my "old" home

I went home for 6 days last week. It was a long, relaxing, enjoyable trip with my mom, dad, grandparents, sister & brother-in-law. Everyone but my husband, D.R. I shouldn't have gone away for so long. While I did enjoy myself, by day 4 I was ready to be back in Columbus, doing life as usual. It was a sweet realization that I am where God wants me to be. With D.R... wherever that may be. D.R. is home. Boynton Beach, Fl is not anymore. I am blessed to be from a place where it's 75 degrees 75% of the year. Where the beach is 10 minutes walking distance. Where the amazing shops & restaurants are endless. It's truly a vacation when I get to go "old" home.

I think my readers are my facebook friends so i won't upload photos cause they're already up on facebook. Go see em if you want! Some of my favorite parts of the trip were:

1) beachin' it with mom. She really is the perfect beach partner. She likes to do exactly what I like to do at the beach. Get sun, read and take long walks. We had a great time together talking about life, watching kids build sand creations (cause some of them were not recognizable, ha!), and just enjoying God's beauty in the beach. The beach puts me in a very peaceful place. The vastness is so wonderfully intimidating. I can't help but be reminded of God's power.

2) the food in Palm Beach county is off the hook. If you're a foodie, like me, this place is paradise. You've got everything your palate could ever desire; from fresh atlantic coast seafood & sushi to homemade gelatos & custards to over-sized portioned breakfast plates right on the ocean. My new favorite place to eat is Benny's on the Beach in Lake Worth, FL. Mom & I went there for brunch on Wednesday and it was delicious.

3) taking runs with my dad. Dad likes to exercise as much as I do and he's a great running buddy. I wish we lived close to do it all the time. We went one night at sunset to a local park and did a few miles. No chatting necessary, just sweaty togetherness.

4) being with Kirstie. It doesn't matter what we're doing: laying by her pool, running to get a smoothie, shopping at the Gardens mall or having coffee somewhere together. I love that girl. She grows up 5 years everytime I talk with her. She is married now so our talks are focused mainly on how we can be better wives and the challenges of marriage. She is a precious wife. I enjoyed watching her and Aaron interact. They adore eachother. She made awesome homemade (Wragg recipe) chocolate chip cookies and put flax seed in them. She whispered to me, "Aaron will never know they are a little healthy". :)

5) riding down A1A with the windows down. This is something I've loved to do since I got my license in 10th grade. There were numerous times when after I'd finished my homework and before dinner was ready, I'd ask my parents if I could go take a ride. 5:00/5:30 is the perfect time. I love looking at all the beautiful beach-side homes along A1A and smelling the salty breeze.

So that was my trip. I missed D.R. and champ a lot and don't want to be away from them again for that long. I came back to the exact same weather that I had in Boynton. It was awesome. I'm so ready for spring and summer! Enjoy your week!

New Hair

as requested...

A Mish Mosh....

Here's a run down of my life since Christmas:

I picked up my first C.S. Lewis book. Always been intimidated to read anything of his but I'm really enjoying The Screwtape Letters.

My sister got married to the love of her life, Aaron on January 22nd in Jupiter Fl. (pics and the sister-perspective post of their special day soon)

I chopped my hair off to above my shoulders and feel like a new woman. My hair has volume again!

I already achieved one of my NE Res's: lose 3 lbs. This made possible by publix brand ensure chocolate & vanilla health drinks, (and daily cardio which I'm lucky to have time for in my life right now-plus the weather has been beautiful- 74 most days so I'm very encouraged to get outside and walk or run)

I went on a women's retreat to Callaway Gardens and heard Mary Beth McGreevy speak on Sanctification. Amazing. My heart needed that refreshment.

Made the most delicious chowder by E-mealz. (check post below) Ask me if you want the recipe.

Began mentoring a sweet teenager named Cary. We meet on Saturday mornings and discuss a chunk of James. Fun facts about Cary: She's a talented oboe player & her grandfather started a kid discipleship camp called Marannook in Alabama.

Champ, my doggie, had a benign tumor on his hip removed. phew. I'm pretty sure Champ is one of my idols. I'd be heartbroken if he suddenly wasn't in our lives.

I became addicted to Edy's french silk ice cream. (Grace, it's got coffee in it, you'd LOVE it!)

Studying The Gospel in Life by Tim Keller in our small group and really loving it.

I began counselor training at a local crisis pregnancy clinic. This is a ministry I've always wanted to get involved in and now is the perfect time in my life to do so. God has a lot to teach me about presenting the gospel in simple terms. I've been stuck in my theological smokeroom for too long I fear. The gospel should always be something you can teach a 5 year old- but what a task enabled only by the Holy Spirit.

I've determined I need a hiatus from teaching dance. I'm getting burned out. I love to dance but the choreographing and teaching are becoming laborsome and that's not how it should be. I never want dance to seem like a burden. I think I may just take a class or two starting in the summer.....?


So that's me, lately, in a nutshell. D.R. & I are expecting a nice bonus check from the Nat'l Guard soon and we are excited to be able to pay off some loans and save for a trip. I wonder what Santorini, Greece is like this time of year? ha!

*Be thankful!*


and here are some pics from my relaxing day on the Morris Farm in Pine Mt, GA.










Isn't it a beautiful place?

shout out!

i want to give a shout out to something that makes my life a little easier. It's the wonderfulness that is E-mealz. That's right, mealz with a Z, homeslice. That's how they roll. E-mealz is a meal-planning resource for...anyone really. Whether you have 6 kids or it's just you and your roommate, it's easy, cuts your grocery costs and has great variety. D.R. & I have been using e-mealz since August 26, 2007. (the day we got back from our honeymoon!) We spend $5/month on it and it helps us spend way less at the grocery store. E-mealz is committed to simple-to-prepare meals, that are cheap, healthy and a good variety. You don't have to pick low-fat meal plans. We just enjoy eating healthy. They let you pick from the nearest/favoritest grocery store near you and find the cheapest priced items for the meals. 85% of the time we love the meal and recycle the recipe to make again. I'll diverge from the list once in a while when a meal comes up that we aren't fond of but otherwise it has been really great. I have never made up my own grocery list. I never have to think about what's for dinner and I LOVE IT! So if you're looking for something a little easier than coming up with yummy, different meals each week, try it out.

the problem beneath the problem

Hello again, blog friends! It's been a little while. I haven't had much to say lately because life has been so full and I've been busy living it! Christmas, New Years, weddings... so much life shared with family and friends lately. It's been wonderful. I can't believe it's 2011. I feel like I was just in Miami at my uncle's house, begging my mom for a sip of her champagne & ringing in Y2K my sophomore yr of h.s.! And now we're beginning a new decade. What will this one bring? In the last one, I've graduated h.s, received a degree from Samford University, married my best friend, become an aunt, and experienced being a homeowner. There is much to look forward to. In the next few weeks I will gain another brother-in-law and experience the sweet relationship of having a married sister to talk to. God has so graciously chosen Aaron for Kirstie and it's a beautiful match. He's been a precious addition to our family and become a true, dear friend of mine & D.R.'s. He's a zealous man of God and deeply loves His Word & the church. I'm confident that he will lead Kirstie well and with much humility and grace. He's the youngest of four children and like most babies in the family, he's learned from his older 3 siblings mistakes & successes. Aaron, if you ever read this, I am truly glad God chose you to be my sister's spouse. We love you and welcome you to the family!

I got to spend some quality time with my sister over New Years and hear her heart about wedding plans and thoughts on marriage. We both share the same struggle with our physical expectations. I know that God will use that struggle in her marriage to show her what's most important but I didn't quite know how to encourage her Biblically. When I got home and shared with D.R. the struggle that Kirstie & I both have he reminded me that the problem is not that she wants to be physically perfect for Aaron and is consumed with her appearance. The problem is her heart's perception of what Aaron deems most important. He said, "Kirstie has a sin problem. It's not that she needs to exercise less and eat more. She needs to understand what she's thinking about Aaron and how twisted it is. She is basically saying that all Aaron cares about is how hot his wife will look. Why would she want to marry a guy who is that shallow? Of course Aaron is not concerned with that stuff. He loves her heart. Her body is just a bonus. You need to remind Kirstie that she needs to beautify and strengthen her heart in preparation to be a wife; not her body."

um, wow. That's why I married D.R. He always puts things in Biblical perspective. Here I am telling Kirstie to just not be so concerned with how often she works out and "eat more meat, skinny one!" when her heart is totally in the wrong place. I'm really good at doing behavior modification and neglecting the heart issue. Kirstie (& I) both struggle with believing that our eternal value is found in Christ. We can easily obsess over how many squats we did/didn't do in a day and forget about cracking open God's word of life to exercise our heart. I'm so thankful that D.R. gave me a sermonette on all this. I personally needed it. My heart needs the sustenance of God's word- the pure milk of His truth. Not tighter thighs. (although that'd be nice, ha) I pray in 2011, I can be a woman who longs for time with my Savior in His Word. I want to drink in the truths that feed my soul and strengthen my heart towards Christ and away from sin. I want to love the things of God more (fellowship with saints, service, hospitality, mentorship, submission) and hate the vanities of this world. Oh how prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love! Oh God, take my heart and seal it for the courts above.

I love the line from "Come Ye Sinners", one of my favorite hymns, that says,
"Let not conscience make you linger, nor of fitness fondly dream; All the fitness He requireth is to feel your need of Him." This is my prayer for Kirstie & I and anyone who struggles to think they must acheive something to be acceptable before God.

It's a Wonderful Life & I have a wonderful husband

Last night, D.R. & I went downtown to the Springer Opera House to watch a showing of It's a Wonderful Life. It's one of our favorite Christmas movies and viewing it in an old opera theater is the only way to watch it. I have to say, I've watched that movie probably 7 times before and I've never been as touched as I was last night. I think it's easy to miss all the clever or important lines and sentimental looks when you're a teen.

I'm not married to a saint. D.R. has many flaws which he would admit but no one could ever say that my husband doesn't care about people and put others above himself. As I watched George Bailey help his younger brother out of the ice pond & keep the local drugist from going to jail for accidently putting poison in a child's prescription bottle & give up his dreams of college and world travel to take over the family bank/loan business; even skip his own honeymoon just to attend to a problem at the bank, I saw my husband's heart. So many times we have had plans that don't work out and D.R. handles them with such grace and trust that God knows best. He is the one who searches for charities to give to & started our Christmas tradition of filling two boxes for Samaritan's Purse. (one for a boy, one for a girl)

At one point in the movie, George is offered 8x the salary he is making if he'll work for Mr. Potter. (the mean, wealthy opposition in town/rival banker) George is tempted to take him up on it but to do so would mean Bailey Loan & Adjustments would close. He's captive to his conscience and rejects the offer with plenty of Bailey gumption. I cried at that part because I am not that way. I'm so lured by the riches of this world. I admit I feel comfortable with the salary God has provided us with through D.R.'s new job but I also feel like I deserve it. "Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, [wo]man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith." I Timothy 6:9-12a Oh how quick my heart is to forget God's blessings. He's so good to me. D.R. is always reminding me of God's provision in uncertain times. It's something he mentions every time he prays. "And God thank you for always providing for us." I'm so thankful I have a thankful-hearted husband who seems material possessions for what they are....material, temporal. He would never champion me buying a new dress for each wedding we go to which is frustrating but sooo good for me. The truth is I could stand to give 1/2 dozen dresses away!

Hanging in the "Bailey Building and Loan" offices there was a picture that said, "The Only Thing You Can Take With You Are the Things that You Give Away." I pray I can live with this more in mind in 2011.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

I remember how magical Christmas was as a child.

My family and I would pick out Christmas music (usually Steven Curtis Chapman or Amy Grant) and drink Farmstores eggnog and decorate the tree. Ok, maybe we got distracted and let mom decorate the tree. I loved watching my dad string the colored lights on the roof, the columns, over the garage and in the bushes outside my bedroom window. I remember how good it smelled the first day we got our tree into the house. I remember, as I got a little older, and my belief in ol St. Nick was unsure, Kirstie & I would test his existence by laying out cookies and then asking him (through prayer I guess) if he would only eat one cookie. If he ate more than one, we would know he wasn't real. Well, Santa was always more hungry than we thought he'd be. I remember waking up at 6, 6:30, 6:50, 7:15, 7:40, 8:00!!!!! We couldn't get out of bed until 8. Dad would set up the tripod video camera, put on some coffee & music and we'd open presents. After that we'd call granny's house to wish them Merry Christmas and tell them to come over for breakfast. Mom's sausage,egg, hashbrown and cheese casserole with fresh fruit. Then it was off to granny's to open gifts under her tree. We'd hang out there till late afternoon then load up our loot and head home to work on Christmas dinner. We usually took a walk, rode a new bike or played with new toys while dinner was prepared. Christmas dinner was always an intimate affair. Dad, mom, me, Kirstie, granny, papa & uncle Ricky.
It became tradition once Kirstie and I were 9 or 10 to have our friends the Shoe family over for a Christmas movie later that night. They are dear friends of ours who are more like family. They have two girls, Jessica & Jamie and a boy, Jared. Another Christmas tradition that was started somewhere along the way, is going to Atlantic Ave in Delray Beach to see the big Christmas tree and take a picture in front of it. It's a beautiful tree and has Santa's workshop inside it. Kirstie has started a tradition of making monkey bread on or around Christmas day and it's something her future husband's mom has made for years. :)



I love Christmas. The smells, the sounds, the significance. And even though lots of songs on the radio are singing about sleigh rides and mistletoe, they all remind me that this is the most wonderful time of year because of our Savior. Jesus; Lord at Thy birth. What a magical thing to ponder! I love remembering how He came; humbly, quietly, peacefully. No trumpets or lit up sky to proclaim His birth. No warm mansion for such royalty to dwell in. A cold, damp stable filled with animals and all their sanitary-ness. I love being reminded that Christ was man; pleased with men as man to dwell; Jesus our Emmanuel.

And while I love giving and receiving gifts, drinking hot cider & singing the holiday tunes, my favorite part is being still and pondering that little baby. That Holy baby whose cry was so tender and mild. That baby who came for me. Who came for you. That baby who even at birth could save the souls of men. I love Him. I'm so thankful for His gift. He knew my name even while laying in that manger. He knew my sin and my sorrow. He knew my heart's longings.

I love the lines in this song by Downhere,
"How many kings, stepped down from their thrones?
How many lords have abandoned their homes?
How many greats have become the least for me?
How many Gods have poured out their hearts
To romance a world that has torn all apart?
How many fathers gave up their sons for me?
Only one did that for me"