Birthday Cheers
Amid the busyness of the Christmas season something big happened – my mother’s birthday. In our family, when your birthday is this close to Christmas, Dec. 22, it’s very important to keep them separate, and by any means you can not give a birthday present that’s also a Christmas present. So this year I decided to do something special and throw a wine + cheese party in our newlywed apartment for my mother and her friends.
The best compliment I could have gotten after the party came from my mom and her brother – My grandmother Mary Ann would have been proud.
{with the birthday girl}
{all food purchased from Sam’s Club}
{sundried tomato asiago cheese}
{Artisan Fresh decadent cake balls}
{lovely parents}
{love this}
And I didn’t get a picture of the best appetizer of the night (because it was gone so fast!) – Daily Chef filet wrapped in bacon. Thumbs up all around. So one more plug – New Year’s Eve party? Sam’s Club has everything you need. 🙂
All I Want For Christmas…
… is my two front teeth!
I’m decked out in the Christmas spirit – I’ve had one Christmas party thus far, a company-wide holiday luncheon + fun holiday meeting with America’s Got Talent winner Landau Eugene Murphy Jr., our newlywed apartment is filled with holiday decor, I’ve already watched Elf once this season and most importantly, had the pleasure of serving families in need this season with my team at the Salvation Army.
But, what is it I really want for Christmas? That’s easy. “All I want for Christmas is you.” Simple, cheesy, I know. But it’s the truth, and I am so blessed to have my ultimate Christmas gift by my side forever and this year as my HUSBAND!
As we all search for the perfect gifts for our friends and family, let’s remember that it’s more important to cherish and spend time with them. Throw a party, invite them to coffee or after-work drinks and share the spirit with love this season. I may be sappy, but I’m in a sappy mood this evening – partially because of the videos below and partially because I get to spend the evening with the person I love. Our Friday night agenda? A night in – cooking dinner together (steak, fresh green beans + leftover mahi mahi) and relaxing on the couch with a movie.
Enjoy your weekend and enjoy the holidays with your loved ones. Oh, and watch the videos below to get into the Christmas spirit.
{the Biebs is one of my guilty pleasures}
{Oh Glee, how I love thee}
{What is Christmas really all about?}
Baby, it’s cold outside
Don’t get me wrong – I love Thanksgiving, and I had a fabulous one with two wonderful loving families we are so blessed with. But the second Thanksgiving is over you can’t help but feel Christmas is in the air! Fortunately, I have a mother who is an amazing interior decorator and we spent all day Saturday decorating the apartment for mine and Kyle’s first Christmas. ♥
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with loved ones and can share in the Christmas spirit all month long, and of course not forget the true meaning of Christmas.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” – John 3:16
{Christmas tree painting from RiffRaff}
{Angel collection from my aunt}
{Nutcracker on the bar}
{golden whimsical trees from Sam’s Club}
{Ho! Ho! Ho!}
05.28.11
Our wedding pictures have finally arrived! Below is a snapshot of my perfect day.
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“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
– Colossians 3:12 – 17
{Botanical Gardens of the Ozarks}
{story time with my girls to calm my nerves}
{BFFL}
{so darn cute}
{olivia + emma + zoe = most adorable flower girls ever}
{my new father-in-law}
{what a studly group of men}
{the best part of the bride walking down the aisle – watching the groom}
{so many emotions}
{maid of honor + best man}
{best bridesmaids a girl could ask for}
{so epic}
{“I’ve only waited 7 years for this!”}
{beautiful mother}
{first dance}
{I definitely get my dance skills from my dad}
{my new parents-in-law}
{most incredible speech I’ve ever heard}
{bromance}
{time to party}
{so much dancing}
{and it comes off}
{pink mustang getaway car}
{one of my favorite parts of the night}
{Aruba here we come!}
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and finally the wedding video, which shows the entire evening so perfectly.
Weekend Picturebook: Colorado
The husband and I took a weekend trip to Colorado to see my parents in Loveland. Ask him how the trip was, and he’ll tell you without hesitation he’s ready to move, and after this trip, I’m inclined to agree.
{Loveland}
{Taking a shopping break with a ‘Rado brew}
{Pearl St. – Boulder}
{Red Rocks Ampitheater – unfortunately, I did not take this picture, but had to share the beauty}
{STS9 at Red Rocks – an experience we’ll never forget}
{ “cutest” Bloody Mary I’ve ever seen}
{the bike library – Ft. Collins}
{evening picnic}
{thank you Whole Foods for a delicious, unconventional picnic}
{Mom and her second baby Roxie}
{beautiful morning walk – goodbye Loveland, we will be back soon}
Note to Self
I reached a breaking point today.
I realized how much work I have ahead of me in the last month of school. I realized I’m almost done with school forever. No more summer breaks. No more month-long Christmas breaks. No more spring breaks. I’ll be in the real world with a real job. And then there’s just that, a job, which I don’t have. Terrifying.
I think I’m making myself physically sick.
So instead of more rambling about my stress that will only make me more stressed, I wanted to stop and focus on the wonderful things in my life right now, because somehow I keep forgetting about them. Even though I’m pretty sure I’ve blogged this exact same post before, I need reassurance and reminders over and over and over and this is my way to de-stress. And again as much as I want you to read this and get something out of it, this blog is really for me.
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What I’m thankful for right now…
I have a roof over my head, food to eat and clean water to drink.
and if I didn’t have those things, I would have plenty of people to provide them for me.
I have people in my life who really care about me. I have someone I can call or text or drop by to see at any time — to complain to, to share good news with, to cry with, to laugh with, to simply be with.
As much as I forget it, not everyone has that.
I’m getting married in less than 70 days.
Though the rest of my future is uncertain, that’s the one thing I know I have, and goodness, that makes things so much easier.
I’m healthy.
Yes, I get headaches more often than I wish. And some days I feel nauseous or my stomach hurts or my feet hurt, but I don’t have to live with a disease that affects my life. I can do anything I want without even thinking about it.
I’m blessed financially.
I’m not living from one paycheck to another. I’m not worrying about how I’m going to feed myself. I’m not worrying about the bills getting paid on time.
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The most important thing to remember about being blessed with all these things is how I use them.
Do I give back financially like I could? Do I complain too much about my aches and pains? Do I show how thankful I am to the people around me and tell them how much they mean to me? Do I groan at having to drink tap water when some people have no water?
Looking at everything I have and everyone I have in my life, my life seems almost perfect. Why complain about a silly old thesis when the death toll is rising in Japan and people can’t find their families or have nowhere to go with no food to eat?
Yes, we all know this already. But another reminder can never hurt.
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” -Luke 12:48
Altruistic journalism calls girls like you.
We often forget what we have. How blessed we are with the many people and things in our life. Sickness followed me into the week and took more out of me than I would have hoped, namely the reminder of all the beautiful things in my life. My week was full of wonderful people and experiences and I choose now to reflect on these moments that slipped by so easily.
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Wicked Awesome Wednesdays (WAW) that included sushi and hours upon hours of gabbing with my girls that was simply refreshing
“I can tap-dance. You wanna see me tap-dance?”
a surprise guest with surprise flowers
sunshine studying
finishing a book that taught me a simple lesson of love
an unexpected Valentine that reminded me of the value of friendship
surprising fun under a tent with pizza, newspapers and travelers
a truthful, bonding dinner
and a few pictures of some beautiful things in my life right now:
{a new end table from Riffraff}
{a new outfit for an exciting winter wedding this weekend}
{the perfect, unexpected Valentine’s gift- my great grandmother’s notebook, unbeknown to any of us that she was a journalist. a treasure i will always keep}
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[Slowly, but Surely] Answering the Call
Last week my beautiful friend Erin called some fellow bloggers to answer a few questions about “Who are you, really?” Though the “deadline” was supposedly Wednesday night {eek} I have been without internet in my new apartment and am just now getting around to it. However, it must have been fate because I didn’t know the answer to one of them until Thursday as I was unpacking. So here are my answers to Erin’s questions and a few added by my new wonderful neighbor Nicky as she blogged her answers.
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1. What is your most dear object – the first thing you would grab to save in the instance of a fire?
This was the question I didn’t know the answer to until the other day. When I first read this my first instinct was my phone or computer, but then I thought, No I do not want to be that person, and what is really of importance on either of those things anyway? I’m assuming I would have time to grab four things: 1. Lambchops- this beloved stuffed animal that I still sleep with just gives me that feeling of home and belonging. I plan to keep her and give her to my first born. 2. A birthday book my mom gave me for my 21st birthday that she cut out pictures of me and her and pasted inside that makes me cry every time I read it. 3. Similar to that, a scrapbook I just found again from Pops (my grandpa) that he made and gave to me my for my 16th birthday. It holds pictures from when I was younger that are nowhere else to be found and memories of me and him. This also makes me cry every time I look at it. 4. Along the same line, a picture I had framed of me when I was about seven on Easter sitting between Pops and Marnan.
2. What is your favorite dessert?
I’m going to have to follow along the same lines as Nicky and Erin, because who can choose just one!? Short answer: anything chocolate. Long answer: ice cream, perfectly made brownies, tollhouse cookies, tiramisu, creme brulee, cupcakes from Sprinkles, german chocolate cake, red velvet cake, chocolate from Switzerland…. If you can’t tell, desserts in general are my favorite.
3. What do you do when you’ve had a really no-good, rotten, bad day?
I call my mom. I vent and cry and vent and cry. I call Kyle and ask him to come over with dessert in hand (typically ice cream). I crawl in bed and watch the O.C.
4. If you could be doing anything right now – time, money, or resources be damned – what would you do?
Nicky and Erin took this as a very serious question and their answers were beautiful, but mine isn’t quite the same. If I could be doing anything right this second it would be laying on a HOT HOT HOT private beach somewhere with beautiful, crystal blue waters with Kyle and drinking endless frozen drinks. (Thank you snowmaggedon for this vision)
5. What kind of person do you aspire to be?
I want to be selfless. I want to be full of compassion toward every person I come in contact with. I want to live my life with the greater purpose of following God than simply living for my own reasons. I want to be passionate about whatever I’m doing, even if it’s not exactly what I thought it would be at that moment. I want to be forgiving. I want to be a giver.
6. What is your most valued characteristic in humans?
Trustworthy. Compassionate. Humorous. Joyful. (to name a few, because boy that’s a difficult question)
7. What is your favorite place to be?
Anywhere with Kyle- the one person that can make me laugh no matter what the situation.
8. What would you prepare for your ideal meal? [any time of day – breakfast, lunch, or dinner]
This special chicken my mom makes, fresh delicious veggies, including asparagus, Sister Schubert rolls and a warm, gooey, chocolatey dessert.
9. What do you consider to be among your most important decisions ever made?
Asking for Kyle’s AIM chat name from a mutual friend after he and I met for the first time (centuries ago). Choosing the UA. Going to LA for the IT project.
10. What is your favorite/best/most liked time of the day? Of the week? – and why?
Every Sunday morning going to church with Kyle. It’s so rejuvenating for the rest of the week and getting to spend it and share about it with the one I love is simply perfect.
11. What things/people/situations make you feel joyful?
Seeing friends I haven’t seen in a long time. Doing things that make me feel like a child (i.e. going to the premiere of High School Musical) Doing something/going somewhere solely because it means so much to the other person. Coffee dates. Spending time with people that aren’t afraid to laugh and do it often. Lots of sunshine. The last night of a vacation (though no one wants to leave, its often the best night) Babies.
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I would love to hear all of my reader’s answers, but I know that probably won’t happen. So please, please comment with your answer to at least one question.
XO
5 Minutes
My soul was unexpectedly revived this morning with a beautiful, inspirational blog post from a beautiful, inspirational friend. She mentions the website Reverb10 as a place to find prompts for introspection from the last year. Yes, I have already done a 2010 reflection post and yes it is nearly a month into 2011, but I want to do anything I can to make sure that years down the road I remember the important steps taken to get me where I am. So, I’ve chosen the prompt:
Imagine you will completely lose your memory of 2010 in five minutes. Set an alarm for five minutes and capture the things you most want to remember about 2010. (Author: Patti Digh)
21st birthday: snow, friends, cops, fights, dancing, love. Vegas. Paris Hilton. seeing the reconstruction of old friendships and building new ones. making your own family wherever you are. game nights: wine, catchphrase, laughing, things, telephone pictionary. learning to let go. the importance of phone dates.  learning to re-appreciate my parents. the look in my fiance’s eyes as he proposed. learning to love new people. LA. finding passions: children, human trafficking. weddings. moving and the excitedness that comes with it. the sweetness of doing nothing. the birth of a beautiful child that came to be my godchild.Veronica Mars. community group. the joys of finishing french. having a puppy in the house. realizing who is really important in my life. continually seeing God’s hand in my life.
Confession: I re-set the timer for another 5 minutes after the first one went off. Â This is way harder than it looks, and I know I didn’t even come close to everything I would want to remember from 2010.
I’m feeling rough, I’m feeling raw, I’m in the prime of my life
As I’ve returned from a wonderful few weeks of vacation, and school is rapidly approaching, I’m feeling blue, da ba dee da ba die. It doesn’t help that it’s freezing outside and snowy. Which when you’re sans school, isn’t nearly as exciting. All I can seem to think about is: waking up early, tests, papers, lack of time to read and watch movies, the impending thesis, plans, moving, job hunting, extreme busyness that I know will happen within a week of school. Though I’ve always been that person that loves being so busy she can’t sit still (pretty sure I know where I got that from..) I’ve surprisingly enjoyed the relaxation this break has brought, and only a tiny part of me is itching to get back into a routine.
However, I’m changing my tune. Why spend the last week of break dreading the inevitable? I’m looking too far into the future and discounting what the next semester, next month, next week or next day could bring.
I’ve been inspired by several things to say goodbye, bad mood and make every second count.
This song just came up on Pandora as I was writing this and it made me happy. Music is so good for the soul.
I see pictures of this beautiful little guy, Jack, that belongs to one of my good friends Lauren and my heart is beyond warmed. Just look at those eyes.
I’ve been happily reading The Imperfectionists, about misfit journalists, and plan to finish it before school starts.
I also plan to finish the final season of Veronica Mars. I had to give her another nod. I’ve been very inspired by her.
Then there’s this blog post from Thought Catalog that makes me laugh and reflect on How to be a 20-Something.
This blog, appropriately titled sunshine on a cloudy day, is one of my new favorites, and where I found this inspiration:
Of course not to mention the wonderful people in my life that make every day count. You are who make me wake up every day with a smile on my face, whether through a text message, a listening ear, a patient heart, an unintended compliment, a gracious laugh or the never-ending love you shower down on me. I’m inspired by all of you to make every second count and love you, and life, with everything I have.
XOXO
10 Things I Love About My Life Right Now
1. Realizing that this time next year I will be married to and living with my best friend.
2. If I want to watch a movie on a Thursday afternoon, I can.
3. That I have a place on campus that is mine and full of people who can always make me smile. (and often cake)
4. Getting way too excited for my People magazine to come in the mail on Fridays.
5. Having the freedom to figure out what I really want to do with my life.
6. That I have multiple dogs I can play with daily, but not have the responsibility that comes along with them.
7. Being a part of a group of girls I can openly discuss Biblical truths and questions with every week.
8. Feeling really important because I get so many emails a day.
9. Not being stressed out about school because I’m only taking 13 hours and 2 of them are Ballet.
10. The people in it.
“You never know what you’ll run into at a motel pool”
My claims were correct, the trip started out with a Newport bang. Pulling into my grandmother’s neighborhood, we see the epitome of rednecks: a guy sunbathing in his front yard, with no t-shirt on and a belly so big he could have been pregnant with twins.
“He’s either drinking a huge mug of tea or ale,” my dad said. “I’d bet on the ale,” I respond.
I scrambled to get my camera, but to no avail. I did force my parents to drive back by several times throughout the weekend so I could snag a pic, but unfortunately he seemed to have gotten enough sun already.
The janky motel wasn’t as janky as I had remembered 5 years ago. Though it was still a motel, which gives me the heebee jeebees no matter what. However, the real motel excitement came when we all spent the day out by the pool Saturday. I knew it would be an interesting afternoon when a guy walked in with swimming trunks and huge boots on, a confederate flag tattoo on his chest, a rebel tattoo on one arm and barbed wire tattoo around the other arm. The guy had just graduated from high school in Elkins and talked so much it seemed as though he was part of the family. Topics ranged from marijuana brownies, partying with the Hells Angels, moonshine that made his “momma run nekked through the streets” and his girlfriends that beat him up and “stabbed him with a pickle.” (?!)
If there wasn’t anything else that could be more Arkansan I didn’t know what it was, until I felt the mosquitos. I’ve grown up in Arkansas so I know about the “skeeters” and how they love to bite me at any chance they get. Friday night, we were having a wonderful evening sitting on the patio drinking beer and eating delicious bbq, very peaceful, until we heard the “skeeter spray”. For those of you who don’t know what this is, it’s a truck that drives around every night spraying who knows what into the air to get rid of the mosquitos. The sound elicited conversation among the Newport natives including my dad and his siblings, who recalled chasing the truck down every night on their bicycles. It was “what the cool kids did” and who knows what wonderful chemicals they were eating up, but “it kept the skeeters off for at least a couple days.”
As I’m listening to the stories, I realize I am itching up a storm. I already have 5 bites on my left arm and a handful on my ankles. We decide to move inside, only to find more entertainment in the form of my 90-year-old grandmother and her best friends filling up a room with laughter and wine.
The scene immediately reminded me of the divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood- a group of older women sharing stories, life, acting like teenagers giggling over gossip. I walked in on a story about a civil war re-enactment one of the women had gone to. Though I didn’t hear exactly what happened, she was engaged in full-story mode and had the whole room hootin’ and hollerin’. She swore she would never go to another one again. And next thing that came out of her mouth was what had happened at the one the next weekend and how a little girl had just bent right over and mooned her.
So, on an end note of the weekend, I had a fantastic time with my family, specifically my grandmother. It amazes me how great of health she is still in, how beautiful she looks and how much I want to be like her. Upon her insistence, we spent hours Saturday looking through boxes and boxes of old photographs she had of all her kids and grandkids now grown up. We all bonded over hideous hairdos, overkill floral and ruffled Easter dresses, New Kids on the Block sweatshirts and memories from all of the above. I realized I’m a lot like Mimi- I get my love of pictures from her, my love of entertaining guests (she is constantly making sure everyone has eaten enough and has something to drink) my love of cooking and food, my love of dressing stylishly (which I am now positive I will try to do into my 90s if I live that long), and most importantly my love of people.
Weekend in Newport (not the Beach)
My weekend adventure includes heading to the tiny eastern Arkansas town of Newport, where my grandmother lives. When I was younger, I used to tell people I was going to Newport for the weekend and some would respond, “Newport Beach?!” and I wouldn’t correct them, I wanted to seem cool. But now, in my old age, I value my time spend in Newport. It’s a peaceful place where I can relax, spend time with family and separate myself from technology that bounds me so tightly these days. Thus, I will be signing off of the blog for a few days. But I promise to return with tales of the family reunion and the 90th birthday party; contrary to what some may believe, the stories should exceed expectations- especially after staying in the only (janky) motel, yes motel and spending extended time with family. What great stories wouldn’t come out of that? So be patient friends, I’ll be back and join me in enjoying the simpler things of life this weekend.
m.davis xoxo 