Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to you! I hope your holiday is filled with love, joy, and the reminder of a wonderful Savior!

Pig Roast Picture Post

I am way behind on posting on, well, everything, but especially on our pig roast! A couple of weekends ago, we had a bunch of friends up to the farm for a pig roast and it turned out to be a great success. It was frigid, but with a fire and the sun was bearable. After the sun went down, we just used apple cider to keep us warm... or layered up so that we resembled the marshmallows that were part of our smores...

"Please feed the pig"(our wallets)

Sweet Colley...

Preparing the meal...

Girls braving the cold!

taking it all in...

Brunswick stew chefs...

Mr. Piggy Before

Going

and mostly gone...

SEC Championship- cheering for FL, of course

He worked hard...

Scotch needed some attention

And of course, so did Jackson!

Brilliant

I got these from my aunt and had to share. I'm pretty sure I had some of these exact same thoughts when taking tests in college and not knowing answers...

(the answer is james bond in case that is hard to read)


And this is my favorite...

I picture my brother doing that on a test :)

War Eagle I and II

An email with this article was sent to me... LOVE it

Something Unexpected Happened...

*This article was written for Ed Dyas who is ill with stomach cancer but scheduled to be inducted in the National Football Hall of Fame in a couple weeks....A great Auburn football hero and scholar!*

It was a low key day. Alabama was supposed to dismantle Auburn. Their Heisman candidate had a national stage to take center spotlight. But something unexpected happened.

Our tailgate was a fun morning. We hosted many Bama friends who came by. The food was fabulous, the music was toe tapping, and the weather was perfect.

We went to our traditional "Tiger Walk" and cheered the team and coaches into the stadium- like gladiators into their arena knowing a hungry undefeated opponent was on the other side pacing and suiting up for a David and Goliath moment. But something unexpected happened.
The sea of orange filled the sun-kissed stadium. Every seat was filled. Our Eagle, Tiger, flew around the tops of our heads and landed midfield. The teams entered to thunderous applause, fanfare and frenzied fans. Bama fans wore stickers that said "Fear the shutout.” But something unexpected happened.

Auburn, fueled by the fans and faith of spirit with hard work, threw everything they had at Alabama. And for 56 minutes Auburn prevailed. The score, the stats, the noise, the pride; for 56 minutes we owned it. But something unexpected happened.

Alabama put together a successful last minute drive and scored the go ahead points. The TV announcers loved the battle for ratings. No one in the stadium moved. But something unexpected happened.

The Alabama fans stayed and "sabaned" their victory. Their band played. Their victory ended a perfect scheduled season. But something unexpected happened. What possibly could be wrong? The Bama fans had suffered, sweated, cursed, paced and prayed for 56 torturous minutes and their team finally pulled it out and won. But what they saw next was not suppose to happen...either.

The Auburn family stayed. They were supposed to flee in defeat but alas the opposite happened. We stayed in our seats and waited for our team to walk off the field. 80,000 family members escorted them off with thunderous applause and chants of "It's great to be an Auburn Tiger". The recruits stayed and watched this family of ours lift up our team who served up a whole humble pie to #2 Bama.

It reminded me of the scene in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" when the Who's in Whoville gathered after their presents and decorations were missing but lifted their voices loudly anyway to lift up their gratitude and celebrations. For us it was about thankfulness, honor, and family. For 56 minutes we were fans, but as our team walked off the field for a few minutes we were all one family. It was a great feeling and we had not even won the game...on the scoreboard.

We walked out of the stadium chanting AU cheers down the ramps. Alabama fans were quiet and shocked. Their Heisman candidate was disposed of. Their defense was embarrassed. Their haughtiness was silent. I have not mentioned the crudeness and ugliness that I witnessed or was a part of from Alabama fans prior and during the game. Their reputation for rude fans lived on-not pulling for their team and being good fans but being jerks to others- even to children. However after the game they were silent. Eerily quiet. One would have thought they lost the game. The lack of the cries of "Roll Tide" was noticeably absent. But something happened. Auburn continued to make us proud, played their hearts out, made idiots out of the sports announcers who proclaimed earlier this was a waste to play, and silenced the visiting fans.

Yes, something happened. Auburn won everything but the scoreboard. This was not supposed to happen!!! Alabama was not supposed to allow this!! It was just Auburn for goodness sakes, right?? Wrong.

Not a perfect day but an AUsome day. And with already picking up some of the top recruits in the nation (#8 class in the nation), a new coaching staff that have eyes of the tiger, and an AU family ready to support them all, we only have one question- when does the 2010 season start? I CAN’T WAIT!

War Eagle!

War Eagle II

"When we heard of the Auburn fans chanting at the end of Fridays game "It's great to be an Auburn Tiger" we knew there was something special about the excitement around this football team. The Tigers have everything we are looking for in a New Year's Day team. They are a tough, exciting team, extremely well coached and...have what might be the best fans in college football." -Jim McVay, Outback Bowl Pres./CEO

I Can't Decide Which I Like More Right Now...

I knew he had a cd, but just now purchased it... LOVE it!

I did NOT know that they had a Christmas cd and don't know how I am just now finding out! Few people's music does more for my soul than the harmony of the Shane's- you just cannot go wrong with them.

I'm soaking it all in now and I can't listen to either cd fast enough!

Arrangements

October was a fun month for celebrations. Between a baby shower for the wonderful Omastiaks and a lingerie/ bachelorette luncheon for sweet Dorsey, I had the opportunity to play with flowers! While I love cutting fresh flowers from the yard for a vase, it's also fun to have an excuse to buy an assortment of flowers to do actual arrangements. So lucky me, it happened twice in one month.

For Kyle and Caroline's couple's baby shower- we decided on a blue and brown color scheme, since those are the colors of Reid's nursery. I bought white carnations, hydrangeas, roses, and a bundle of snapdragons. The small arrangements for the table were in these vases nestled in a stick nest that my mom had just bought and let me use since they worked so perfectly.

I used acuba and berries from our yard for the greenery, and some sticks to add the "brown" element. The big arrangement for the food table was in the turquoise urn, and the table cloths were a pretty blue, pretty much the color of the table below.

I took no pictures of the actual setup of the party, because I always forget to do things like that. It was so much fun to celebrate for Kyle and Caroline though- they are so sweet and thankful. Reid is one lucky guy to have them as parents!

At the end of October, we had a lingerie shower for Dorsey and borrowed my parents house for the venue. Once again, I bought some carnations, but everything else was from their yard. Once being on my "bleh" flower list, carnations have recently been my favorites to use- especially when mounded all together.

Some hydrangeas, pittosporum, and holly berries before they turned completely red complemented the carnations.

My mom has a plentiful stash of silver rose bowls that she has been collecting for a while, so I used those for the table arrangements.

Not to mention, it never hurts when they have grids that help with the arranging...

The lingerie shower was so much fun. We had planned on having the shower outside by the outdoor fireplace, and since it was a little bit on the chilly side outside, the fireplace was the perfect spot.Dorsey is getting married this weekend and I am so excited for her! She has been my best friend since kindergarten and has played much of a sister role in my life, so this weekend will be fun to celebrate she and Sam. Not to mention, I'll get to spend some time with Sarah, my family, and see a bunch of old friends. I know it will be a refreshing time of celebration!

Greater Love

Ephesians 3:14-19

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom all fatherhood in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in his love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

Think on those verses a minute.

If you truly understood the depths of God's love for you, how different do you think your life would look? I know I would be able to trust Him more easily, rest in His truths, and feel free to just LIVE as God intended without striving for something or someone. I would have more courage to face fears, be bold, and be myself in every situation.

Praying over these verses has made a huge difference in my daily life. In every situation I can now see more clearly ways that God is showing me His love- even if before it was a constant source of complaints or frustration. I can rest knowing that above all His gift and promise to me is love greater than I can comprehend, and I can love other people more abundantly. While it is always a work in progress, the freedom I have felt already is refreshing.

I encourage you to pray/meditate over these verses well and let God begin to reveal to you just how in love He is with you. It will make a huge difference.

Loving...

Good, warm meals...

2 pump please...

Every sign of fall...

It has sucked me in...

You Don't Know Jacques...

Long Wear Cream Eyeshadow- why did I just now discover this?

A Finished Bathroom

After about 2 months, I finally have pictures of our bathroom. While the bulk of the work has been done, we still have to touch up some paint and add a couple of accessories. It is, however, in full working order, feeling so much cleaner, and looking a lot better.

We begin with the only "before" pictures that I really have. The first one I took when we first looked at the house and the second was during the remodel. I mentioned before it is hard to take a picture of because it is so small. All of the tile was a sea green color, the toilet was old and too small, and the vanity was old, gross, and too big.

First things first- a brand new toilet. Never in my life have I been so excited to get a new toilet. We (we as in Will) actually put a new toilet in the first week we were in the house, so when Will did the tile, he had to take it out and reinstall again... he's a good sport.

I really love the tile that we used. It is a great neutral, but with enough color so that the stresses of keeping a solid white tile floor pristine are not a worry. It is nice to not have to worry about my dark hair being so obvious if it happens to hit the ground :) Since we opted for a pedastal sink to allow more room, I got a basket to hold towels and toilet paper. I miss the storage that a vanity provides a lot less than I thought I would.

The cabinet above the toilet also helps with storage we lost with the pedastal sink. I am such a product junkie- falling for every product claiming to "smooth your skin" or "take away wrinkles forever" or "make your skin luminous." I never knew I could survive with so little storage in the bathroom. It is, however, one of the most freeing things I have done. Rid of the crap and essentials right at my fingertips. (I do get ready at my dressing table in our bedroom, so I could not go with this little bit of storage if I was needing to house my items needed to get ready.)
Note: cabinet is only sort of organizedRemember I said we were getting the wall tiles permaglazed? Well, I was nervous, but it has been great! Although we would have preferred to replace all of the tile, we learned that taking the old tile off of the wall would result in essentially replastering and a much more expensive/time consuming job than we wanted to do right now, so we opted for the permaglaze. It is great to have neutral, white tile to work with. We also repainted the walls- a lovely brownish gray- one of my favorite colors, and replaced the lighting and mirror.

The new sink and faucet. I think Will was ready to hurt someone/something after the pain that installing this sink was. Not recommended for a first time plumber, but he persevered and figured it out. If it were up to me, I would have called someone to do it, but I think after a while it became about not letting the sink win the battle.

Behind the wall on the right, is our shower, which is actually a good size considering the oompa loompa size of everything else. Somehow, it works though, and having the new materials and look in the bathroom has made all the difference.

Be our guest...

So, we do actually have other rooms in our house besides the living/dining room. Once again, camera is not the greatest for taking pictures of rooms, but its the best I can do right now. It bothers me because it makes all of the colors look different... oh well. The walls in this room are actually a pretty cream color- not yellow or pink- the 3rd picture probably represents it the best.
Gotta love recycling the college bedding. Those of you that I lived with in the past 5 years of my life will recognize most of the stuff in this room.

And a makeshift slipcover- believe me, its much better than the red fabric it is covering.

The walls in this room are a pretty gray-green color- not yellowy green. I know most of you probably don't care, but it makes me feel better to explain it :).

This little reading nook is anchored by a bargain chair that we got at a model home sale- $15!

I really love the way the room turned out- really neutral and cozy.

So now, you know you have a place to sleep and no excuse to not come and visit!