shouldn't laugh about. I don't laugh at the time, but later I do. Teenagers are just fascinating; they're not even human, it's so weird.

Happy Birthday Cousin Jill!!

I love you! Will you tell me an Emmy Claire story?

Little Hands

We never watch Saturday Night Live... this past week we were out late and I started watching it to wind down. I was really excited when I saw Will Ferrell was the host. I laughed so hard at this clip that I almost fell off the couch and the tears mixed with my moisturizer.



I don't know why it struck me so hard, but I hope it makes your night like it did mine.

Good news

Praise the Lord, Praise the Lord, let the people rejoice!

Good news came today... I am officially accepted to Richmont Graduate University to begin my MA in Professional Counseling. The letter said I am to be "congratulated on my academic achievements and excellent recommendations." (that's probably a form letter, but it made me feel good anyway!) So, that is a major relief to know that I am going for sure in August. Now, we pray for scholarships!

Homebody

I told my BFF Jen the other day that it was my new goal to "post on the blog every day." Yeah. Right. That was five days ago. But life happens and things can't wait, but the blog can.

Today is the first sunny and warm day we've had for a while! So I'm going to get outside and weed and spread some more mulch around. I'm subbing three days this week, so I will use my time wisely today and tomorrow at home. I love HOOMMMEE! I'm such a homebody. If you ever wonder where I am, look no further. I love it. I hardly ever get cabin fever or think "I should get out." I only think I "should" get out if I need to go to the gym or store. (All this if I'm not working, of course.) Speaking of gym... Pastor J and I are desperately trying to break our gym membership. But we CAN'T DO IT!! So frustrating! We spend $X a month when we prefer to run outside or do Jillian Michaels workouts at home. (Well, that's me, not J.) BUT, I don't want our membership to just waste, so I just make myself go to the stinky gym. Another year. We can make it.

Big news: J ate leftover pork last night! I made mother's day lunch and we had a Robin Miller Parmesan and Sage pork in the crock pot. There was enough left over, and we were out of chicken, so I convinced him we needed to be a good steward of our leftovers. So we had that, twice baked potatoes and salad with feta, apples, and green onions. Yum. And the clean up was dreamy, it was so easy!

Speaking of dreamy... I am in need of a faithful watcher of Grey's Anatomy so I CAN TALK ABOUT IT!!!! I have just loved, loved, loved it this season and no one in my immediate world watches it.

Now that I've updated twice in five days, I need to start taking pictures so I can make the post more colorful!

I'm Back

Ok, sorry for the major lack of updating the blog. I have definitely gotten in the habit of reading everyone else's blog rather than writing on my own.

We have been crazy since I last wrote while on vacation. We came back to some things to deal with (we are fine) which seemed to take over for a while. I finished working at Bradley's becaaaauuuseee... drum roll please... I have applied to go to graduate school for Christian Counseling at Richmont Graduate University. I am waiting on the official acceptance letter, but feel good about being accepted. It will start in August. With Bo's wedding, traveling, vacation, anniversary, birthdays, home projects, etc., we just decided that I should go ahead and leave B's.

There's been a lot of things where Pastor Jack and I have said "we should blog about this." But of course we haven't and of course we've forgotten what we were going to blog about. I am officially on Twitter. It seems a bit redundant with that and Facebook, but it's fun for now.

We have a busy weekend coming up with babysitting Jack's God-son James, Laura's bridesmaids luncheon and bachelorette party, as well as Mother's Day! Hopefully now if I think of things that are blog worthy, I will do it!

Vacation Update 2.0

We are in the last days. Of vacation. I am ready to come home. But, I love home and I am a homebody like you've never seen. I think we will both be ready when Monday morning rolls around and we are packing up. We were talking about how refreshed and equipped, if you will, we feel to get back into our lives and our work and ministry.

Today is a rainy, cold day, thank you Lord. We are back at Mountain Grounds for a little while. It was actually Pastor Jack's idea to get out this time, which was fine with me. We will head back shortly to watch Duke play. Well, he will watch and I will read. We're going out to Sorrento's tonight, a mob-owned Italian bistro that is just heavenly. It will be the one and only time we've eaten out this week!

Lots of exciting things coming our way in the next few weeks and months. It was good to have this time away to get some perspective and rest before it all begins! Updates to come! Including the food pictures and updates!

Overcast-edness

We are on vacation, praise the Lord. It has been sunny and warm. But when you want to read and watch movies and stay in your sweats, sunny and warm is not your best friend. Sunny and warm makes you want to go outside, work out, hike, do all the things that are the opposite of reading and watching movies. But today is different. Today it is overcast, praise the Lord. Today we slept til 9 and drank coffee and watched Arrested Development until 11, praise the Lord.

Now we are at a coffee shop so I can get my people fix. Pastor Husband is content to speak to only me, read Wendell Berry all day, and cook and eat nice meals. I, on the completely opposite other hand, need people. People to watch, people to talk to, people to wonder about. So here we are, at Mountain Grounds.

Snuggie Update: It is AWESOME. My snuggie has pretty much changed my life. I am warm, I am cozy, I am reading books with my hands, while my arms are still warm. Never mind that it has been 70 degrees outside, I am using my Snuggie.

Twilight Update: I finished. I am still in recovery. It was the best series of books I have read in a long time. If ever. The last book was probably my favorite. I highly recommend these books. Yes, they are about vampires, and yes, I am a pastor's wife. That doesn't matter. These are well written, entertaining books about good vs. evil. SO GOOD. Thank you Friend Amy for loaning me the series!

A teaser for the next post: We have cooked some really great food on vacation! I will be posting descriptions and pictures!

Snuggie Snob, Twilight Fan

I am sitting here on our couch, laptop on lap, feet up, dryer running, comfy as can be with my NEW SNUGGIE. That's right! HusbandPastorPriest Jack got me the best Valentine's Day gift ever: a Snuggie with complimentary book light. He even got the right color to match our living room decor.

We don't have a photo of me and the Snug yet, so this will be the visual:


I washed and dried it, and then it shed, literally, all over the house. But after I vacuumed all the fuzz, it was perfect. I can highly recommend it. I haven't tried out the book light yet, but it did come with batteries, so that's always a good sign.

Sorry for the delay between posts. I am working at the school this week and have started the Twilight series. I won't say much other than I am sorry for ever scoffing and judging. And for making fun of my late-twenties friends who have read it! I am hooked, a fan, and it's been a great conversation starter for the juniors and seniors this week!

And now I have my Snuggie and book light to make the books even more wonderful!