Wednesday, Brain Free Day!

Today I basically forgot how to be a functioning human being. I don't know if I was just tired or what but geeeeeeeez.

I could provide multiple examples, but we'll just cut to the most humiliating.

My place of work is right next to a Chick-fil-a. So naturally, I was eating there for lunch. I sat by myself in a sunny booth on the opposite side from the children's play place, planning on doing a little reading and enjoying my chicken sandwich. I had my own drink, a berry Vitamin Water that I'd been sipping on.

Oh, let's mention how I was wearing a cute new shirt too. That'll come into play momentarily.

So, I'm reading, and lunching, and enjoying myself. I go to give my Vitamin Water bottle a shake - just a habit I have before I take a drink.

Except I had already taken the lid off. And laid it on the table. So my vigorous drink shaking turned into a cold, abrupt shower. I mean, literally. And I don't like to misuse that word. But LITERALLY. I was drenched. Thank goodness I had a fat stack of napkins, which I immediately used up drying off my face - my FACE, people - and my arms, and my chest. My new shirt was soaked down the front, and my lap was conveniently spotted to look like I'd peed my pants. And of course I got it all over my book.

While I wiped myself down I looked around frantically to see if anyone was pointing and laughing, which they would've had every right to do. Thankfully, everyone seemed otherwise occupied, and I was able to grab my belongings and scurry to the bathroom to survey the damage further. I patted down as much as I could with some paper towels, then artfully held my bag so as to block the did-that-girl-pee-her-pants spot on my jeans and high-tailed it out of the restaurant. Shame bonus: As I speed-walked to the door, I saw some poor Chick-fil-a employee mopping up the floor by the booth where I had been sitting. THAT'S RIGHT FOLKS. HE NEEDED A MOP.

Now, I don't know what happened to you today, but that has got to take the cake.

Dream Come True

Sweet Baby James,

This morning I took another test. Just to be sure. And so I could show your dad the instant results. And guess what? You're still in there!

Did you know this week you're as big as a poppy seed? You're obviously the smartest and most beautiful poppy seed ever, I'm sure.

Today I felt like I was keeping the biggest, best secret of my life. Which I guess I am! I want to tell everyone about you! But the smart thing is to wait until you're a little bigger and a little stronger, so that's what I'm trying to do.

I did tell one person today. It was so exciting to actually say the words! I told my boss at work. I work at a bookstore. (Books are awesome and you will LOVE THEM.) I have to be on my feet a lot and I have different hours each week, so I wanted to tell her in case I start to feel sick or faint or whatnot, so she'd know what is up. I made her swear up and down not to tell ANYONE.

Speaking of that, let's have a little chat. Right now, I feel pretty good. I get really tired very suddenly, but that's about it. I don't feel nauseous yet. As I've read, that can actually kick into gear in the next couple weeks. But I rather like not barfing. So how about we make a little arrangement, you and I, where you don't make me sick and I will... I don't know. Let you date when you're 16. Yeah.

On my lunch break I also went and bought two important things. First, a book to teach me what the heck is going on with me and you for the next 9 months. There's a lot for me to learn! Second, I bought us some vitamins because I want you to be smart and healthy and strong and not have three arms or something. I'd love you even if you did have three arms, but we can all agree two well-formed arms are probably for the best. It was pretty crazy buying these things, because it made it seem more real that YOU are real!

Tomorrow I'll tell you lots more about how you are making me feel. But for now, my little poppy seed, I just want to say that I love you and waiting for you is my new favorite thing.

Love,

Momma

WHAAAAA?!?!!

Sweet Baby James,

Today I found out you were coming.

How it it possible!?! Well, obviously I know how it is possible, but still. How is it possible that you are just a speck but I'm already in love with you?

Your momma gets ahead of herself sometimes. Back to the story of how I found out I was pregnant with you.

I had been feeling kinda funny, but mostly just the usual kind that a girl feels every month. If you are a girl, I apologize in advance that you'll have to go through this. If you are a boy, I want you to understand that girls are very special and should be treated with lots of respect because we go through a lot for you guys!

But since I knew it was a possibility that I could be pregnant, I could NOT. STOP. THINKING ABOUT IT. I was wrestling with the idea because I know God is in control and I didn't want to display unbelief by worrying about something that was ultimately out of my hands. I was supposed to be getting ready for my women's Bible study and finally I just figured I would take the pregnancy test and then I wouldn't have to think about it anymore.

I had prayed for so long about how badly I wanted to be your momma. So I really hoped it would be positive. But I didn't actually expect it to be. So you can imagine my surprise when after about 15 seconds I was looking at this:

It's basically idiot proof, and the little plus sign there? That means positive. Positive means pregnant.

I started shaking. I started crying. I got down on my knees right there in the bathroom (where, by the way, I really need to vacuum) and just sobbed my gratitude to God. I'm pretty sure I told you I loved you a couple times, too.

Now I had to compose myself and go to Bible study, which I did, grinning like an idiot the entire time. On the way home I stopped and picked out a card for your dad from you. I signed it for you (hope you don't mind, but your arm buds haven't really formed yet) and then waited for him to get home.

And waited. And waited and waited and waited. Sometimes your dad works really late - but just so you know, he's doing it because he loves us so much and wants to take care of us. Also he does not have a great sense of time. Hopefully you won't inherit that...

Anyway, finally I couldn't wait any more and I went to sleep. You have been making me really sleepy even before I knew you were coming! I left the card on his pillow.

I am a light sleeper (hopefully you won't inherit that either) so I woke up when he came home. I pointed to the card and told him I got him something. He sat down and opened it. I think it took him a minute to get it. When he did, he came around to my side and we hugged and I cried some more. Happy tears, I promise!

So you'll be making your world debut around May 28th. And believe me when we say, we can't wait to meet you.


Love love love,

Momma

Emmy Fashion Rundown 2010!

Emmy ladies, I gotta be honest, you were a bit of a letdown this year. Many of you looked just fine - okay, so your "fine" is still better than I'll ever look in my whole life - but only a few of you distinguished yourselves as particularly memorable for good or bad reasons. Here were a few of my thoughts!

I don't actually like the pattern on Tina Fey's dress as much in pictures as I did on camera. In the picture I'm really distracted by the pattern of the dress, which I guess I'd call "Cave Art." But on TV it was really elegant and I thought the shape was very chic. I even liked her teased-out extended ponytail. It was a nice look for her after the Lampshade Incident of 2009.

Nina Dobrev is really beautiful and holy crap, how tiny is her waist? But to me this feels a little bit like how Hayden Panettiere always dressed about 15 years older than she is. Nina is 21. This dress with this hair with those earrings and this pose... it is very elegant and mature. Which are good things, really. So why am I not on board with this?

Dear Mindy Kaling. I am all for taking risks. And I am all for being outside the box and not trying to conform to look like the rest of the twigs out there on the red carpet. I have loved when you did this in the past, such as when you wore this. But Helena Bonham Carter called and she says nice try but only I could pull this off.

Let me first say, Lea Michele is so adorable I could barf. And I love this dress. But her hair just ruined it. The bangs parted in the middle is bad enough, but it is covering up and competing with that stunning statement necklace. One or the other, dear.

How I do these blogs is I watch the red carpet coverage and then the actual show and I have a notepad and I just write down all my comments and impressions as I see the dresses appear. Then when I get around to sitting down at my computer, I review what I said and make any necessary elaborations or adjustments. Much of the time, the little one-liner I scribble in the heat of the moment is better than anything else I come up with. Here's what I wrote for this one: "Lauren Graham - That dress is the worst." I think that about sums it up.

I don't really have any strong opinions about Kyra Sedgwick's dress one way or the other but good gravy woman, it might be time for a haircut. Or a style. Something that says more, "Fancy Celebrity" and less, "Hippie Witch."

I don't really have a good reason for liking Kristen Wiig's dress, but I just do. I should hate those weird shoulder poofs but I just don't. Here's an example of a look that only a skinny, un-buxom woman could pull off. It's fun and kinda summery and chic and I just want to like it and not have to explain why.

When I first saw Keri Russell during the red-carpet arrivals I was a little skeptical on the color. But when I saw her on stage I decided I loved it. She's petite enough to pull off this tricky length and tiny enough to pull off the cut of the top. I don't really like how the fit looks in this picture but I couldn't find a better one, so just trust me that it was really pretty and unique. Yay Felicity!

Jewel looked really lovely. This dress was something to talk about. So soft and delicate and vintage-y. The only thing I could've done without was the little bow at the bust. Otherwise, just really pretty and the kind of dress you'd wanna find in your dress-up box as a little girl.

You probably heard about this one. There's nothing I can say about January Jones's dress that hasn't already been said. There's nothing I can say about her hair that hasn't already been said. Maybe the best I can do is to say all the words everyone else is saying, but say them all at once. Here goes: Bedspread ugly busy shiny cone-bra peacock weird brush your hair.

I have long loved Maura Tierney from when she was Abby on ER, so I'm glad to see her back again since she battled breast cancer. Again, the picture is not doing it justice, but I really liked this dress on screen. The silhouette and fabric are strong and the color is unique but she still looks pretty and relaxed.

I looooooove Bones. And therefore I looooooove Emily Deschanel. She is straight-up robbed every year that she isn't nominated for one of these awards for her brilliant portrayal of Temperance Brennan. That being said, her bangs look like she borrowed them from a twelve year old and her dress looks exactly like a roll of crepe paper streamers that is being unraveled.

The only thing I know about Jennifer Carpenter is that she is on Dexter, and that she plays Dexter's sister even though in real life she's that actor's wife. I guess that's less awkward than the other way around. Anyway, a full on one-sleeve is pretty intense but I am a sucker for sparkly things and so I find myself just staring at this picture and wanting this dress real bad.

Honestly, the fierce gladiator-esque shoulder pads are my favorite thing about Anna Paquin's dress. I don't understand why it appears the front of the hem is stuck to her knees and I find the whole torso highly unflattering. But if we're talking strictly about the shoulder business, I kinda like it. Probably because it is sparkly.

Up next, Sofia Vergara. I like her dress, although it's a leeeeeeetle bit pageant-esque. But there's no denying that she is gorgeous and the whole look is really wowza. Still, the longer I stared at the top, the more I wondered why it just didn't look right, and finally I decided that this dress gives her a uniboob. Right? Just a little?

You know who definitely does not have a uniboob?

Oh Christina Hendricks. I feel you, I really and truly do. Well, at least in the chest department. The rest of you is pretty much incomparable. I just feel like this dress is not doing you justice. The color is vaguely "Dishwater Lilac." The stringy parts on the skirt are sloppy and the stringy sleeves are just ugly. Whatever reinforced steel corset is being used to defy gravity and hold those girls in place is making your ribcage and torso seem lumpy and misshapen. Your hair and makeup are really great, though. And you could wear a burlap sack and men would still be drooling over you so, fine. You win.

Well folks, that's all she wrote! I will now resume my regular schedule of not blogging for weeks at a time, followed by three days in which I post seven times.

Got your own Emmy fashion thoughts? Leave 'em in the comments!

America!

I think we can all agree hitchhiking is not such a great idea, but I kinda love this. Australian Dan Ilic goes from Seattle to New York City hitching rides with kind strangers. It's a weird little snapshot of the beauty of America and all her assorted inhabitants. Stick around for the tag at the end.




(via Best Week Ever)

Hi, Welcome to Taco Bell, How May I Judge You Today?

Yesterday, I decided to get Taco Bell on my lunch break. That was my first mistake, I know. I don't even really like Taco Bell that much, but I was driving and there it was and it was on the right side of the road and it was a Taco Bell/Pizza Hut and breadsticks sounded really good.

I DIGRESS.

I go through the drive thru. (I don't really like spelling words wrong but "drive through" looks too formal.) I order my food. I pull up to the window. Money is exchanged. Food is passed to me.

And then, AND THEN.

Taco Bell Drive Thru Employee, peering into my backseat, comments, "Somebody likes Sonic." I turn to see what he means and realize there are eight (okay maybe twelve) Sonic styrofoam cups rolling around in the back of my SUV.

Classy, right? But they were clean, rinsed, waiting to be taken to Publix which is the only place I know that recycles styrofoam cups. FOR RECYCLING, DO YOU HEAR ME? For the good of the EARTH.

Nevermind that it looks like I've got a once-a-day habit of downing Route 44s in the secret of my car.

So that, my friends and readers (you're actually one and the same), is the story of how I got judged by the Drive Thru Guy. As if I needed to feel more shame pulling away from a TACO BELL.

Has a minimum wage fast food worker ever judged you from his window? No? So you probably feel pretty good about yourself right now, huh? You're welcome.

Grandpa Jim

Last night my Grandpa got to meet Jesus.

No more suffering and no more pain.

He was met with an embrace from the Savior of his soul and an invitation to join the worshippers in the eternal song of the redeemed.

Maybe they'll sing "How Great Thou Art." That was one of his favorites. Maybe he whistled - he had the best whistle you'd ever heard, clear and sweet and warbling.

It's easy to trivialize the grandeur of heaven; to characterize it as some all-expenses paid swanky do-your-favorite-leisure-activity-forever resort, or as baby angels jumping on fluffy clouds, or as some cosmic family reunion with all your favorite dearly departed shaking hands and catching up on old times.

It is not those things.

But it is real. And for those who know Jesus, who have fallen before Him and asked for His salvation, it will be home.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!"

Revelation 21:1-5

All things new. What a sweet promise, so full of hope and mercy you can taste it, like biting an apple and the juice runs down your chin.

There's a particular picture of him I wish I had to upload, because that's how I'm imagining him now. He's probably in his early twenties, looking sharp in his Marine dress uniform, his face tan and young and strong-jawed, with just a little smile, strong and full of life-to-be-lived.

Grandpa, you loved me my whole life. You told the best bedtime stories. Thank you for loving Jesus. Thank you for teaching my dad to love Him too. We will miss you; but oh you've been yearning for home and I'm so glad you are finally there.

James Albert McMinn
August 6, 1921 - July 14, 2010

101 Things

Remember when I wanted to do 101 things in 1001 days? Yeah, neither did I. It's been over a year since I updated or paid it any attention.

I revisited the old blog on this, the 992nd day, and gave it one final update.

Check it out here.

Bonnaroo Dance Party!

Most of you know that Ben has been going to Bonnaroo every year since it started back in 2002. I have never been, as three days of camping in the sweltering summer heat with no showers, surrounded by smelly sweaty strung-out hippies and hipsters, and listening to music which I mostly dislike would be my own personal hell.

But wait!

Ben shot and edited this AWESOME video of a Bonnaroo late-night event called "Silent Disco" in which everyone in the tent gets wireless headphones so they can listen to music and then have essentially a silent (to outside observers) dance party. And I watched it and I thought, That looks like fun! If I could teleport in and immediately back out, I think I'd like to go to Bonnaroo just to shake my tail feathers at the Silent Disco for an hour or two.

So all of that was a really long introduction to some continued bragging about my husband's super-fly videographer skills. I love everything about the way he shot it, how it is edited together, the bumpin' song he picked.

Please be advised, this video features some ladies dancing around in bikinis. Also some shirtless dudes. Also a guy in a Gumby costume. I did instruct Ben to avoid any footage that was too... jiggly. So now that you've been properly warned... dance party! Check it out you guys!

Click to watch it in HD on YouTube for extra awesome!

Maybe come next year's B-Roo you'll see me getting my grove on at the Silent Disco! (I talk a big game; this will never happen.)

But how badly do you want a light-up hula-hoop after watching that video? Answer: SO BADLY.

Fancy Meeting You Here

Whoops, I forgot to blog for most of June. But hey, here I am again! Back in action! And Blogger added a bunch of new templates and backgrounds so I switched that, yet again. I really liked the look of the other one but it was a little busy for my tastes and also I couldn't access the dashboard very easily which means jibber jabber to you but it was bugging me. So, hello new yellow swirlies!

I do want to take a poll as to whether you find it difficult to read with the transparent background. So please let me know and if so I will try something else!

This past weekend we went to Tucson, so we could be incredibly hot. Just kidding, we went for a wedding. The being hot part was just a little bonus. It hit 105 every day we were there, including the day we went to the wedding. Did I mention it was outside?

Jokes aside, the wedding was for our very good friend Rob. Rob is someone Ben and I have been friends with since high school. Actually, Ben and Rob went to the same preschool, though they don't remember each other from that far back. He is one of Ben's original guitar buddies and just an all-around wonderful guy. Some of my best, funniest memories involve Rob. He was a groomsman at Ben's & my wedding, and we also performed "our" song at my reception - that would be the Elephant Love Medley from Moulin Rouge - which is somewhere captured on video but maybe it is best that the moment live on only in our hearts.

We also love Rob's family. We spent many a night in high school and on trips home in college hanging out in the Nation Family basement with his brothers and being doted on by his momma. If I am ever the mother of three boys, I can only pray they all turn out as impressively as Louise's did.

We got to make the trip with another couple from high school, Cara and Cody, who are still our dear friends. It was fun to take a mini-vacation together and live it up at a gorgeous desert resort. There were several amazing pools where we spent most of our days. Ben and Cody went down the water slide approximately 500 times. We all got a little sunburned. It was awesome.


Rob married a lovely woman named Laura who were were excited to finally meet this weekend. The wedding was wonderful, everyone looked beautiful, and by the time the ceremony got into gear the sun was setting and the heat was mercifully dissipating. Their ceremony was really God-honoring and brought to the front and center Rob & Laura's faith and love for Jesus. All in all a totally great weekend and I am so excited for my old friend Rob and my new friend Laura and the beginning of their shared life.