a surprise. like no other.

i love my puppy.  we got a new boxer back in may - we named her tilley.  she really brings so much joy to my life.  she makes me question my parenting skills - i have a hard time punishing her for her cute misbehaviors.  jonathan has an easier time with this :)

so lately we've been working on giving her a little more freedom.  we started small.  we have tried to leave her out of her crate in the house while we leave.  we started with quick trips to the store.  then we moved to about an hour.  then to about three hours.  she's done great.  no problems whatsoever.  she generally is asleep on the couch when we come back from leaving her.  nothing out of place.  she is just snoozin.

so last night we gave her another night of freedom.  i was goin out with my small group girls (love them like crazy), and jonathan was going out with the small group boys.  jonathan came home while i was still at supper, and then he left about an hour before i'd get home.  so he left tilley out - nothing weird about that.  

so i kept chewin on chips, and jonathan enjoyed some/a lot of food with the guys.  then i headed home.  excited to see my pup.  so i walked in the door...and did the typical really weird pup talk that i do to her...before i could see her i started talkin "ohh hii darlin, whatchu doin, oh i bet you are all curled up sweepin arent you, dats cause you so fweet, datss a good girl sweepin while momy and daddy are gone..."  i wish i was kidding about this part...but i'm not.  THEN...i came into the living room.  

this is when i nearly fell out.  i walked in to see our brand new leather couch destroyed.  yes. destroyed.  we bought a new set of leather couches about 2 months ago - first of all you should know jonathan and i are super frugal.  the only thing we spend money on is going out to eat - and even that is to a mexican restaurant down the street.  so we splurged about two months ago, on a gorgeous couch and loveseat.

so you can imagine my horror.  i walk in to see one of the two couch cushions standing straight in the air with what looked like confetti all over the living room floor.  there was pink stuffing there was white stuffing there was green stuffing there was tan stuffing...EVERYWHERE.  pouring out of the couch cushion, that was ripped, with the zipper eaten, and the leather scratched with what like a giant serving fork. 

insert:  stacey freaks out.  grabs her phone, calls jonathan and says "i have really bad news."  in hindsight that wasn't smart to say - if anyone ever called and told me that i'd probably reach for a xanax.  but he was calm.  "oh what is it?"  "tilley destroyed the couch."  "well, its nothin we cant fix."  HUH?!?!?!?!?!  sweet sweet husband...realizing my distress realized it wasn't allowed for him to be in distress too.  then we hung up.

then i called back.  losing it.  then i called mom.  then i called gloria.  then i texted my bossfriend.  then i put on my big girl panties and cleaned it up. 

this is what it is like to have a new puppy and new furniture and new freedom.  a disaster.  hope y'all enjoyed this...it's really a surprise like no other.

my mama + eternal life

when i was younger i had some serious ocd issues.  i would like to contribute about 90% of these issues to having two older brothers.  i had major skin rashes on my hands because one of my brothers ( i wont name names) told me i'd get worms if i was near the family dog and didn't wash my hands before i put my hands anywhere near my face.  so i washed them obsessively until my hands were raw.

i was told a few times i was adopted.  i thankfully never believed that.

i had a night time routine that included checking under the bed, in the closet, and leaving all of the lights in the room on...why?  because my brothers hid under the bed, in the closet, and on the roof outside my window (who does that?) to scare their little sister.  

all that to say, i had a few ocd...slash several ocd behaviors.

one of my biggest "things" was my complete attachment to my mom.  it wasn't anything she did, it was me.  i wanted to be with her.  actually, i was a helicopter daughter...if you've ever heard of that :)

mom is the director of a preschool, and so every year she had to go to a seminar series in Greensboro with all of her teachers.  she had to stay one night over night....and well that wasn't ok. I would stress about this beginning in January (or earlier), and the series was in september.  you would have thought she was going off to war and would be in the barracks of afghanistan for a year.  she eventually had to give up her trip :).

i also constantly worried that something would happen to mom.  like unhealthy worry.  so this is where the good part of the story is.

my family has always been a family of faith.  a faith in Jesus Christ.  a faith in Heaven for all believers in Christ.  praise God for that...i'd be a solid mess right now if I wasn't raised in the faith.

so after probably the 100th time of me telling mom i was worried she was going to die, mom decided to put my mind at rest.  how did she do this?  simple, tell me about eternal life.

mom was biblical i'm sure, and told me about "eternal life," and how God could give that to us if we prayed.  there was probably more to the story than that, but that's what i grasped.  

suddenly, peace for my young brain.  i no longer had to worry about mom, because all i had to do was pray for her to have eternal life.  yep, you see where this is going.  i didn't worry anymore, because i prayed my heart out all day long (seriously, several times a day for years) that mom would have eternal life.  i knew it was a gift that God gave us.  and i knew I was going to pray for mom to get this awesome gift so she'd just live forever.  it was great.  mom, living for ever, like tuck everlasting.  that's what i was praying for.

somewhere in all of this i missed the small part that yes as Christians we do have eternal life, but part of that life took place in heaven :).  ahh, i know this now but i'm so glad i didn't then.  i know God must've smiled when i prayed for this so often...and i am blessed that my heart was guarded. 

we're a pair really.  she gets me.  she gets that i am just flat out in a bad mood sometimes, and i just need to let it roll out.  she gets that when i'm upset there's probably a good reason to be.  she lets me just be.  whatever that is, i can be that.  if it's hyper i'm that.  if it's dancing around the house and singing that's fine too.  if it's crying she's there to listen.  if it's frustration i can let it all out - it wont change a thing about her love for me.  she's a huge blessing...and i am thankful that she has eternal life ahead, and because of her so do i.

kitchen make over

when we moved into our house there was quite a bit of work to be done.  an old lady named daisy lived in the house...and well, she decorated like a daisy.

i'm talking about magnolia wallpaper.  emerald walls.  burgundy walls.  flower wallpaper in the kitchen.  atrocious.

with that said, we've done a lot of fun things to help change the look of the house.  we're not really good decorators, so we've had to rely on the painting, furniture, and the kitchen :)

so the kitchen.  the kitchen started with flower wallpaper ( i wish i had pictures, but i got it down so quickly the camera couldn't catch it).  then it had terrible white laminant counter tops, with pot and pan burn marks..ooh pretty.  and the cabinets.  well here are the cabinets...

terrible colored wood.  even worse gold knobs.  nothing great about this.

but now.  the cabinets have been painted.  and new knobs have been ordered.  jonathan put new countertops in and they look awesome.

but as for the painting, and antiquing, and new nobs, i'm proud to say this was all me :).  so here they are...

so im a little impressed.  i love them really.  they lighten up the whole room.  and i love them.  and home projects.  i love those in general.  so go paint your cabinets.  antique them.  and order knobs real cheap from overstock.

goodnight.

this one's for the girls

its been a while blogfriends.  i must admit i actually forgot my password to log in to blog - thats sad.  sorry :).  im back.


this blog is about my favorite girls in the world - my nieces...and since i haven't blogged recently, you should know that there are now THREE of them :)


i completely remember each of them being born.  i remember caroline's preciously high pitched little voice. i remember her hands always being active and pushing out from the little blanket.  i remember falling so completely in love with her from day one.  


i remember campbell - i remember her looking different than her sissy. i remember her making these little noises right after she was born and caroline mocked them thinking they were having a conversation.  i remember holding campbell and just being so excited for who she would become.


and now we have kennedy.  sweet baby kennedy.  kennedy was a surprise for us - we didn't know if she would be kennedy or griffin, a boy or a girl.  she came to the world when she was ready, not when doctors said her due date would be.  what i remember about kennedy is just being blown away by how pretty a baby she is.  she's the prettiest baby i've ever seen.  i sent her picture around to my coworkers, and one said she resembled an angel - a complete answer to the question is there a creator?


i love these girls.  i love them in a completely different way than any one else on earth.  i love being with them. i don't see wrong in them.  id do anything for them.  it's perfectly reasonable to buy 5 ring pops for caroline because thats how many she thinks she needs.  i love them.


i also love music.  specifically drew holcomb and the neighbors.  if you haven't heard them, go download every song they have on your itunes and tell me thank you.


so i was visiting drew holcomb's site the other day looking for when they'd be coming to raleigh.  and i came across a music video.  a new music video of theirs.  ive heard the song a thousand times, and i love it.  but i never knew where he was coming from when he wrote it.  so on the front page of his site, he explained it.  


he wrote the song to his nieces and nephew.  it's called "live forever."  he fell completely head over heels in love with them and wanted only the very best and purest for their lives.  he wanted to advise them and hold them from this life.  he wanted them to experience the best.  he explains it better than i can, but i completely related.  


that's what i want for these girls.  for them to know Jesus Christ as their personal savior, and at a young age...for them to laugh until they can't breathe...for them to just dance around the room (with their auntie) and love hearing the music that's playing...for them to find love.  to stay away from evil and not let it even tempt their hearts.  i love them, sincerely, and completely.


so here's the song, and the video...and here's to you girls...i love you.

http://drewholcomb.com/  (scroll down to read his article first) then just click play on the "live forever" video.

i settled for a slowdown

i'm the kind of person who doesn't slow down.  not because i have so many things going on all the time, but because i feel better when im busy.  i dont really know how to slow down - it feels weird.

but today, i slowed down.  its been a fantastic day.  i haven't been outside for more than 10 minutes total, but thats what i needed.  so what have i been doing?

ive been home with this sweet girl today.

this is sweet tilley.  she was spayed yesterday, and so i took the day off to hang out with her.  i picked her up this morning, and she was SOO excited.  shes subdued and sweet today.  

its forced me to just stop for the day and hang out with her.  and its been great.  shes been asleep on my lap today.  we watched a movie.  i fed her lots of chicken (her favorite).  we took a nap.

i guess her medicine is working well :).  its been a great day - a day of slowing down. 

its a small group kinda thing.

stepping out of your comfort zone is not easy.  some people may like "trying new things" or being spontaneous...but legitimately stepping out of your comfort zone is not something i think most people look forward to.

i dont.  im really pretty introverted.  i get a lot of energy from spending some time by myeslf.  i do LOVE being with people, but i draw my energy from spending some good qt by myself.  i like things to remain the same.  i dont generally try new things.  i get the same food at the same restaurants.  i go the same way to work.  change is not really something i chase.

with that introduction - let me tell you about stepping out of my comfort zone and into such a great thing.  jonathan and i met a couple at church about our age a little while ago.  we went to sunday school class with them a few times.  they asked us out several times.  and then they asked us over for supper one night and we were able to go.

we had a blast.  they are the kind of people that pursue friendships.  theyre willing to become uncomfortable to reach out.  we laughed all night, literally until we all cried, we talked, we ate...all good things.  then they presented us with some things on their heart that God had been leading them towards.

its called a small group.  its kind of the new thing in churches, and really its such a great thing.  our friends invited us to start a new small group they were leading in their home - in our neighborhood.  after a lot of praying and trust of just getting out of our comfort zone, we agreed.  we committed.  we jumped in head first.  and really its been so great already.

small groups are a way to really get to know people, to love on them, to see the awesome and the ugly, and to love even more so because of that.  and thats what God is doing in our small group already.  were seeking Gods word, were hangin out, were laughing, were finding out small things about each other, and i can just see God at work in all of us.  He's got big plans.

so - if you have the opportunity to join a small group - do it.  jump in.  trust God to build friendships you wouldnt have otherwise had.  

 i just got back from coffee with my small group girls.  sweet time.

goodnight.  bless your heart.

well, if it makes you feel any better

this will be a short post.  and it doesn't have a climatic story line. so just keep reading :)


i am someone who picks up on nearly everything during a conversation, meeting, interaction, etc.  i pay close attention to people, and their mannerisms.  i can generally imitate most anyone that ive been around, because i remember exactly how people sound and look when they talk.


all that to say, there is one repeated conversation that comes up in random conversations that i have found to be down right ironic.


its along the lines of "bless your heart."  im sure that genuinely started as a sweet thing to say.  something like "bless your heart i know you've had a lot of things going on in your life."  then somewhere it turned into "bless her heart she's big as a cow."  notice the difference.


well one that ive been picking up on lately is this one..."well if it makes you feel any better."


again, im sure this once started and was used something like this scenario...


"how are you?"
"well, i woke up with a cold, im late for work, and its raining outside."
"well if it makes you feel any better you look fantastic in your rain boots!"


that is probably how it started.  but i feel like now it has turned into a way to say "oh your dealing with _______  let me tell you something terrible to make you feel better."


something like this...


"how are you?"
"well i fell down the steps this morning, ripped my pants, and a bird pooped in my hair."
"aww, well if it makes you feel any better i ran over a squirrel on the way to work this morning and my cousin is in the hospital."


hmmm...yes, of course i feel much better now that i have skinned knees, ripped pants, bird poop in my  hair, im thinking about a dead squirrel, and i feel terrible about your cousin.  thanks for that.


this is the end of the post.  bless your heart...and if it makes you feel any better their callin for rain.

s tunes.

as ive posted before, i love music.  i listen to pandora all day in my office.  i love it.  sometimes when a good song comes on i shut the door and dance a little.  dont tell.

today i had pandora on the temptations channel for a while - and it was great.  i didn't skip for like a good 10 songs solid.  runaround sue, my girl, little bitty pretty one.  ahh good ones.

but i also came across some just great songs that i thought id share with you.

john mayer - free fallin

mat kearney - new york to california

matt white - love

its a family thing.

yesterday was my brother, daniel's, bday.  we all went to mom and dads for the night and hung out there.  its always fun just being with the whole family, and eating, and laughing.  we celebrated daniel - hes easy to celebrate.  hes successful, bold, good-lookin, well dressed, loves Jesus, and loyal to his family - i love him.


so last night was great.  after spending some time eating and going for a walk and playing with the girls, we resorted to the living room.  this is generally where we watch youtube videos for half an hour, and laugh, a lot.


after a few youtube videos and hangin in the living room, i realized something.  my family (namely the men in the family) and i have such the same sense of humor that it's crazy.  we're all pretty different, but when it comes to things that just make us all laugh til we cry, we're exactly the same.


so what is it?  something funny like cartoons or funny movies or pictures?  no.  that would be normal.  what makes us laugh is this...thinking of "what if..."  seriously.  we have a small problem.  in particular, we think of something like "what if someone did _______ to ______?"  then we laugh.  we especially like to laugh about thinking about people's reactions to certain things - like when they get scared, or something bad happens, or awkward...yes thats our humor.  forgive us all.


lost yet?  let's take a little quiz.  do you have the holladay humor?  do the following scenarios make you laugh?  not chuckle, but laugh.  like hard.  like until you are crying and everyone is looking around wondering what happened that is so funny and you can't explain it b/c its just in your brain.


1.  imagine driving down the road.  someone is walking on the sidewalk on this road.  you decide to get tricky and start slowing fading toward the side of the curb.  (if you have holladay humor you are laughing b/c you are imagining them slowly stopping their walk, and then looking scared).


2.  imagine yourself in a work setting.  you walk into a bathroom and notice someone is excusing themselves.  you think about how funny it would be to yell something like "oh my gosh what is that smell?"  laughing at the thought?  hollady humor.


3.  you decide to catch up on a few youtube videos.  which do you choose?  this one? or how bout this one? yes, the videos that someones hurt or scared.  bad.


so thats us.  the good the bad and the ugly.  but i love it.  and i love us :)  and if i see someone fall or get scared, i will laugh.  goodnight.

its baaaaaack

today was a good day.  it started off right.

its a day ive been waiting for for a long long time.  like several months.

today was the start of a wonderful thing.  are you wondering what im talking about yet?  i know, suspenseful.

so what was it?  well...shifting gears slightly...you should know my favorite season is fall.  without a doubt - fall is the BEST time of the year.  its gorgeous outside.  its perfect weather for jeans, cowgirl boots, and a long sleeve tshirt.  its so excellent.  its not humid outside, which means i dont have an afro.  the leaves are bright and so telling of God's beauty.

so back to today.  today was the first sign of fall.  why?  because of this:

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PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE FROM STARBUCKS

Yea - it was a great morning.  i researched when the big day would be here.  and today was that day.  so i left a little early, and stopped by the starbucks near work.  and it was great.  it tasted like heaven.  it made me taste fall time.  and i loved it.

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a few things i love

im not real hard to please.  i dont think so at least.  i dont like big things. i dont like surprises.  i dont want gifts with lots of money in them.  but lately ive just found a few favorite things that i thought id share.

gum.  i am addicted.  if it was cigarettes id have black lungs.  i chew probably 6+ pieces a day.  anyways i found a new favorite kind.  and since im such a great blogger, you would think id know the name of the gum to share with you.  but i dont.  its trident.  its new.  its in a black pack.  and its sold at the fuquay food lion.  get you some.

secondly.  panera.  i used to go to chick fila on fridays.  i loved it.  now.  i go to panera...not just fridays, more like twice a week.  and i get the same thing - a chocolate chip bagel and a small hazelnut drip coffee, with half and half and 2 splendas.  just like that.

stick boy.  ive blogged on stick boy.  but seriously its so good.  i go after work sometimes and i do my devotions by the window and drink larrys beans drip coffee.  also with half and half and two packs of splenda.  its really superb.  i love the atmosphere.

sister hazel - you see my beautiful.  you can listen to it here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbP91M98G0Q ...really go listen to it.  its fantastic and sweet and sounds good.

okay...thats enough for now.  its really the small things.  have a good day :)


 

a bangin' recipe

today at work i decided i would make supper.  shocking, i know.  but i just felt inclined.  i generally resort to all vegetables or breakfast or some meal with hamburger in it.  a really good cook - lucky jonathan - ha.

anyways i decided i wanted to cook something super tasty and different from the norm.  so where did i go to look for recipes?  pioneer woman website of course.  i have her cookbook, which is great.  but i was at work and wanted to find a quick recipe before i left.

so what did i make you ask?

THIS

grilled chicken and pineapple quesadillas.  YUM.  so thats grilled chicken AND grilled pineapple.  put some shredded monterey jack cheese in there, a little jack daniels bbq sauce, throw them on the griddle.  they were really really good.  

jonathan loved them.  but he has been trained to not exclaim.  because i dont like that.  i dont want him coming home and saying "babe these are unbelievable.  thank you so much, these are awesome.  good job!"  no.  "this is good" is sufficient.  

but anyways - try that recipe.  try all of pioneer woman recipes.  you won't be let down.  

the end of the post.

massages.

massages.  they are so great.  im really kind of/completely obsessed with them.  that was probably my favorite part of my honeymoon - the spa at primland - yessss.  i love them.  i make jonathan rub my feet or back a few times a week - i wish i was exaggerating.  but i love them.


however.  i don't love the sometimes awkwardness that can come with them.  what i prefer is for the therapist to just be quiet.  dont talk to me.  let me listen to the water run down the stones.  or the fun indian music that is played.  dont ask me how often i work out or what my job is or how my bunny is.  no.


so ive had a few stories in my day.  for one i went with gloria to get a massage the other day.  i had a friendly, large, african american female as my masseuse.  she was very sweet.  she was super at massaging.  but then.  out of nowhere.  i hear homegirl shout.  i mean shout.  i mean me become tense and lift my head out of the face rest.  what does she shout?  


"oooooooooh cramp.  ooooh honey i got a cramp.  cramp in my leg.  whewwwww cramp in my leg.  gotta rub it out.  cramp in my leg."


that is not soothing.  that was awkward.  i tried to pretend i was asleep.


then.  for the awkward of all awkwards.  my massage on my honeymoon.  like i said it was my favorite part of the honeymoon.  but there was some pre-time that was awkward.  i like to know exactly what is expected of me.  i dont like to guess what i am supposed to do - especially in social situations.


so.  i check in.  easy enough.  they give me weird sandals and a robe.  sweet.  then i fill out my paperwork - self explanatory.  then sweet girl comes to get me and bring me back to my locker for prep.  we walk into the locker room and she shows me around.  very pretty.  soothing.   thennn she says something.  and i miss it.  but what i think she says is something like this.


"and here is your locker, number 62, and you can jut put your clothes into your locker, and put on your robe, and there are some panties in there."


hmm.. okay.  panties?  why?  i have my own panties.  and they are called underwear.  i dont wear other peoples panties.  hmm maybe thats not what she said.


so she leaves.  i open my locker.  and what do i find.  some black mesh piece.  not sure.  is this the "panties?"  or did i competely hear her wrong.  oh great.  am i required to wear those?  okay maybe i should just try them.


i pull out the "panties" and they just dont look like panties.  if they are, they are one size fits all.  with bikini straps.  they are kind of like those bags you recycle from the grocery store if you are organic.  


so there i stand in the locker room.  by myself.  unsure what to do.  okay im sure she DID say panties ill just put them on.  WAIT.  what if she DIDNT and i walk in in a bag meant for my clothes.  little masseuse is going to think i am some freak.  put them on take them off put them on take them off.  i just can't risk that this girl is going to think i am using their bags as my underwear.


so i leave my normal underwear on, throw on my robe, and leave.


the end.  awkward.  i feel good about my decision.  i love massages.  i don't love the awkwardness that can come with them though.  so masseuses - be quiet, speak CLEARLY during prep time, and eat bananas to prevent leg cramping during my session.

i'm backkk

sorry for the month long hiatus - is that the right word?  ive been gone for a while from blogging because i have been slam exhausted.


my job is great.  it is especially great during the months of june through august because i work at the summer camp.  i love it because i am around a lot of people all the time and its busy and fast paced and crazy and unexpected events occur on the half hour.  


but i'm back.  i'm back to the blogging world, because i won't come home and go to sleep at 8.  so check back soon :)

how's married life

the marriage/engagement cycle is one that leads to such cliche questions from everyone around you.  when we first got engaged we were constantly asked "hows wedding planning?"  

of course you always answer like a sweet person and say "ohhh its going well, can't wait for the big day to be here" or something dumb like that that is a huge lie.  if you wanted to answer honestly it would sound something like "its miserable, its not a sweet time, it is completely overwhelming, i'm tired of deciding between twine or ribbon, my head hurts, i can't sleep, i need more xanax, etc. etc."  

so now that were married the common question that comes is "hey, how are you, how's married life?"  and how do we respond "oh its great, really its great."  sure marriage is great, but here's my answer.  my real answer.  my non fluffy answer.

it is great.  jonathan is wonderful.  i am glad we're married.  but more than anything it is an adjustment.  it is a process of relearning someone you thought you knew even after dating for 7 years.  its learning that the way you do things is not the only way to do things.  

ive started to learn that just because i've done things the way ive done them for 24 years doesn't mean that's the only or right way to do them.  i've started to learn that a man just thinks differently than a woman.  i've started to learn sanctification.

marriage is meant to sanctify jonathan and i both for God's glory.  God takes our weaknesses and bad qualities and shows them to us so blatantly clear in our faces and then challenges us to change so we can be the best spouse possible.  marriage is about adjustment and sanctification.

so that's marriage.  dirty dishes, dog crap on the floor, bloodshot eyes...laughing in bed at night until were convulsing and crying, falling asleep on the couch, and leaving sweet notes to wake up to.  that's marriage.

king james version

i don't read king james version of the bible.  i prefer the niv or the message.  they're easier for me to read.  i don't talk in thou's and thee and hast and things such as those.  i like to read in modern day talk.


with that said my husband reads king james version.  he's an old man in a little boy's body.  very fitting.


this past weekend i went to the beach with my family.  it's always good to be with everyone.  there's generally a lot of laughing, tv watching, sunburn, and sleeping.  there was a lot of that this weekend.  some of my very favorite times though are the times i spend with my nieces.


caroline, my oldest niece, is not a fan of going to sleep.  she doesn't like the idea of missing what everyone else is doing.  she also doesn't like to be by herself.  i can relate.  i never slept well.  90% of my childhood i slept on mom and dad's floor.  it just worked better for me.


so one night at the beach it was time for caroline to go to sleep.  there was the usual tears and unexcitement.  she went downstairs, and i went to take a shower.  when  i came back up caroline was on the couch.  hm.  looks like she persuaded her parents she was too sweet to sleep then.  


caroline ended up coming to sit with me for a little.  she found one of those tiny green bibles that the old men pass out in various places.  so she brought that to me and asked me to read.  yes.  you guessed it.  king james version.


being that caroline is little i don't want to shout "hell" or anything negative sounding by accident so i had to choose my passages carefully.  i had to choose ones i knew the words to so i could improvise.  so we flipped to psalm 139.


this was my favorite little time at the beach.  i read some and improvised modern day words for her.  she asked me to say a bible verse and she would say it after me.  you got that right - she asked ME to say a verse so SHE could repeat it.  that's the kind of girl she is.  


we started talking about the part that says i knit you together in your mother's womb.  pretty cool considering her mom has a baby in the womb right now.  it's amazing to me how much caroline gets things like this and wants to know more.  we finished psalm 139 and she was just hungry for more.


she decided she'd pick one more chapter for me to read.  she turned to the book of philemon.  not sure about you, but i don't regularly learn philemon.  i couldn't tell you the theme.  and i most certainly couldn't teach you philemon from king james version.


so we flipped back to psalm, learned some more verses, and caroline went to sleep.


i love that girl.  i love that she loves Jesus already.  i love teaching her, someone so excited to learn about Jesus.  she teaches me.

coffee shop of choice

i'm not a coffee snob.  i can't drink straight black coffee - it needs to have a lot of cream and sugar.  i can't drink caffeinated regular coffee either, because it makes my body convulse.  but i like coffee.  i like the experience even better.


every morning i walk to the cafe at work and get coffee with my work friend.  i love that, because it's part of my day.  and i love a blast of hot drink while my eyes are still shut from lack of 9 hours of sleep.


i've started loving coffee shops too.  i want to start one of my own some day.  i want to play great music and have live music and have buttermilk biscuits too.  i love  coffee shops.


anyways, today i decided to head out after i got home from work to go do my devotions.  confession, i've actually found it more difficult to find time to do devotions since ive been married because i have to make it a point to go and be alone.  so tonight i left to do my devotions.


i ended up at stick boy bread company in fuquay.  my sis in law knows the owners.  it's really great.  the workers are very personable and sweet and willing to give opinions on drinks - which i love.  and it was calm.  perfect for devotions - looking out on the street, quiet, a little music, and an iced coffee.


this is the end of this blog post.  make time for God.  meet with Him at coffee shops - especially stick boy - or anywhere else.

what is he

summer camp has begun.  this is by far the best part of my job.  i enjoy it because of the kids...not the parents.  some parents are so sweet.  some are not.  


anyways camp has begun.  it's hot.  it's slam exhausting.  but it's fun.  and the kids - i've already picked out one that i hope jonathan and my babies look like.  he has dark skin, buzzed head, super athletic, and hes so tiny.  


so the story.  today a kid comes up to me and says, "miss stacey my mom like wants to know if you um got married sometime like recently?"


"yes, marlon i did!"


"well um, mrs. stacey, like who is the husband?"


"his name is jonathan lee."


"well like what is he?"


"hmm im not sure what you mean marlon."


"well like what is he?  is he like russian?  or like north carolina?"


"ohhh right...he's american marlon."


"oh okay, well my mom just wanted me to ask."


nice.  russian or north carolina.  i'm assuming lee made them think i married an asian.  i did not.  i married an american.  though he sometimes looks like an indian.


i love kids.  i love my american husband.

a new little hobby/love

jonathan is a farmer.  duh.  he loves it.  ive always loved it for him - well i shouldn't lie..ive always loved that he's passionate.  i haven't always loved farming.  farming means late nights, blood shot eyes, prayers for rain when i'd rather have sunshine, stress, etc.  oh yea farming is joy too - for him.  really though, i love it for him.

but i haven't always gotten it. what's the big deal if a tobacco leaf gets bigger - that's just life.  BUT...i have big news for you now.

I   GET   IT!!!

about two weeks ago jonathan started me a garden in the background.  at first i was thinking ehhh we'll see, it's whatever.

but now.  i'm obsessed.  really obsessed.  i water it every day, and my feelings get hurt when jonathan does this job instead of me.  i come home every day and let sweet tilley run around with me.  then i get out the garden hose (with multiple settings on the sprayer) and shoot it all over the garden.  jonathan says i give it too much water, but i think the plants are thirsty because its so blasted hot outside.

so here's our garden.  and our puppy.

i'll have tao take pictures of our garden now.  this is just the beginning stages.  we have cucumbers, squash, zucchini, tomatos (yuck), sweet potatoes, cantaloupes, and some other weird things jonny decided to toss in without me knowing.  

so i love it.  grow yourself a garden.  you'll love it too.

if you could change one thing about yourself...

i used to love those online quizzes.  what kind of dog are you?  what color best describes your personality? are you an introvert?  if you could be one famous person who would you be?  


i loved those types of questions and quizzes.  weirdo.


anyways, lately ive been noticing a stark difference between jonathan and my lifestyles.  it's not that one is better or worse, we're just different.  and honestly i wish i was more like him with this one.


my morning starts by waking up to an alarm - i hate it - i get out of bed, wash my face, put on some deoderant, watch the pup (aka run after her when there is silence to avoid a big plop of poo on the floor), get dressed, scarf down breakfast, take the pup out, and run to the car.  i speed to work (only 5 over, don't stress).  


my day at work, especially right now with camp starting monday, is super busy.  i jog from my office to the copy room probably 50 times a day (not exaggerating).  i have to-do lists spewing from all corners of my desk.  my office is a wreck.  work is crazy busy - but i love that.  i hate being bored.


then i come home.  and this is where jonathan and i differ.  he too rushes in the morning.  he too is busy at work.  but when he comes home, he stops.  he slows down.  he does what is relaxing to him.


the other night when i was racing from room to room doing odds and ends, i noticed jonathan wasnt.  he was just watching something on the history channel - snore.  he wasn't being lazy, he was just stopping for the day.  he kept looking at me as if to say "what is chasing you?"


i don't stop.  everything's a race.  even supper is a race.  it's like i've got a time frame set for everything i do and if it doesn't get done by the time decided by my rat race mind, it's a disaster.


so this is my answer.  the question is if you could change one thing about yourself what would it be.  i want to slow down.  i want to stop.  i want to be calm.  i want to stop running when i don't have to.  i want to stop having a clock ticking in my mind for everything.  i want to relax.  just like jonathan.  and Jesus did that too - so i'm going to pray for that.


what about you?  what do you want to change?  all two of you who read this, post a comment and i'll love you.  or don't.  i'm going to stop and go watch tv...while i think of 100 things i could be doing.  jk. kind of.


goodnight

a sick child..or puppy

as you all know we recently got a puppy - her name is tilley and she is ever so sweet.  minus when she bites my hands and makes me get rashes or poops on carpet.  other than that though, sweet.  and she's a pup - what can you expect.

anyways, last night after jonathan and i got home from work we started on some shish kabobs.  yum.  i love veggie shish kabobs - i love meat, but they take too long to grill, so thats why i love veggie kabobs - i'm not one for waiting patiently for hours for food to cook. no.

we fed sweet tilley her pedigree supper as well.  then disaster hit.  i guess you could say fit hit the shan.  first tilley upchucked her supper.  okay that's not all that out of the ordinary.  she's done that before - you know eat too quick and lose her supper.  

thennn about 5 minutes later the vom started.  projectile.  if you don't know me well you may not know that my biggest phobia (yes, i meant to say phobia and it's real) is people/dogs throwing up.  it makes me have panic attacks.  it makes me dart out of rooms filled with children neglecting all safety precautions.  it makes me sweat, feel weak, and ultimately dry heave.  

so tilley gave us our first child-like experience.  luckily, she allowed us to see who would be the parent to treat vomit in the house - jonathan's so sweet.  i ran out of the house with shirt over my mouth and nose - then demanded him to clorox his hands for hours.

anyways, long story short i called my vet friend, and she told me we ought to take her to the animal hospital.  we did, and we were there until almost midnight - but it was all worth it.  tilley ate something that disagreed with her internals, she possibly had/has a blockage, and we are monitoring her closely.  she's feeling much better today and we're praying there isn't a blockage.

we love her.  shes resting upon my hip.  pray for sweet tilley.  and for my sanity.

married life

life as an old married woman is much different.  its a bit slower. joys are different.  date nights are different.  its simpler really.  well for the most part.  its not simpler sitting on a toilet seat with pee pee spots on it.  that's not simpler.  but beyond that, yea pretty much simpler.  

the best thing about being married is we don't have to drive to meet up with each other and we don't have to wake from a trance at night to drive home - well that's not the best thing about marriage, but its one of them.

so tonight, this is what married life looks like.

sweet tilley sittin under my chair on the back porch

husband cookin on the grill - oww oww carhartt shorts

gardenias and jasmine hand picked by mr lee himself

so married life is this.  grillin.  chillin.  takin care of a sweet pup.  eatin.  sniffin sweet flowers.  and dreaming of coffee shops and farm land.