Wishful Wednesday - Easter

It's Wishful Wednesday at Kelsey's blog!! :) Easter is one of my favorite holidays, can you tell by my new blog lay-out?? Ha!

'I wish' .... I could re-live one Easter memory from my childhood, and it would be the Easter that: well, it would be every single Easter from my childhood!

I miss my childhood Easter's SO much! This is a little play-by-play on how they would go:

• We would decorate and color eggs that Saturday before Easter Sunday
• Sunday morning we would wake up to treats from the Easter bunny - which usually included candy, a stuffed animal of some sort (usually a bunny), & other cool little random things that were just 'so cool' when we were that age
• My mom would get my sister and I all ready (matching dresses and all!) for church. I always loved Easter because we would always get to pick out new Easter dresses :)
• Our church always held a small egg hunt so of course we were participants in that! :)
• After that we would head out to my grandparents house in the country for a big Easter lunch

We did this for YEARS; and I wish I could go back, re-live it, and soak up every second of it. I usually head home for Easter, but not this Sunday! Our church is going to be NUTS, so of course I'm helping out with all 5 services in the nursery - but hey, I'm not complaining, more babies for me!! :) :)

What makes THIS girl praise GOD?!

....WELL, it's actually a bunch of silly stuff, but that's what makes life so great - right? :) :)

• My friend Lauren & I have officially started training for a 1/2 - full marathon as of yesterday!!! I love throwing on my running shoes, letting go of everything, and wah-la YOU'RE FREE. Now, these past 2 days have not been easy, but it's not supposed to be. WAHOO!! Praise the Lord I have a healthy body to do this
• God answers prayers. :) More on that later...
• God IS SO GOOOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :)
• My boyfriend is the bomb dot com. Yep. PTL He allows Don to be in my life.
• I've lost 4 lbs since Monday! :D PTL He has allowed my food cravings to subside
• My  little Princess Pea Belle, is getting around a little better. Continue praying for her left leg! PTL He has given her strength to re-gain some of her mobility!
• My friends. OH - my friends. These girls are so great. We're all there for each other, & lately it seems as if we're just....I don't even know the right word for it. It's lovely, they're lovely...and I love them. A lot. :) PTL for girlfriends!
• I just recently found a Christian radio station (that I'm sure you all have heard of, I guess I just came out of the rock I have been hiding under) called KLOVE. It pretty much rocks my socks off. PTL for all these great worship bands!!
• I'm excited to announce I'm going to be 'throwing' together my own Womans Bible Study!! We're going to be studying Beth Moore's Breaking Free book. I got some mixed reviews on this (thank-you all for your opinion!!) but it just feels right. We shall see, and I will definitely let y'all know how it goes. PTL for giving me the wisdom & courage to do this!

• Lubbock just recently opened up the MOST AMAZING healthy yogurt place in allllll the land!!!! I can't even explain to you the tasty goodness it brings to my mouth everyday. HA! PTL that God loves healthy sweets!! :)

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Beth Moore

QUESTION! Have any of y'all ever done Beth Moore's bible study, 'Breaking Free?' If so, did you like it?? I'm thinking about ordering it for me and a couple of friends, and was going to see if I could get any feedback on it. Thanks so much!!

ALSO - I'm reading her book right now that SO many girls/women ( Kelly's Korner is where I had heard about it and Angie; who is a well known blogger) are reading called, 'So Long Insecurities' and I highly recommend it to ANYONE!! It's wonderful - even if you are the most secure woman in the world!! :)

Prayer Blog!

REALLY bored?? Go HERE and check out this prayer blog. It's special to me because it's the prayer gathering I go to AND its awesome! It's also a part of the church I go to. Have a great day!

A whole bunch of nothin' - but it's somethin'!!

Well, I'm home - & it feels...like it always does. Dret. I miss my family, the clean air, & oh I could go on and on and on.......but I won't bore you. :) Oh well, I'll pick myself up and get on with my life because I am SO BLESSED and I have no reason to be complaining. Such is life. ANWAYS, home was AMAZING - that's pretty much all I'll say about that!

Waking up to drink coffee with my love head every morning...........

....to this peaceful view - DOES NOT get old.

- I saw this qoute on Natasha's page: "People will always talk about you, especially when they envy you and the life you live. Let them... you affected their lives, they didn't affect yours" and I LOVE IT. Definitely words to live by

This is what a think about people like that! Bahaha.

Pray for people like that - because they NEED it.

 

- - I have found yet another awesome Worship song that I have listened to 100 times. Check IT out.

- Belle, my sweet doggy is still the same. UGH. She is starting to walk a little - but her left back leg just drags. Poor baby. We're starting puppy 'physical therapy' on her on Thurday, pray it works!

- This new lay-out I have doesn't have spell check. Awesome. I'm such a horrible speller. Forgive me! :)

- I got my sandels from BEALLS of all places last summer on the post below. Thank you so much for the comments!!

- I love my little brother!!!!

- I'm starting a diet tomorrow, gag me. HAHA!

- DANCING WITH THE STARS is ON TONIGHT!!!!!!! So is JESSICA SIMPSON'S PRICE OF BEAUTY!!! I'm off to drown myself in school work and laundry before these shows come on!! :) :)

Makes me smile...

This is what makes me smile on a random Saturday....

My brother & sister :) - LOVE THEM.

French toe nails; they make me feel like such a lady :)

Its the first day of Spring....AND ITS SNOWING!!! HA! What a joke. I'm headed to my little brothers horse show with his horsey Susie Q & then I'm off to see my sweetheart at his ranch for his cousins 21st!! Have a great Saturday!!

Oh! And go HERE to enter a fabulous give-away!!

OH - Praise Him

Go HERE and listen.

I'M IN LOVE...with the song & with these 2 precious babies. <3

Wishful Wednesday - LOTTERY!

Yet another, Wishful Wednesday at Kelsey's place! :)

'I wish' .... I could win the lottery REAL soon, and I would hope to do a lot with it!

So, what would I do with it? First off I would NEVER quit my job if I won the lottery. I would probably take some time off to travel, but never would I might quit. I'm saying this now, but really - who knows what I might do with millions of GREEN in my hand, ha! Here are a few things I think I would do:

• GIVE, GIVE, GIVE. I would take my family out to dinner, and tip the waitress oh, I dont know 400 dollars. I would find different organizations that may need help, I would be a crazy love, giving machine. It would be SO awesome and rewarding. It literally makes me smile just thinking about it. :)
• I would let the Lord lead me to different things, because I know He would.
• I would probably buy mysef some cute shoes, hehe. ;) and maybe a purse...or twenty. Hahaha. :)
• Have my DREAM wedding!
• AND then - I would give it ALL to my grandfather, and let him tell me how to spend, & invest with it. He pays EVERYTHING with cash, and he is probably one of the smartest men I know. Years down the road after I build it up, I would probably travel, be a stay at home MOM (when we do have children) and just live an ordinary life with some MONEY in the bank. :)

Have you ever watched those shows on TV where those families win the lottery, go crazy with it, and then end up broke? It would be SO easy to fall into that trap so I would do everything to not let that happen. :) How would you spend YOUR money if you won the lottery??

Keeping FAITH, takin' a break & getting back to the basics...

Well, while Belle's eye seems to be a little less-droopy, she has no change in her leg. She is so helpless. I'm trying my best to keep her comfortable, but she won't eat, drink, or use the restroom. I'm not sure if she just has no appetite, or if it's because she can't stand up on her own. :( I need to run some errands before we leave tomorrow (early - we're taking Belle to see my grandpa & another vet), but I can't bear to just leave her here, all alone. I'm hoping we will know more when we take her back in a couple of hours. You know how they say, you don't know what you have until it's gone? Well, it's true. All I would like to do is take her on a walk, so everyone with dogs...TAKE THEM ON A WALK! :) Maybe God is doing this, so I'll appreciate her healthy little legs more when she gets better. He sure does work in mysterious ways. We are keeping faith. :)

Here she is, just yesterday. Happy as a bee.

Today after church, I was supposed to meet up at lunch with all the girls, but that wasn't going to be possible for me. SO, what do they do??? Show up with their lunch to go - including MINE, AND went as far as to buy Belle a new summer outfit, hahaha! It brightened my day so much; what would I do without them????  Give, and you will recieve. :)

I'm excited to get out of town for a week, because we have some fun stuff planned everyday (God-willing, this is all depending on how Belle is)

We plan on going to 2 ranch's to see D's family and hang out with our friend Katie, eat at some of our favorite hometown resturants - they are THE BEST, go for hikes, cook, lots of reading, & spending some quality time together. We both think it's very much needed and important for a healthy relationship. :) On Wednesday, I'm getting a massage and pedi/mani!!! YAY!!! Don opted out of that one, hahaha. I also have 2 good friends that live there, that I plan on catching up with.

I'm going to be taking a break from the internet all together (OK - fine, I WILL be participating in Wishful Wedneday of course!) but that's it. No facebook, no blogging, no e-mail - nada, zero, zilch. I think it will be good for me to enjoy my time with Don, my family, getting Belle back to her feet (also, God - willing) and spending time with the Lord - while taking in some serious mountain air...without the complications of internet life for a week. I'm kind of excited, not going to lie. :D It's nice coming back to the real world feeling rujuvenated and refreshed.

It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. Deuteronomy 31:8

I will keep updating on Belle, as we find out what's going on.

PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY!!

Last night around 11pm my dog Belle, starting acting a little strange. She got up to start walking and collapsed...her 2 back legs were life-less & her left eye began to droop, and of course I was a huge mess. We rushed her to a 24 hr animal clinic where they ran X-rays, and checked her out. They think she 1.) Has a back problem that could be genetic, that is ciatic nerve damage causing her eye to shut, & her nerve to be pinched in her leg - meaning no muscle avtivity what-so-ever, or 2.) Some how injured her back (which is highly unlikely because she is practically a human Miss Priss, and never does anything strenuous) She was given a shot, and some drops for her eye just to hold her over over til tomorrow.

We have to take her back today to see if anything has changed, etc. We follow up on Monday with our regular vet and since we're going home, we will probably take her to my grandpa who is a vet himself (and a pretty good one at that!)

It is completely devastating to see her like this, I have to carry her everywhere, and she isnt able to move on her own. Her poor little eye is almost completely shut. I'm in absolute tears as I write this but I know prayers work! She is like a child to me, so PLEASE PRAY that everything will turn out okay, and that I can stay strong through this! I know this may sound silly, her being a dog in all, but I love her so much. I called my mom bawling last night (I had no idea what to do), and she KNOWS how upset I get when it comes to Belle...so she was able to calm me down, a little. Ha. I'm sad to be missing church, but there is no way I could leave her in a kennel. Thanks for the prayers.

Today my friends...

is all things WEDDING!! I'm so excited...and maybe just a little tired, ha! I went out last night with about 15 of my friends + boyfriends and we had an absolute BLAST! :) Today includes (because I know how much y'all care, ha!):

• sippin' on some more of my coffee & finishing my devotion ( I feel like such a dork for 'blogging' out my day, haha)
• lunch with the bride-to-be, her mom, her friend Britney, Katie, and myself
• BRIDAL appointment! Yay! I can't wait to help her pick out a dress!
• ...& more wedding stuff
• then - come home & PACK & clean because boyfriend and I are leavin' Monday morning! I L-O-V-E going home with him (we grew up together), its probably one of my most favorite things to do. Between both our mom's & grandma's - we get pretty spoiled. It's a nice little get-away from the city, you get to breath in some fresh air, and RELAX. Mmmm I could eat it up. Ha. You can read a cute summary of Alpine; home sweet home, HERE. :)
• Ah, tomorrow's Sunday...a trip to Market Street for our cinnamon rolls (Sunday morning tradition) are a must, almost forgot!

Have a great Saturday, girls!! :) :) :)

Belle, Friends, & Wedding

So I took my sweet, little malti-poo to get her 'Spring' hair cut, and let me tell ya - she was NOT happy about what they did. She is SO bare, poor little thing...but I know she feels SO much better!! She will be thanking me later, ha!

Moments before I took her! She was gettin' pretty shaggy there...

Right after she got groomed...she has SHREK ears! HA!

Yes - that IS indeed a dog tutu. What can I say?

Cute story of the day: I had 2 huge tests yesterday that I had been stressing over for about a week, had been studying for like a mad woman...& today I found out I passed both of them with flying colors! So my sweet friends suprised me with some gorgeous flowers and lunch at one my favorite resturants! They are so thoughtful! :) I'm so thankful.

On another note, my friend Katie and I are working on a wedding project for one of our friends from High School whose getting married in May...I'm not going to lie, its A LOT of work, but it will be SO worth it! We're gonna have to do them all over again for my wedding one day...I will post pics soon! :) Church, dinner, and crafting tonight sounds like a plan to meeeee!!!

PS - I'm still trying to decide if I really want to purchase a blog lay-out. I guess we will see! Maybe I'll wait til I have at least 60 readers, ha! :) Thanks again for making my day a little brighter with your sweet comments!!

Wishful Wednesday - Wedding Gown!

Another Wishful Wednesday over at Kelsey's cute little blog!

'I wish' .... I could wear/could have worn Vera Wangs dress on my wedding day!

I'm not married...yet, so maybe one day this dream will become a reality! :)

This is THE perfect topic this week because on Saturday, one of my friends from high school is headed to Lubbock for....her bridal appointment!!! We have a fun day of all things wedding/girly planned!!! YAY!!!! :) Thanks, Kelsey!! :)

At once timeless and girlishly innocent this Vera Wang strapless mermaid gown with a wrapped bodice and pleated skirt in stretch Mikado is universally becoming. I love this one!

OR

Evocative and graceful, Vera Wang’s Callalilly gown is an exceptional example of flower as inspiration. The gown itself is a strapless modified mermaid of asymmetrically draped layers of silk organdy. I LOVE the one-shoulder thing goin' on here!

Images from www.verawang.com

PS. Only a couple more followers, and I can buy me a blog layout!! YAY! Ohhh it's the little things in this crazy, wonderful life... :) PSS - I'm taking any suggestions!

Baby Names

Ahhh, I HAVE to participate in this one!! I'm fixing to head out the door for Bible study, so its going to be a fast one!

This weeks topic at The Undomestic Momma is:

TOP 2 BABY NAMES!

GIRL: Paisley Jo. Paisley - just because I think it is A-DORABLE, & Jo because that is my Nannie's name, and that is also Don's Granny's name. Cool, huh? :)

BOY: Cross Reesing. I think Cross is a very unique name, but I fell in love with it, and Reesing - that is my mom's maiden name. :)

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE BABIES???? Well, I do - to a probably unhealthy amount, ha! I can't WAIT to have myself a little Paisley or Cross. Yes...you are right, I need to get married first, haha! :)

REPEAT!!!

A few songs I've had on repeat lately...I LOVE THEM. In the past 9 months or so, all I ever want to listen to is worship music [with a little country on the side of course ;)] Once again, it's taking FOREVER to load the videos, so just click on the links!

The Words I Would Say, Sidewalk Prophets: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XnbTb2wyP0

How He Loves Us, David Crowder Band: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJyW55AXJAk They played this one in church on Sunday, and I was about as giddy as a little girl in a candy shop when it came on! :)

Forgiven and Loved, Jimmy Needham: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmF-s9Dd83g

Take your time and pray...these are the words I would say.

Who are you?

Have y'all heard the song by Jessica Andrews called 'Who I am?' I'm sure you have.

I heard it on the radio today for the first time in a long time, and I'm not going to lie...I teared up a bit! I may or may not be a tad emotional, (ha) but I love the verse "when the day is done, my Momma's still my biggest fan. Sometimes I'm clueless and I'm clumsy, but I got friends that love me, & they know just where I stand...its all a part of me, and that's who I am" because I LOVE MY MOM, and I LOVE MY FRIENDS!! :) :) Just thought I would share.

All you ladies should listen and watch the video because I know it would make your day just a little bit better. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd9zYKLepCw

PS. For some reason, it wont let me add the actual video, so just click on that link ;)

Ketchup

Whew! I feel so behind on all my blogs that I read and what not, but since Monday I have been going 90 to nothin'! Life in the past month has become increasingly busy, but I LOVE IT!!!

--Lets see, Monday was a busy day filled with patients, and then 'prayer' at our church that night with my sweet boyfriend.

--Tuesday was a little slow, but Bible study was AMAZING, I feel so lucky to have found this.

--Wednesday was a busy day, and then I went out for one our friends birthday. We went to O'Hanas which is kind of like a Sho-gun--SO MUCH FUN! I don't think I have had a night out like that in a LONG time. I am so blessed to have the friends that I have!

Just some of us. There were 9 girls total.

He was SO funny! SAKI!!!
This sums up the entire night, like I said...SO MUCH FUN! HAHAHA!
--Thursday was probably the longest day ever for me, considering I had a little too much fun the night before, HA! And then that night I went to church with my friend, Paige.

--Friday night I STAYED IN...and was asleep by 10, haha. Bliss.

--Saturday I had an early lunch at this cute little pizza place with my friend, Lauren...and then had a cupcake treat after. Don's (which is my boyfriend for all you new readers) Aunt Ann and Uncle Walter came into town to see their daughter Shely, and took us all out to eat at Pei Wei's that night (YUM!), after we had drinks at Fox & Hound, and THEN we went and saw Alice in Wonderland in 3D! Great fun. :)

PIZZA!

A frosting treat (yes, that is pure icing!!) HA! Sweet tooth much? And today is Sunday. :) We had cinnamon rolls and coffee before church, which is probably one of my most favorite traditions, ever! :) So, in church the past 2 weeks, they've had a live 'podcast' with Dave Ramsey talking about money and how it all ties in with the Bible. Ummm..........all i can say about that is: DAVE RAMSEY IS A GENIUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amen, hallelujah! I will have to get the video up so y'all can watch it!

One more week, and then ITS SPRING BREAK!!! YAY! I'm excited beyond words. My precious baby Belle, is getting groomed as we speak...I will for sure post before and after pics. ;)

A special thank-you for all of your sweet comments, and all my new followers! It makes my day! Also, from the beginning I told myself I wasn't going to 'buy' a blog lay out until I had at least 35 readers, so only about 15 more! haha!

WiShFuL Wednesday!

Featured by the fab blog: http://kelseyandgabriel.blogspot.com/ Check. It. Oooout. ;)

'I wish' .... I could have gone to the 2010 Winter Olympics to see one event, and it would have been the OPENING CEREMONY!

To be completely honest, I really didn't watch too much of the Olympics this year, but I did watch the opening ceremony...and it was breathtaking I must say! It would have been SO COOL to actually be there...especially when the USA walked out! I watched some of the ice-skating events because those have always been my favorite, oh and some of that 'curling' was quite interesting - but that's pretty much it! Anyways, I cant wait to see what some of YOU picked! :) PS. If you're from Texas, refer to post below. :)




PS. It is a BEAUTIFUL day out, & it makes me SO HAPPY! Kind of like 'I'm walkin' on sunshine, ohhh oh - and don't it feel good, HEY! " :)

God Blessed Texas with His own hands...

Since today IS 3-2-10 (cool, eh?) AND its Texas' birthday, I HAD to write about why I think Texas is the greatest state, ever! 1. First off, everything is BIGGER in Texas!

2. Our Texas "drawl", duh! ;)

3. It is far friendlier here than anywhere else...ask anyone!

4. Texas BBQ. Mmm mmm mmm!

5. We refer to the Dallas Cowboys as "God's favorite football team"

6. Pick-up trucks, Cowboy boots, and some good ol' country livin' are just a few of our favorite things

7. Texas has breathtaking mountains in the Big Bend (which is where I'm from!!!)

8. Texas is NASA

9. We only own four spices: salt, pepper, ketchup, and Tabasco. ;)

10. So every person in every pickup waves. :D

11. Our state flower is the gorgeous bluebonnet!

12. You can find a good hearted man and young lovin' woman anywhere.

13. Reagan, Honorary Texan

13. George W. Bush is from TEXAS!

14. Texas sunsets. 'Nuff said

15. Texas Ranching, Amen!

I could go on and on and on about this great state, but I'll stop while I'm ahead. ;) I may be a little biased, but I was born and raised in Texas and I think its safe to say I'll be raising my kids here, too!! Happy Birthday, TEXAS!

Pictures & Captions :)

Things that made me smile like THIS this weekend :)

These baby blues...

These too...
HOMEMADE cupcakes, from scratch to finish!

This sweet friend to spend a day with... Getting to play around with her awesome camera...

Baking THIS homemade apple pie with my love head, Friday night I believe... :)Helping paint KT's house while jammin' to some fun music (we had too much fun for our own good!)... :) I didn't even know it was possible to fall in love with the same guy over and over and over...until now :)Hangin' with this crazy pup... [yes, that is paint on her nose ;)] Lunch here on Sunday after church with my favorite ladies...I'm so proud of myself because I actually took pictures! Anyways, it was a fun weekend & even though we ended up not being able to go to the Canyon because of the rain on Saturday, I didn't let it ruin my parade! I have a super duper busy week ahead with school, tests, church stuff, girlfriend dates, boyfriend time, & just life in general...but I wouldn't have it any other way!

Don't forget to count your blessings all the time & smile!!! :) :) :)

PS. I just did the post in record time, so sorry for the bad grammer and what not! :)