I was thinking about my most embarrassing moments the other day and decided to blog about them. There were 4 that I could think of off the top of my head. Two of them were truly mortifying and the other two just made for good stories.
We'll start with the mortifying:
1) I borrowed a friend's car to take Jeff, Emily, and Eiley to the airport when they were moving back to CA. On my way back from the airport, one of the tires blew out and I TOTALED HER CAR. I just kept shouting, "NONONONONONONONO!" as it was happening and continued to shout it once I was stopped on the other side of the freeway and facing oncoming traffic. There were some wonderful people who saw what had happened and came over to check on me... all I could say was, "It's not my car!!!" It all ended up working out because she got the same amount of money back that she had paid for the car, but still... no one wants to total someone else's car.
2) While volunteering in Kentucky, we had many volunteers who came to live in our house. The majority of them were nice, or at least tolerable. There was one, though, who also volunteered at the preschool with Miss Kim and me. I had zero patience for her. One day, we all went to get into the van after a long day of working with preschoolers. I got into the driver's seat and closed my door. I heard a howl from the back where this other volunteer was climbing in and immediately opened my door. It turns out that she had grabbed onto the driver's side when she was getting into the van, instead of the part in the back of the van where the door slides. I had slammed the door on her hand! It ended up that there was a big cut in the middle of it and she spent the rest of her time complaining about how she couldn't do anything because it hurt so badly.
The funny ones:
3) When I was going into the 7th grade, we had a new potential youth pastor at our church. Most of my immediate and extended family went to the same church, so my Grandma invited the prospective youth pastor over for my dad's birthday lunch. I was enjoying the wonderful roast lunch that she had prepared until a piece of it got stuck in my throat. I had some trouble swallowing it and ended up puking all over my plate. My poor dad- he's okay with most things except loose teeth and vomit. What a way to make a first impression on the youth pastor!
4) While working at Blockbuster Video back in the day, I was recovering from a cold of some sort. I had that lingering cough that is sometimes impossible to stop without water. As I was helping a customer at checkout, I started coughing as I told him when the movie was due. It wouldn't stop and I started to reach for my water. Then it stopped as soon as I went for the water and I thought I could just wait until I finished with the checkout. I started to cough again and the guy said, "It's okay. Just drink the water." I started to drink it, but I ended up coughing again and spraying water all over the guy, just as if he were seeing Shamu at Sea World. He was a great sport and told me, "That's the funniest thing that's happened to me all day!"
Friday, June 20, 2014
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Happy 9 Monthiversary, Elisha
Dear Elisha,
You are 9 months old today, which means that you have been out in the world for the same amount of time that you were in my belly. How crazy to think that the time I spent waiting for you is now the same as the time that I've actually known you! I must say that the time spent with you has gone by WAY faster than the waiting for you did. People say that babies grow up so fast and it really is true. Here are some of the things that I love about YOU:
- You're such a happy little guy. You pretty much only cry anymore when you're tired or hungry. Or when you fall down and hit your head.
- You love to sleep. Thank goodness, because I'm a big fan of it myself. I greatly appreciate that your wake-up time is around 7am.
- You know how to entertain yourself. There are times when we will put you in your crib with your toys because we need to get things done around the house. We'll hear you babbling away in there and know that you're perfectly content.
- I'm pretty sure that you're going to be an extravert. I don't think that you'll be one in the loud-mouthed, life of the party type of way, but I think that you get your energy from other people. I've seen you light up when you get to see your little friends at the babysitter's and get all excited when we're at a basketball game. I've also seen you being quiet when we're out in public, but then we get you home and you babble twice as much as usual.
- I love giving you new foods to eat. You always look disgusted when you take the first bite, but then you end up eating the rest of what I give to you. Except green beans with rice. You hated that stuff and I gave up halfway through since you haven't been picky about anything else.
- I love the way that you look at your daddy and me. There are times that you'll just be staring at one of us and grinning. I know this is what babies do, but it's really special since you're our baby.
- Speaking of your daddy, I love watching him with you. He's SO proud of you and it makes my heart swell when I see the two of you playing on the floor or just hanging out on the bed.
- One thing that I could do without: your hatred of snuggling. I've gotten to snuggle with you 5 times in the past month. Four of those times were on the same day because you were very sick and only wanted to be held. One of my main reasons for having a baby was the unlimited amount of snuggling available. You went ahead and ruined that plan for me.
- I do appreciate your squirminess, though. You weren't a very active fetus, so I thought that meant you'd be pretty mellow outside of the womb. Your personality is pretty laidback, but you sure did trick me with the amount that you like to move around. You were getting out of your little swaddling bag at 2 weeks old, rolling onto your stomach at 3 months... now you're cruising and taking 1 step at a time before falling down. You're always on the go and this has been very surprising to me.
In conclusion, I have loved getting to know you during the past 9 months and I can't wait to learn more about you as you grow up!
You are 9 months old today, which means that you have been out in the world for the same amount of time that you were in my belly. How crazy to think that the time I spent waiting for you is now the same as the time that I've actually known you! I must say that the time spent with you has gone by WAY faster than the waiting for you did. People say that babies grow up so fast and it really is true. Here are some of the things that I love about YOU:
- You're such a happy little guy. You pretty much only cry anymore when you're tired or hungry. Or when you fall down and hit your head.
- You love to sleep. Thank goodness, because I'm a big fan of it myself. I greatly appreciate that your wake-up time is around 7am.
- You know how to entertain yourself. There are times when we will put you in your crib with your toys because we need to get things done around the house. We'll hear you babbling away in there and know that you're perfectly content.
- I'm pretty sure that you're going to be an extravert. I don't think that you'll be one in the loud-mouthed, life of the party type of way, but I think that you get your energy from other people. I've seen you light up when you get to see your little friends at the babysitter's and get all excited when we're at a basketball game. I've also seen you being quiet when we're out in public, but then we get you home and you babble twice as much as usual.
- I love giving you new foods to eat. You always look disgusted when you take the first bite, but then you end up eating the rest of what I give to you. Except green beans with rice. You hated that stuff and I gave up halfway through since you haven't been picky about anything else.
- I love the way that you look at your daddy and me. There are times that you'll just be staring at one of us and grinning. I know this is what babies do, but it's really special since you're our baby.
- Speaking of your daddy, I love watching him with you. He's SO proud of you and it makes my heart swell when I see the two of you playing on the floor or just hanging out on the bed.
- One thing that I could do without: your hatred of snuggling. I've gotten to snuggle with you 5 times in the past month. Four of those times were on the same day because you were very sick and only wanted to be held. One of my main reasons for having a baby was the unlimited amount of snuggling available. You went ahead and ruined that plan for me.
- I do appreciate your squirminess, though. You weren't a very active fetus, so I thought that meant you'd be pretty mellow outside of the womb. Your personality is pretty laidback, but you sure did trick me with the amount that you like to move around. You were getting out of your little swaddling bag at 2 weeks old, rolling onto your stomach at 3 months... now you're cruising and taking 1 step at a time before falling down. You're always on the go and this has been very surprising to me.
In conclusion, I have loved getting to know you during the past 9 months and I can't wait to learn more about you as you grow up!
Sunday, December 29, 2013
2013
It's the end of the year and time for me to attempt to remember the things that happened to me throughout 2013. It was a big year, but also quite a blur!
January: Got into a car accident while driving the Honda Civic Hybrid that we had bought 5 months earlier. The man who ran into me was driving a Chevy Silverado and turned left into my car as I was going through a green light. It worked out in my favor, though, because the Civic was totaled and worth $3000 more than what we had paid for it. Since we had only made 5 payments on it, we basically just kept the same loan and used the extra money as a down payment for a Prius (my dream car!) At 6 months pregnant, I somehow escaped that crash with just a teeny-tiny bruise on my elbow and no pain the next day. They ran tests on me at the hospital and Elisha was also perfectly fine. Andrew and I also went to a lovely Bed & Breakfast in Staunton, VA, as a babymoon. It was beautiful up there and a fun memory to make before the baby was born.
February: I think we went to some ODU games and I worked a lot. We went to the Broken Egg (our favorite restaurant) for a really nice dinner on Valentine's Day.
March: Spring began and the weather became ultra-beautiful. Andrew and I got to take some lovely hikes during my 8th month of pregnancy because of that gorgeous weather. I was a single woman for 2 weeks because Andrew was a chaperone for the senior trip to Europe. It was nice to have the house to myself for about 2 days, but then I missed him and time seemed to stand still for the next 12 days.
April: I gave birth to Elisha Gideon Garrett on April 26th. He had to go to the NICU the next day because they were afraid that there was something wrong with his small intestine. He ended up being healthy, but he had to stay in the NICU for 5 days because they put him on antibiotics for a possible infection.
May: Mama, Emmy, and Eiley came to live with us and help out with Elisha when he was first born. It was so nice to have them in town and get to see them loving spending time with my little boy.
June: I got to spend most of this month with Elisha and established somewhat of a routine with him. I went back to work at the end of the month.
July: Went on my first road trip with Elisha and discovered that he's quite a good traveler. We reunited with my friends in Kentucky and it was so great to be able to introduce him to all of his surrogate aunts and uncles at once.
August: My dad came to visit because he couldn't handle the fact that he would have to wait another 3 months to meet Elisha. I loved that he took the time to visit and that he got quality time with his only grandson.
September: Andrew went on a 3 day retreat with everyone at Stonebridge, so I experienced being a single mom for the first time. Mad props to the single moms out there because it's hard to do the parenting thing without extra help.
October: I was in a ton of pain because of a bulging disc in my back that was pinching a nerve in my right leg. It was absolutely miserable and I spent most of the month in bed and/or crying. Thankfully, Andrew has a wonderful parent at his school who has a chain of physical therapy facilities here and he was able to take care of me. Physical therapy helped me a ton in getting to be able to walk, sit, and stand again without being in misery.
November: Spent my birthday evening watching the Stonebridge Girls' Volleyball team win their quarterfinal match and then everyone went out for Mexican food after it was over. We went to California for Thanksmas and, of course, had a blast with family. It was so fun to introduce Elisha to everyone and to see how excited they all were to meet him. I was also very proud of him on all of our flights. He didn't sleep much, but he was a happy camper!
December: Went to Christmas Town at Busch Gardens and saw lots of pretty lights. Spent time with Andrew's side of the family as they came into town. Had Elisha dedicated at Andrew's old church.
January: Got into a car accident while driving the Honda Civic Hybrid that we had bought 5 months earlier. The man who ran into me was driving a Chevy Silverado and turned left into my car as I was going through a green light. It worked out in my favor, though, because the Civic was totaled and worth $3000 more than what we had paid for it. Since we had only made 5 payments on it, we basically just kept the same loan and used the extra money as a down payment for a Prius (my dream car!) At 6 months pregnant, I somehow escaped that crash with just a teeny-tiny bruise on my elbow and no pain the next day. They ran tests on me at the hospital and Elisha was also perfectly fine. Andrew and I also went to a lovely Bed & Breakfast in Staunton, VA, as a babymoon. It was beautiful up there and a fun memory to make before the baby was born.
February: I think we went to some ODU games and I worked a lot. We went to the Broken Egg (our favorite restaurant) for a really nice dinner on Valentine's Day.
March: Spring began and the weather became ultra-beautiful. Andrew and I got to take some lovely hikes during my 8th month of pregnancy because of that gorgeous weather. I was a single woman for 2 weeks because Andrew was a chaperone for the senior trip to Europe. It was nice to have the house to myself for about 2 days, but then I missed him and time seemed to stand still for the next 12 days.
April: I gave birth to Elisha Gideon Garrett on April 26th. He had to go to the NICU the next day because they were afraid that there was something wrong with his small intestine. He ended up being healthy, but he had to stay in the NICU for 5 days because they put him on antibiotics for a possible infection.
May: Mama, Emmy, and Eiley came to live with us and help out with Elisha when he was first born. It was so nice to have them in town and get to see them loving spending time with my little boy.
June: I got to spend most of this month with Elisha and established somewhat of a routine with him. I went back to work at the end of the month.
July: Went on my first road trip with Elisha and discovered that he's quite a good traveler. We reunited with my friends in Kentucky and it was so great to be able to introduce him to all of his surrogate aunts and uncles at once.
August: My dad came to visit because he couldn't handle the fact that he would have to wait another 3 months to meet Elisha. I loved that he took the time to visit and that he got quality time with his only grandson.
September: Andrew went on a 3 day retreat with everyone at Stonebridge, so I experienced being a single mom for the first time. Mad props to the single moms out there because it's hard to do the parenting thing without extra help.
October: I was in a ton of pain because of a bulging disc in my back that was pinching a nerve in my right leg. It was absolutely miserable and I spent most of the month in bed and/or crying. Thankfully, Andrew has a wonderful parent at his school who has a chain of physical therapy facilities here and he was able to take care of me. Physical therapy helped me a ton in getting to be able to walk, sit, and stand again without being in misery.
November: Spent my birthday evening watching the Stonebridge Girls' Volleyball team win their quarterfinal match and then everyone went out for Mexican food after it was over. We went to California for Thanksmas and, of course, had a blast with family. It was so fun to introduce Elisha to everyone and to see how excited they all were to meet him. I was also very proud of him on all of our flights. He didn't sleep much, but he was a happy camper!
December: Went to Christmas Town at Busch Gardens and saw lots of pretty lights. Spent time with Andrew's side of the family as they came into town. Had Elisha dedicated at Andrew's old church.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
The Birth Story
Dear Elisha,
I wanted to tell you your birth story because my mom likes to tell me mine every year on my birthday. I plan to carry on the same tradition and am starting on it early. So here's a little story about the day (and night before) you were born.
On April 25, 2013, your daddy and I got home from a Stonebridge event around 7 or 8pm. He was still hungry and was craving Sonic ice cream (for reals... I was pregnant, but he was the one with the craving). We went out around 10pm and my stomach was kind of hurting, but I still ordered some ice cream for myself because I firmly believe in saying yes to ice cream whenever it's offered. When we went outside, I noticed that it appeared to be a full moon. Your Great Grandma Bradshaw, who has been a nurse for 60+ years, has said that more babies are born during the full moon than at any other point during the month. Well, this made me think that maybe it was more than a stomachache, but it couldn't be because you weren't due for another 3 days. We got our ice cream, took it home, and I ate about 1/3 of it. We spent the next hour or so timing whether there was a pattern to these stomachaches and sure enough, it was happening every 7 minutes or so. I was in labor and would soon be getting to meet you!
We waited until the contractions were about 3 minutes apart because we didn't want to go to the hospital and have them turn us away. Therefore, we got to the hospital around 3am. I was in a lot of pain at that point and asked to get the epidural as soon as possible. They said they had to get some fluids into me and then they would be able to give me the epidural. I thought, "No big deal. I'll be getting some pain relief in no time at all."... Around 5:30am, I had the fluids in me and the anesthesiologist was giving me an epidural. 2 1/2 hours after getting to the hospital! My point is that I was in a lot of pain for WAY longer than I expected. Then he gave me that injection and it was all sunshine and rainbows and unicorns.
The doctor came in to check me and said that he thought you would be born around 9am... you were born at 4:21pm. Needless to say, I had a lot of getting my hopes up and being disappointed for about 7 hours there. They would say I was ready to push, then I would push and they would say it wasn't time yet and we needed to wait a bit. There was also a point when they had to put me on my side in order for you to move and be in the right position to come out. That point coincided with the epidural wearing off. Something your daddy was nice enough to figure out about an hour after it happened. Luckily, your daddy is a great advocate and he got them to fix that epidural quickly.
Finally, around 3:30pm, it really was time to push. The doctor from the morning had left and Dr. Colwill was the one who delivered you. She was so incredibly nice- talking me through it and asking us questions about our lives. Your daddy kept making jokes, telling me he loved me, and telling me I was beautiful. He was an excellent teammate during the whole process (minus texting everyone with updates about what was happening... I did not want to hear that text message beep anymore.) They kept saying that they saw your head, which made me think you were almost out... it was another 45 minutes or so before you were actually in my arms. I pushed when they told me to and when I could tell that you really were almost here, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to push anymore. It was about 3 more times and then you were really, truly, FINALLY out!
Now, I have watched a lot of "A Baby Story" in my life, and I usually get a little teary-eyed when I see the mother holding her baby for the first time. They're usually pretty emotional about it, too. When you came out, though, I was just so absolutely relieved that you were here and in my arms. All of that pushing is really tiring and I was just so happy that it was over, so I didn't cry. Sorry about that. I was also excited about meeting you in person and being able to hold you. My point is that there wasn't time for weepy emotions and I just wanted to hang out with you... I also wanted to eat Chicken McNuggets and drink a Diet Coke because I hadn't eaten in about 18 hours. Your grandparents were nice enough to get those and have them ready for me soon after you were born.
About 2 hours after you were born, the pediatrician came in and said that you were born with a temperature of 103 degrees. They had to put you on some antibiotics through an IV and it meant that you would have to stay in the hospital nursery for 2 days. This scared me a little, but I knew that you would be okay.
We hung out in the delivery room for a few more hours because I couldn't walk, then we went to spend the night in a recovery room. I got up to go to the bathroom around 4am and your daddy heard me, so he said, "Do you want to go and visit the baby in the nursery?' I said yes and thought it was adorable because he had never cared much about babies until he met you. When he met you, he was over-the-moon in love.
We heard a loud scream as we were walking down there and found out it was you. It turns out that you had just thrown up some bright green bile and they were afraid that there was something wrong with your small intestine. They were going to have to transfer you to the NICU at CHKD. This was more scary than the news from the night before and it was heartbreaking to see you in the little mobile crib that they use to transport babies between hospitals. I've never been in an ambulance and you went in one during the first 24 hours of your life. After you were taken there, they ran some tests and found out that you were going to be okay. They just had to keep you on the antibiotics for a few more days, which ended up being 5 days and we were finally able to bring you home 6 days after you were born.
So there's your birth story- it's kind of a long one and more dramatic than I expected it to be. Hopefully the drama thing isn't something that continues throughout your life. Unless it leads you to becoming a famous actor and supporting your father and me in the manner in which we'd like to become accustomed.
I wanted to tell you your birth story because my mom likes to tell me mine every year on my birthday. I plan to carry on the same tradition and am starting on it early. So here's a little story about the day (and night before) you were born.
On April 25, 2013, your daddy and I got home from a Stonebridge event around 7 or 8pm. He was still hungry and was craving Sonic ice cream (for reals... I was pregnant, but he was the one with the craving). We went out around 10pm and my stomach was kind of hurting, but I still ordered some ice cream for myself because I firmly believe in saying yes to ice cream whenever it's offered. When we went outside, I noticed that it appeared to be a full moon. Your Great Grandma Bradshaw, who has been a nurse for 60+ years, has said that more babies are born during the full moon than at any other point during the month. Well, this made me think that maybe it was more than a stomachache, but it couldn't be because you weren't due for another 3 days. We got our ice cream, took it home, and I ate about 1/3 of it. We spent the next hour or so timing whether there was a pattern to these stomachaches and sure enough, it was happening every 7 minutes or so. I was in labor and would soon be getting to meet you!
We waited until the contractions were about 3 minutes apart because we didn't want to go to the hospital and have them turn us away. Therefore, we got to the hospital around 3am. I was in a lot of pain at that point and asked to get the epidural as soon as possible. They said they had to get some fluids into me and then they would be able to give me the epidural. I thought, "No big deal. I'll be getting some pain relief in no time at all."... Around 5:30am, I had the fluids in me and the anesthesiologist was giving me an epidural. 2 1/2 hours after getting to the hospital! My point is that I was in a lot of pain for WAY longer than I expected. Then he gave me that injection and it was all sunshine and rainbows and unicorns.
The doctor came in to check me and said that he thought you would be born around 9am... you were born at 4:21pm. Needless to say, I had a lot of getting my hopes up and being disappointed for about 7 hours there. They would say I was ready to push, then I would push and they would say it wasn't time yet and we needed to wait a bit. There was also a point when they had to put me on my side in order for you to move and be in the right position to come out. That point coincided with the epidural wearing off. Something your daddy was nice enough to figure out about an hour after it happened. Luckily, your daddy is a great advocate and he got them to fix that epidural quickly.
Finally, around 3:30pm, it really was time to push. The doctor from the morning had left and Dr. Colwill was the one who delivered you. She was so incredibly nice- talking me through it and asking us questions about our lives. Your daddy kept making jokes, telling me he loved me, and telling me I was beautiful. He was an excellent teammate during the whole process (minus texting everyone with updates about what was happening... I did not want to hear that text message beep anymore.) They kept saying that they saw your head, which made me think you were almost out... it was another 45 minutes or so before you were actually in my arms. I pushed when they told me to and when I could tell that you really were almost here, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to push anymore. It was about 3 more times and then you were really, truly, FINALLY out!
Now, I have watched a lot of "A Baby Story" in my life, and I usually get a little teary-eyed when I see the mother holding her baby for the first time. They're usually pretty emotional about it, too. When you came out, though, I was just so absolutely relieved that you were here and in my arms. All of that pushing is really tiring and I was just so happy that it was over, so I didn't cry. Sorry about that. I was also excited about meeting you in person and being able to hold you. My point is that there wasn't time for weepy emotions and I just wanted to hang out with you... I also wanted to eat Chicken McNuggets and drink a Diet Coke because I hadn't eaten in about 18 hours. Your grandparents were nice enough to get those and have them ready for me soon after you were born.
About 2 hours after you were born, the pediatrician came in and said that you were born with a temperature of 103 degrees. They had to put you on some antibiotics through an IV and it meant that you would have to stay in the hospital nursery for 2 days. This scared me a little, but I knew that you would be okay.
We hung out in the delivery room for a few more hours because I couldn't walk, then we went to spend the night in a recovery room. I got up to go to the bathroom around 4am and your daddy heard me, so he said, "Do you want to go and visit the baby in the nursery?' I said yes and thought it was adorable because he had never cared much about babies until he met you. When he met you, he was over-the-moon in love.
We heard a loud scream as we were walking down there and found out it was you. It turns out that you had just thrown up some bright green bile and they were afraid that there was something wrong with your small intestine. They were going to have to transfer you to the NICU at CHKD. This was more scary than the news from the night before and it was heartbreaking to see you in the little mobile crib that they use to transport babies between hospitals. I've never been in an ambulance and you went in one during the first 24 hours of your life. After you were taken there, they ran some tests and found out that you were going to be okay. They just had to keep you on the antibiotics for a few more days, which ended up being 5 days and we were finally able to bring you home 6 days after you were born.
So there's your birth story- it's kind of a long one and more dramatic than I expected it to be. Hopefully the drama thing isn't something that continues throughout your life. Unless it leads you to becoming a famous actor and supporting your father and me in the manner in which we'd like to become accustomed.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Show Us Your Life- Jenny Edition
I love matchmaking, so I was very happy when Jenny told me about "Show Us Your Life". It meant that I could possibly play a role in helping her find the love of her life and since she absolutely deserves that, it was an honor to be asked to write about her. Here are the things that I love about Jenny and you'll probably love, too, if you're lucky enough to get to meet her:
- She loves Jesus more than anything and she always does a great job of trying to make sure that her decisions are God's will and not her own. She's done this through prayer, Bible study, and patiently waiting when she's unsure of a clear answer on what to do in her life.
- She's a wonderful friend and does an excellent job of maintaining friendships, even though many of them are long distance now. She's been in 5 weddings that I can think of off the top of my head, including my own, and a few of those have been people that she's known since childhood. She's very good about writing letters, making phone calls, and e-mailing to make sure that she knows what's going on in the life of her friends. The four of us in this picture volunteered together during 2008-2009 in Kentucky and we still keep in touch through a notebook that we send to each other with updates on our lives.
From left: Kim, Jenna, Jenny, Jess
- She's adventurous and does things like finding new places to hike, traveling to far-off places, rock climbing, and SKYDIVING.
- She loves to watch football... isn't this every guy's idea of the perfect woman?
- She likes to be active and does a great job of staying in shape. This is especially difficult to do in Berea, KY because there aren't a ton of places to exercise there, but she still manages to find spinning classes and go running.
Jenny's on the right. This is from a team marathon in Louisville 2009.
- She's a good cook, which I know because I was her housemate for 1 year. She also came up with fun food themes, such as Derby Pie and Hot Browns in honor of the Kentucky Derby.
At the Kentucky Derby. Jenny's on the left.
- She's ultra-smart. She was her high school valedictorian and she went to Vanderbilt University for her Master's degree in School Counseling.
- She's great at helping people. Some of the big responsibilities of her job are organizing Christmas basket distributions for families in Kentucky who don't have much money and may not be able to afford much for their families at Christmastime. She also organizes School Readiness to make sure that kids have all of the school supplies that they need when they return to school in the fall. Those are just two of the big things that she does, plus she advocates for the various needs of people on a daily basis.
In conclusion, Jenny's a total catch and you (or the loved one that you think she'd be right for) should get to know her!
http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2012/02/show-us-your-life-show-us-your-singles.html
- She loves Jesus more than anything and she always does a great job of trying to make sure that her decisions are God's will and not her own. She's done this through prayer, Bible study, and patiently waiting when she's unsure of a clear answer on what to do in her life.
- She's a wonderful friend and does an excellent job of maintaining friendships, even though many of them are long distance now. She's been in 5 weddings that I can think of off the top of my head, including my own, and a few of those have been people that she's known since childhood. She's very good about writing letters, making phone calls, and e-mailing to make sure that she knows what's going on in the life of her friends. The four of us in this picture volunteered together during 2008-2009 in Kentucky and we still keep in touch through a notebook that we send to each other with updates on our lives.
- She's adventurous and does things like finding new places to hike, traveling to far-off places, rock climbing, and SKYDIVING.
Off-roading... we weren't really, but it was a cute picture with Jenny in the middle.
- She loves to watch football... isn't this every guy's idea of the perfect woman?
- She likes to be active and does a great job of staying in shape. This is especially difficult to do in Berea, KY because there aren't a ton of places to exercise there, but she still manages to find spinning classes and go running.
- She's a good cook, which I know because I was her housemate for 1 year. She also came up with fun food themes, such as Derby Pie and Hot Browns in honor of the Kentucky Derby.
- She's ultra-smart. She was her high school valedictorian and she went to Vanderbilt University for her Master's degree in School Counseling.
- She's great at helping people. Some of the big responsibilities of her job are organizing Christmas basket distributions for families in Kentucky who don't have much money and may not be able to afford much for their families at Christmastime. She also organizes School Readiness to make sure that kids have all of the school supplies that they need when they return to school in the fall. Those are just two of the big things that she does, plus she advocates for the various needs of people on a daily basis.
In conclusion, Jenny's a total catch and you (or the loved one that you think she'd be right for) should get to know her!
http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/2012/02/show-us-your-life-show-us-your-singles.html
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Best Concert Ever!
We went to see The Fray and Kelly Clarkson in concert last night and it was such a blast! My dream concerts are/have been U2, The Fray, and Taylor Swift. We were able to see U2 last June, so I was excited to check another band off the list when I heard that The Fray were coming to Virginia Beach. I also held off on getting tickets because it was at the Virginia Beach Amphitheater and I figured the lawn seats weren't going to sell out. My waiting paid off and I was able to buy 2 tickets for the concert on Groupon for $15 last month.
Some of the highlights from the concert last night were:
1) It finally being cool enough to wear a sweatshirt and jeans.
2) Walking to the lawn and being asked if we wanted a free upgrade to seats in the Amphitheater (we took them, duh.)
3) People-watching, especially because there's a very diverse following of people who listen to Kelly Clarkson and The Fray. Some of my favorites were:
a) Seeing a dad with his teenage daughter who was in a wheelchair as they talked and joked around.
b) The group of 5 junior high girls who were dancing and singing along with the music.
c) The 2 men who appeared to be a couple and knew every word to every Kelly Clarkson song.
d) The 2 women in their 40's who ran into the bathroom and screamed with excitement because all of the stalls were unoccupied before the concert began.
e) The junior high girl who was there with her family and appeared to be doing the Monster Mash to Kelly Clarkson's music.
4) Singing as loudly as I could to "Because of You," "Stronger," and "Since U Been Gone" during the Kelly Clarkson portion.
5) Kelly Clarkson covering "Already Gone" by Leona Lewis and saying that she had forgotten the words in the middle of it. Luckily, she was in the audience at that point, so people were able to help her out.
6) This one's my favorite: A woman recognized us from Essential Church during the break between Kelly Clarkson and The Fray. She said that she was going to be leaving early with her daughter and asked if we wanted to take their seats that were even closer to the front. We were probably about 100 feet from the stage and didn't even need to look at the screens to see them. So cool and it was very kind of her!
7) Giving Miss Kim's phone number to Joe... (this one's a lie, but I would have loved for it to happen.)
8) Singing along with Andrew to every song by The Fray.
9) Getting to experience all of this with Andrew because I have so much fun with him and because The Fray is the one band that both of us love listening to.
10) No traffic getting out of the parking lot. We figured out that a lot of the kids were there to see Kelly Clarkson and if they stayed until the end of The Fray, it would be way past their bedtimes.
This night was something I had looked forward to for a long time and it absolutely exceeded my expectations!
Some of the highlights from the concert last night were:
1) It finally being cool enough to wear a sweatshirt and jeans.
2) Walking to the lawn and being asked if we wanted a free upgrade to seats in the Amphitheater (we took them, duh.)
3) People-watching, especially because there's a very diverse following of people who listen to Kelly Clarkson and The Fray. Some of my favorites were:
a) Seeing a dad with his teenage daughter who was in a wheelchair as they talked and joked around.
b) The group of 5 junior high girls who were dancing and singing along with the music.
c) The 2 men who appeared to be a couple and knew every word to every Kelly Clarkson song.
d) The 2 women in their 40's who ran into the bathroom and screamed with excitement because all of the stalls were unoccupied before the concert began.
e) The junior high girl who was there with her family and appeared to be doing the Monster Mash to Kelly Clarkson's music.
4) Singing as loudly as I could to "Because of You," "Stronger," and "Since U Been Gone" during the Kelly Clarkson portion.
5) Kelly Clarkson covering "Already Gone" by Leona Lewis and saying that she had forgotten the words in the middle of it. Luckily, she was in the audience at that point, so people were able to help her out.
6) This one's my favorite: A woman recognized us from Essential Church during the break between Kelly Clarkson and The Fray. She said that she was going to be leaving early with her daughter and asked if we wanted to take their seats that were even closer to the front. We were probably about 100 feet from the stage and didn't even need to look at the screens to see them. So cool and it was very kind of her!
7) Giving Miss Kim's phone number to Joe... (this one's a lie, but I would have loved for it to happen.)
8) Singing along with Andrew to every song by The Fray.
9) Getting to experience all of this with Andrew because I have so much fun with him and because The Fray is the one band that both of us love listening to.
10) No traffic getting out of the parking lot. We figured out that a lot of the kids were there to see Kelly Clarkson and if they stayed until the end of The Fray, it would be way past their bedtimes.
This night was something I had looked forward to for a long time and it absolutely exceeded my expectations!
Sunday, August 12, 2012
If My Life Flashed Before My Eyes...
The other day, my sister blogged about what she hoped/thought she would see if her life flashed before her eyes, then instructed me to do the same after I commented on it. I'm going to try to do the same now. And, to read her awesome blog post, go to www.longdistancelobsters.com.
- Waiting all day at the hospital for Eiley to be born and then finally getting to hold her.
- My wedding day. I just started to list way too many things from it, so I think I'll put those in another blog.
- That perfect summer day when we went to the beach, rode bikes, got frozen yogurt, and barbecued.
- That random summer night when we tried to pass out sandwiches to homeless people in the Back Bay and got pulled over briefly by a cop because he thought the sandwiches were drug paraphernalia.
- That perfect winter day in Kentucky where we had a snowball fight, drank hot chocolate, watched Faerie Tale theater, and played Scrabble.
- That perfect winter day in Virginia when school was canceled, so Andrew came over for watching HIMYM, kissing, going to the mall, and dinner at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.
- Andrew and I sitting on the couch at my old apartment and him telling me that he'd had dreams where we were getting married and I was holding our daughter.
- Late night talks with Robyn Boyd (not any specific ones, but there have been so many that I'm sure I'd have a picture of it in my mind).
- Emmy punching me in the stomach when she was 5 and I was 8 because she was mad at Tiffany (this isn't a happy memory, but it's always been so vivid that I'm sure it would come up at the end of my life).
- Experiencing a huge summer storm while camping in Lake Havasu and watching people try to take pictures of the lightning... then watching them realize how it's next to impossible to take pictures of lightning (this was before digital cameras existed).
- Watching one of the counselors and 2 of the little girl campers at Royal Family Kids' Camp dance to "In Your Presence" by Charity Von.
- I'm sure that I would picture at least one of my fancy birthday dinners with my dad. I think this year will be our 21st year of doing that, so there would be tons of memories to choose from.
- Watching the sunset in Mexico while doing devotions with Andrew.
- Going with Eiley and Emmy to take pictures during Eiley's mini-monthly photo shoots.
- One of those days when Andrew and I go to Busch Gardens and Zaxby's. Those are always wonderful!
- Seeing my dad walk my sister up the aisle and watching Jeff openly weep upon her entrance.
- Vahdan giving me a toast and singing to me on my 28th birthday.
- Going to Haiti with my mom and getting to hold babies at an orphanage there.
- Watching Disneyland fireworks.
- Taking long walks in Newport Beach with various friends.
- Having a HIMYM party on Monday nights at the Canal House and crowding my green couch with a bunch of my favorite people.
- Having a Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor Pad party every Monday with Andrew.
- I'm certain that I would see something random that Emmy had instigated (Scrabble at Downtown Disney, Tabitha's birthday scavenger hunt, various theme parties, etc.).
- The April Fool's Day when my mom almost convinced me that there was an ejector seat in the car or the one where our parents surprised us with a night at the Disneyland Hotel.
That seems to be a lot and I'm sure I wouldn't see all of those things, but it would be great if I did.
- Waiting all day at the hospital for Eiley to be born and then finally getting to hold her.
- That perfect summer day when we went to the beach, rode bikes, got frozen yogurt, and barbecued.
- That random summer night when we tried to pass out sandwiches to homeless people in the Back Bay and got pulled over briefly by a cop because he thought the sandwiches were drug paraphernalia.
- That perfect winter day in Kentucky where we had a snowball fight, drank hot chocolate, watched Faerie Tale theater, and played Scrabble.
- That perfect winter day in Virginia when school was canceled, so Andrew came over for watching HIMYM, kissing, going to the mall, and dinner at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.
- Andrew and I sitting on the couch at my old apartment and him telling me that he'd had dreams where we were getting married and I was holding our daughter.
- Late night talks with Robyn Boyd (not any specific ones, but there have been so many that I'm sure I'd have a picture of it in my mind).
- Emmy punching me in the stomach when she was 5 and I was 8 because she was mad at Tiffany (this isn't a happy memory, but it's always been so vivid that I'm sure it would come up at the end of my life).
- Experiencing a huge summer storm while camping in Lake Havasu and watching people try to take pictures of the lightning... then watching them realize how it's next to impossible to take pictures of lightning (this was before digital cameras existed).
- Watching one of the counselors and 2 of the little girl campers at Royal Family Kids' Camp dance to "In Your Presence" by Charity Von.
- I'm sure that I would picture at least one of my fancy birthday dinners with my dad. I think this year will be our 21st year of doing that, so there would be tons of memories to choose from.
- Watching the sunset in Mexico while doing devotions with Andrew.
- Going with Eiley and Emmy to take pictures during Eiley's mini-monthly photo shoots.
- One of those days when Andrew and I go to Busch Gardens and Zaxby's. Those are always wonderful!
- Seeing my dad walk my sister up the aisle and watching Jeff openly weep upon her entrance.
- Vahdan giving me a toast and singing to me on my 28th birthday.
- Going to Haiti with my mom and getting to hold babies at an orphanage there.
- Watching Disneyland fireworks.
- Taking long walks in Newport Beach with various friends.
- Having a HIMYM party on Monday nights at the Canal House and crowding my green couch with a bunch of my favorite people.
- Having a Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor Pad party every Monday with Andrew.
- I'm certain that I would see something random that Emmy had instigated (Scrabble at Downtown Disney, Tabitha's birthday scavenger hunt, various theme parties, etc.).
- The April Fool's Day when my mom almost convinced me that there was an ejector seat in the car or the one where our parents surprised us with a night at the Disneyland Hotel.
That seems to be a lot and I'm sure I wouldn't see all of those things, but it would be great if I did.
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