I Am Thankful For....

Since tomorrow is Thanksgiving, I thought I would take time to really think about the things I am most thankful for. So often this holiday gets bypassed in anticipation of Christmas and I am guilty too of not truly appreciating what this day represents-a chance to reflect on all of our many blessings. So in an effort to give this day its due, here are a couple of lists of things I am most thankful for this year, both serious and fun.
Top 5 Most Important Things (in no particular order)
1) Family-I am thankful that I have a wonderful family, both my immediate and large extended family. We always have fun when we get together and it's so nice to have a place where you can always be yourself and be accepted and loved. We aren't perfect but there is no way I would trade my family for anything in the world.

2) Faith-I am thankful that I was taught about Christ from an early age and was brought up in the church. I am thankful for God's mercy and the salvation that He extended me. I am thankful that no matter how often I stumble and fail Him, that God is always there and will always love me.

3) Friends-I am thankful that I have friends who I can laugh with, cry with, and just be me with. I have friends that I have known for as long as I can remember and those that I've only met in the last few years, but they all serve a special purpose and help me make it through this thing called life.

4) Job-I am thankful that I have a new job that I love. At this time last year, I would have told you that I was thankful for having a job but I couldn't necessarily say it was one I loved or wanted to keep. I have a different appreciation for having a fulfilling job this year and am thankful for the opportunity to change jobs and for all the people who have helped me in this transition.

5) Health-I am thankful that as far as I know I am in great health. Not necessarily great shape but good health! Working with the students that I do everyday has really made me appreciate the healthy life I have been blessed with. So many people don't even start out life with a clean bill of health and I have been lucky enough to have no major health problems and for that I am so thankful.

Now for the not-so-serious list of things I'm thankful for:
1) Pajama pants-This is the best piece of clothing ever invented. This week I have spent the majority of my days in my pj pants.
2) College athletics-I love college football and basketball so this time of the year is wonderful for me because both sports are playing. I am such a boy when it comes to sports!
3) Coke Icees-I am so addicted to Coke Icees and have been since high school. It is seriously a problem and I've been trying to lose weight and cutting these out has been my biggest challenge. I love them!
4) Chapstick-Another addiction for me. I have to carry chapstick with me wherever I go and I'm so thankful that it only costs like a dollar because I go through it like crazy.
5) Naps-I am thankful anytime I can catch a nap and think these are seriously underrated. I try to always have one on Sunday afternoon.
6) iPod-I really don't know what I did before I had an iPod. I love music and this makes it so much easier to take music with me wherever I am.
7) pictures-I am almost as addicted to picture taking and picture displaying as Laura. I am so thankful that I have people in my life who oblige my constant requests for photo ops and I'm thankful for all the memories these pictures let me relive.
8) Toyota-I am thankful that this company has made a car that has lasted as many miles as I've driven my sweet old Camry. Even after 200,000 miles she is still ticking and I'm so thankful that I am not paying a car note every month. I know she won't last much longer and I'm gonna enjoy every single mile and note-free month she gives me.
9) Divided plates-It's the little things in life you have to truly appreciate and divided plates are one of those things that make my life and meals so much easier. I am one of those weird people who don't like for my food to touch so these ingenious tools make Thanksgiving and other big meal opportunities so much more pleasant.
10) Blogging-I have been surprised at how much I enjoy the blogging world since I'm not very good at technology and have never thought of myself as one who needed a creative outlet mainly because I have no creativity. But it's fun to have somewhere to share pics and stories of my world and to see what's going on in the lives of other bloggers. So thank you Heather and Laura for dragging me into this fabulous land of blogging.

So there you have it...My lists of some of the things I'm thankful for this year. I hope you have enjoyed my tribute to this holiday and hopefully you will take time to think of your own list. Happy Thanksgiving.

It's Christmas in the Smokies

Warning: This post is super long. If you don't have time or energy, you may want to skip.

This weekend me, Robbie, Deanna, and our friend Brooke went to the mountains for a girls weekend of shopping, eating, giggling, and getting in the Christmas spirit. We stayed with my Aunt Kay, Uncle Ronnie, and Brian, even though we really didn't see them too much because we were busy the whole time we were there. We had such a great time and have lots of funny stories and pictures. To make it easier to share, I will give you a day by day account of the highlights of our trip.

Day 1: Friday-Nothing really exciting here. We left after school and drove there and went to bed. The highlight of the ride up was the ginormous Pilot store that had way too many snacks for us to choose from for the ride and the photo shoot that Brooke and Deanna had in the backseat in an effort to find the perfect submission shot for America's Next Top Model.

Day 2: Saturday-This was Dollywood day. We got up early and made it to Dollywood not too long after it opened. Before we could even figure out what to do first, Deanna and Brooke had made friends with the lady who takes pictures of park visitors and we spent the first 10 minutes taking pictures in the big sleigh set up at the entrance of the park. It became our goal for our presence to be known in Dollywood and we managed to take some of the silliest pictures possibly ever made with Christmas decorations. We saw several Christmas shows and ate some good food. The funniest story of the day had to be the train ride which takes you around the park and up the top of the mountain. We waited to go at night so that we could see the lights all around the park. First of all, while waiting in line for the train, me and Robbie get separated from Deanna and Brooke and are allowed to get on the train while they are held back behind the gate. They finally got on with us and we were ready for the cold ride to begin. As we started out of the depot, the train was speeding along pretty well, faster than either me or Robbie remembered. Once we got up the mountain though it began to slow down and the lady came over the speaker telling us we were taking a brief stop but not to get up. So we sat on the 2 inch hard seats and waited thinking we will be back down the mountain in time for the parade that will be starting soon. But oh no, this little minor stop lasted for over an hour. The train had broke down on the top of the mountain and we were stuck up there freezing our tails off and not being able to even stand. We finally got down the mountain and off the train only to go to the bathroom and find black stuff all over Brooke and Robbie who had been sitting on the outside seats. The train is run by coal and I guess when we started our speedride up to the top it flew out on them. Once we got them cleaned up we were tired and ready to get warm so our Dollywood fun came to a close and we headed to Olive Garden for some much needed comfort.

Day 3: Sunday-We started the morning by going to Sunday School with Brian who once again provided a funny story to start the day with. Before class started Brian reached into the inside pocket of his coat and pulled out a bottle of water. He then leaned over to Robbie and said "I had to hide my water from my mom and dad because they would be mad if they knew I brought it." He is right. They would be mad but he is so funny. I love him. After Sunday School, we went back and changed and got ready for our day of shopping. We were girls on a mission and found some great buys. I don't think the KB Toy Outlet will ever be the same. After our feet were about to fall off and our bank accounts almost depleted, we left the shopping behind and went to do what we do best-eat. Calhoun's was really good. On the way home we decided to stop at Walgreen's to get some of the crazy pics printed and who should we run into working there but an Elvis impersonator complete with dyed black hair and thick sideburns. If you know Robbie at all you know how big of an Elvis fan she is (we had already visited the Elvis gift store earlier in the day) so Deanna thought it was her duty to introduce them which of course embarassed Robbie. It was pretty funny but since he was busy there was no time for pictures with him. I guess next time we will have to catch his show! On the way back to Aunt Kay's, we saw a couple of deer which Deanna thought she could take a picture of. There are deer all the time in Aunt Kay's neighborhood and they hardly even notice when cars come through so we slowed to a complete stop and Deanna rolled her window to try and get a picture. She finally found her camera and was just about to take the pic when the deer snorted at her and ran off. She was so scared she almost jumped in Brooke's lap. It was hilarious. She started saying "I almost got a hoof in my mouth." It was very funny. I think she's going to stick to shooting pics of people and leave the wildlife to themselves. The night ended with a relaxing time in the hottub and more stupid pictures.

Day 4: Monday-Unfortunately, we had to come home today but not before more memories were made. The first challenge of the day was trying to fit all of us, our luggage, and all the stuff we bought into my car. We weren't very comfy but we made it work. You have to sacrifice sometimes. Because of all the stinking boys in our family who like hunting we made a trip to the Bass Pro Shop near Aunt Kay and Uncle Ronnie's house. This place is way too overwhelming for those of us who know or care little about this pasttime. But I can't leave this out because it is the site of one of the funniest events of the weekend. We got there pretty early so there weren't too many cars in the parking lot so when we started to leave there was no one parked in front of us so I just decided to drive forward since it was kind of hard to see backing up with all the stuff we had piled up. So I press the gas and the car goes forward atleast initially...until it gets stuck on the parking curb. I, like a big fat dummy, didn't see that there were dividers between the parking spaces and drove right over one. So at this point, I'm laughing but also wondering what the crap am I gonna do if we are stuck. I try to back up but get no where so I conclude that the only way to get off is just to drive all the way over. So I push the pedal down and we jump the curb probably leaving behind half of the underneath of my car. I'm surprised we made it as loaded down as we were. In my defense, where we were parked was the only line of parking spaces that had dividers in between. All of the other ones just had painted lines to separate the spaces. But oh well we made it and were on our way. We then drove to Gatlinburg to drop Brooke off who is staying the rest of the week with her family. After that we made our way back to Meridian without incidence.

This weekend was so much fun and also productive. I made a big dent in my Christmas shopping and it was a great way to start a week-long vacation from school. I love this time of year.

My Private Shoebox

Oh What a Night

Sunday night I went to the Little Big Town/Sugarland concert in Biloxi with Deanna, her boyfriend Eric, her sister Lisa, and several of Lisa's friends. All 8 of us crammed into one vehicle so that we could giggle and sing all the way down. Though it was so tight and I was worried about being car sick, it really was fun all riding together. Once we got to the coast, we made our way to Chilis which I LOVE! It was so good. But the real fun was just beginning. We made our way to the concert and found our seats (on the floor!) and got there just in time to see Jake Owen open. I had no idea who he was but he was good and had nice hair. Then it was time for Little Big Town who I absolutely love. They are the reason I really wanted to come to the concert. I just got their new CD last week and couldn't wait to hear them live. They were awesome. Then out came Sugarland who was incredible. I love them way better after seeing them live. I have liked them always but have never just been super crazy about them (not anything like my cousin Laura who has a girl crush on Jennifer Nettles). But I was very impressed with this duo, especially Jennifer. She is a fabulous performer and so cute. We had so much fun and even got to see Laura and her boyfriend JR before the concert started. Of course, I paid for this fun yesterday when I could barely make it through the day at school. I am way too old to only get 3 1/2 hours of sleep. Oh well I guess you only live once and I'm so glad I didn't miss my chance to be at this concert. Here are several pics from our wonderful night.

Hangin' With Mr. Cooper (and Braden)

Saturday night my brother asked me if I could come over and keep the boys so that he and April could go to a friend's house. Once I checked my oh so full social calendar and realized how fortunate he was that I had a few hours to spare (HAHA), I made my way to Collinsville for a night with my 2 favorite men. Because both boys had been gone all day to Starkville for the football game, I thought they would both be tired and ready to go to bed early. But oh was I wrong. I guess they were fired up about the Bulldog win and were ready to celebrate. They are at an age though that they tend to fight alot so after a while it was easier for me to have them in 2 separate rooms. So Braden was watching TV in the living room and Cooper and I made our way to the play room. I thought we could lay on the bed in the playroom watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and he would fall asleep so I decided to put his PJs on him beforehand. Changing his clothes can be an adventure so I was just grabbing for matching PJs before he ran out of the room. I pulled out Buzz Lightyear, checked the size (3T, fine so far) and corralled him long enough to get them on. Now you would think that a kid who just turned 2 a couple of months ago would easily fit into size 3T pajamas but once I got them on I realized how wrong that assumption could be. Staring back at me was my precious little man in a Buzz midriff top with his sweet chunky belly poking out. I started laughing so hard that I was almost crying. And he was laughing and running around and I knew there was no way that I was gonna be able to get him changed again so we just made our way to the playroom with me thinking that I would change him before I put him down for bed. Well, of course, I completely forgot. After playing hide and seek with the pillows in the playroom and reading him "Hello Bully" atleast 3 times, (How many 2 year olds do you know that hum the MSU fight song and know who Coach Croom is? He has been completely brainwashed!), he fell asleep and I put him in his bed not even thinking about the PJ situation. And I also forgot to tell April that he had on tiny tee so I'm sure on Sunday morning she was questioning why she allowed her children to be left in my care but we had fun and it made for some cute pictures that will no doubt resurface when he is approaching high school graduation. Take a look at my precious chunky monkey.

Happy (Early) Thanksgiving

On Saturday, the nursing home where my mamaw lives hosted Thanksgiving lunch for the residents and their families. And even though each resident was only supposed to have 4 guests, my mamaw (Miss Popularity!) had 6 guests and I was lucky enough to be one of those special six. My Uncle Ronnie, Aunt Kay, and Brian were home this weekend because it was Aunt Kay's 40th high school class reunion. They won't be back for Thanksgiving and haven't been home for Thanksgiving in way too long so it was nice to feel like we actually got to share this holiday with them. We had a great time visiting with each other and it was so nice for the nursing home to host this. Even though my mamaw will be able to come to my mom's house for the real Thanksgiving dinner with almost the whole fam, I know some of the residents aren't that fortunate. We had a great time and I am so thankful that I have such a special family.