Lately

The Laurel Crown

2011-04-14T20:22:00.000-05:00

Towards the end of college the pastor’s wife of the church that I attended sent me a note describing the meaning of my name; it was something that she enjoyed doing for people. I wish I still had the original note but here is a little of what I remember plus a few thoughts of my own:

The name Lauren comes from the word "laurel” meaning "crowned with laurel". Laurel is an evergreen and back in ancient Greece laurel crowns were awarded to triumphant warriors, athletes, etc.

The crown was a symbol of victory.

The bible also speaks of a crown, not a perishable one like this world offers, but an imperishable one; the crown of victory won by Jesus Christ when He was crucified on the cross for the sins of the world. Perfection was killed in the place of imperfection. Victory came of tragedy. Dancing changed from mourning!

Life born from death.

On hard days I think a lot about the picture of Christ in the laurel crown.

I dream of a day of victory, the return of Christ; and then I soon consider rest.

No More Strife.

Peace for my soul. Freedom! Home.

But for now, these words echo: press on.

“Press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ.” “Let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.”

Jesus Christ, Faithful and True, The Word of God.

Press on.

***

Also, the bay laurel was also used as medicine that was believed to have protective and healing effects. Laurel has a scent that is something spicy but also sweet… which I just kind of liked. ;)

Already April? of 2011???

2011-04-14T15:09:00.002-05:00

Welp, I've decided to post a few things. I've had some thoughts rolling around my head and some of them have finally snowballed into a sentence, a paragraph, and possibly... a blog. (!)

Sometimes I feel writing is like putting together a puzzle. Moving pieces around, looking at things from this way, then that. Cheating with the box... giving up... Then finally coming back with some resolve.

(months later)

Maybe there should be a blog that connects the last post to these, but I don't think there will be. So just roll with it ;)

P.S. As always, excuse the punctuation. I'm making it up as I go. (I was flirting in high school English class, not learning.)

It Really Will Get Loud

2009-10-14T21:13:00.004-05:00

My dad wrote a blog! I think it's excellent. Check it out here.

What is a Yak?

2009-10-08T16:53:00.003-05:00

Jerry and I were visiting his parents in Huntsville and we happened to drive by an airplane show. It was raining so we walked under one of the hangers where four of the pilots were getting ready to fly in formations. Jer's parents knew one of them and he asked if Jerry and I wanted to go up with them!!!

This was no AA flight. The planes were tiny, two-seater, prop planes called "Russian YAK's" which is what they used to train pilots on how to fly bombers... Which means they are fast... and swoop up, down and all over the place... Which is what we did!

When the pilot asked me if I wanted to go up I said, yes, and ignored all the questions that went through my head, such as:

"Is there a parachute?"

"How old is this plane and do you often have it inspected?"

"You do realize it's raining, yes?"

"Who are you?"

"Do you have a strong will to live?"

I didn't want him to start second guessing his partner choice so I kept my questions [panic] to myself. The only question I asked was, "How long will we be up in the air?"

This question was key was because we just ate a big breakfast at this southern home-cooking place called "The Squirrel" and I needed to know how long I would have to hold on if my stomach turned on me; but the pilot answered me by saying, "Not too long."

I wasn't sure what that meant.

Even thought I was scared I couldn't help but praise God for arranging this for us! He knows I miss being flipped and twisted all over the place in cheerleading! :)

Here are the pics:

Me in the plane, strapped in, and ready for lift off [sans the peanuts and sodas].

Jerry in his plane- you can see his smilling face! :)

Starting the engine. (We could wave to each other while doing the formations... Pretty fun!)

Lined up on the grass "runway" (Way down there on the left).

Me lifting off!! You can't tell but I am wearing an Anne Taylor shirt and big hoop earrings... which I just think is funny.

Us doing a diagonal, way up in the clouds!

I am in the back and Jerry is in the front. It's the scariest thing to look up and see the belly of a plane right on top of you!!!

Safe landing!

Jerry = Ecstatic!

Loose Ends

2009-09-09T21:28:00.008-05:00

I feel I leave a lot of loose ends on my blog. So as not to keep anyone up at night I will try to tie some of them up.

1. The iPhone Itch.
Still itching. But it's quite manageable most of the time; sometimes subconscious altogether. (Except when I get lost on the road which brings the itch to life with an acute vengeance.) I did go ahead and get an iPod though. Must... have... music!

2. Vampire Nerd (Hi, my name is Lauren and I read teenage novels.)
Maybe I could blame my lack of blogging on reading the Twilight series but as anyone who has read them knows, it only takes you 4 days to read all four books because they are that enveloping! I can't wait for the next movie which happens to come out on my exact birthday!

3. Photos
Anyone remember me mentioning this project of getting photos in albums? Well, as suspected, I started the project and abandoned it for months. BUT randomly I picked it back up again and knocked them ALL out! Hurray!!

Other info you might (not) be interested in:

1. "This Side of Paradise."
I picked it up because he's one of my Dad's favorite authors. All in all... I think I out punted my coverage on that one.. didn't quite get some things. But there is one paragraph that I may have to post when football season really gets rolling because it's just hilarious! (Um, unless ole F. Scott meant that part to be serious...)

2. Kids Camp!
I went as a leader to The Village Kids Camp this year. We are not allowed to post the pics of the little munchkins but take my word it was SO FUN! I LOVED my cute little girls!! I was over 4 little punkins who were going into 4th and 5th grade. I felt honored to hear their little hearts through out the week. Sweet sweet sweet.

3. Scripture Memory
I am terrible at this. I kept thinking it would just happen.. but lo.. it has not 'just happened'. So I decided to approach this with the same vigor that I do when training for a marathon and that's when someone told me about this. It's so Type A and boarder line nerdy with this little pouch that you carry around... but I guess I am Type A and a little nerdy myself because I LOVE IT. Desperate times call for desperate measures :)

4. Jerry's garden: Jalapenos and Tomatoes :)

On a final note:
Shout out to my little brother who graduated from UNT last month! SO proud of him!

Good night!!

Hermit

2009-07-02T12:01:00.002-05:00

Please excuse me while I read the Twilight series.

Dad

2009-06-21T17:41:00.002-05:00

This blog is to my dad to wish him a Happy Father's Day. For you who don't know him but might read this, here are a few little snippets into the sillier side of my dad... It seems I may have gotten some of my writing quirks from him...

This is an email I received from him on a normal, average day that needed a laugh:

New Bike Speed Record Set By Really Old Dad

In a recent event, a Garland, Tx resident set a blister pace on his
Trek Madone 5.9 bike yesterday. In a 30-mile sprint the aged one, Joe
Falkner, set a new land speed record for a man on a bike. "This
surely is a feat that dwarfs my seven Tour De France wins", said Lance
Armstrong upon hearing of the achievement. "I only hope", Armstrong
continued, "that when I am his age, I am half that good."

In fact, Mr. Falkner's speed was so great that the air friction on the
air ripped open his small storage pouch that fits under his saddle
seat. Unfortunately, the open pouch allowed for Mr. Falkner's cell
phone to become dislodged and fall to the ground, smashing to tiny,
tiny bits, Mr. Falkner reports.

For those wishing to congratulate Mr. Falkner on his remarkable
achievement, he, for the time being, can be reached only on his
office phone.

Here's another couple of funny writing tidbits that he wrote when we (me and my 2 siblings) we young; the age where Cheerio's are a necessity to life:

Ode to Cheerio's

How 'bout them Cheerio's
Just lying in the bowl,
Soaking up the white milk
In their round holes

Little white eyes
not even blinking
Makes a body wonder
what could they be thinking

Little crunchy critters
Each and every one,
Scoop 'em up in your spoon,
Chomp'em have some fun.

Ode to Snifflin' Kids

How 'bout them snifflin' kids
Goopy nose and all
Wiping on the backs of hands
Wiping on the walls

They're dripping in their rooms;
Sniffing all the time
Little brats are sneezing now
Blowing out their minds.

The little twerps are sickly
We got to catch it in the nip
Got to wipe 'em down with kleenex
before they kiss you on the lips

Oh parenthood. (I have no idea do I!!)

Now I can't possibly go into all the reasons why I think my dad is the greatest on a blog because "all my readers" would trail off somewhere on page 22.

But I will say that I am so thankful to have my dad as my dad. He is pretty much the easiest person in world to admire.

He loves our family; always takes the brunt of life for us. He is a hard worker, very smart, very athletic, very funny, and very kind to everyone. He has been an encourager to me all my life.

Thanks, Dad, for being so great! Jerry and I both love you and we also have a little Father's Day "prize" for when we see you next :)

L.O.D.

2009-06-09T14:12:00.005-05:00

is for Long. Over. Due.

Jerry and I went on a cruise in April!!

(I haven't been able to muster up the umphf to wrestle with loading photos on Blogger. I think my little Apple is past her prime so I have to be in a very patience state of mind to upload.)

Anywho, here are some pics. This is our first full day on the boat. Jerry is on the "Flow-rider." It's a simulated wave that goes so fast it will have grown men flying through the air like little tots.

LOTS of wipe-outs.

Quite the entertainment.

Next Jerry and his dad played in the super-serious, ever-popular Dodge Ball Tournament.

They definitely looked the coolest. Matching bandanna's = SCARY :)

Here's Jerry and his mom at one of the jazz clubs that night..

Our first port- Labadi, Haiti. So lush!

Here we are on the beloved hammock. Sadly Jerry didn't move from this spot once all day because he was sick. :(

Ah, pretty Labadi!

Next stop- Ocho Rios, Jamaica!

For an excursion we climbed up a waterfall!

I wish I could post the pics but every one is hilariously awkward because we are all in swim suites; legs and arms flailing.

Seriously, I could not believe they let people do this! We didn't even sign a waiver! One false move and crack goes your skull! "No worries" in Jamaica though, I guess..

This pic is at the top of the falls..

(Please do not judge the shoes.)

(They made you.)

(And I enjoyed them.)

After this day (with all the waterfall climbing and what-not) Jerry went from feeling bad to REALLY bad.

See. :(

But he survived.

And even busted out some smooth-moves to "Staying Alive" later that night.

Next stop- Grand Camen Island!

This stop was a favorite of the group. B-E-A-U-tiful water. Blue and clear even WAY far out. I road a jet-ski, John and Lecia para-sailed, and John and Jerry sailed a catamaran..

Final stop- Cozumel!

This one was my favorite stop. We rented scooters and drove around the island.

Ahhhhhh, so wonderful! You could smell the tropical flowers and watch the huge waves crash on the rocks while zipping along the road.

I love you beach!

And our final day on the boat I went for it on the Flow-rider!

(And I also ate it on the Flow-rider seconds after)..

Such a great trip. Beautiful world.

the end.

sniff

sniff. sniff.

The Great 8

2009-05-28T17:30:00.001-05:00

Ok, Kristen tagged me on this. There are supposed to be 8 answers in each section but I used my blogger license to bend the rules.

Things I look forward to:

1. Future trips to the beach

2. Christmas

3. Home group

4. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.)

Things I did yesterday:

1. Unpacked the rest of my things from the beach

2. Went on a walk with Jer

3. Sat and stared at the lake

Things I wish I could do:

1. Cook. It's just not happening people. Lindsey Brittany promised to give me a lesson or two which is great because I am telling you, she made some tiramisu that sent me to the third heaven

2. Run a marathon

3. Go to Tibet and meet some sweet Tibetans and see their rosy cheeks

4. Redo moments in my life. Where's my remote? Rewind, Delete, Fast Forward...

5. Love people better

6. Think quick on my feet

7. Travel the world

8. Pay to take my friends and family with me

Shows I Watch:

1. So You Think You Can Dance

2. The office

3. Lost

4. If Designing Women was still running then I'd watch that too!

The Bobcat

2009-05-01T16:02:00.006-05:00

Hello, Mrs. Williams.

Hello, Doctor, thank you for seeing me today.

And what brings you in?

Well, it's finally happened. I had a heart attack.

The iPhone Itch

2009-03-30T21:54:00.001-05:00

Some how I have managed to steer clear of the iPhone craze mainly because I didn't see the need.

But what once was simple has now become complex and I need the sanity of my fellow bloggers to keep me from jumping over the edge... or push me over altogether.

Here are the facts:

Fact: I get lost more than anyone I know (depsite being a Dallas resident all my life) and in these times of lostness I can't seem to get my go-to people on the phone (Sister, Husband, Mom). Thus I end up in tears somewhere between a one-way street and a missed right turn. The twilight zone does exist.

Fact: The iPhone has a GPS

Fact: My iPod went ka-put a while back so I don't have one of those

Fact: The iPhone IS an iPod

Fact: We have a stero system that only plays an iSomething. No radio/CD's/Tapes. The only iSomething we have is Jerry's phone which means I can only listen things to when A.) Jerry is home and B.) not on the phone. Are you feeling me?

(Do people still use the term 'stereo system' now-a-days? Sounds a little 90's to me)

Fact: I sit at my desk most of the day so I have no need for a phone that does anything but ring 90% of my life

Fact: The reason iPhone DOES all these cool things is because you PAY for it... we can not forget that part $$

Fact: I think Looped looks fun!!!!

So here are your voting options:

A.) Purchase an iPhone

B.) Purchase an iPod

C.) Sit contentedly and enjoy the quiet

THOUGHTS??????!!!

What a missing cord will do to you...

2009-03-10T15:01:00.003-05:00

Obviously I am a bit behind. But my dad always told me "Better late than never" and "Sooner better than later."

There was a third saying but I can't remember it now, which is unfortunate because I am sure it holds the answers to all my life's errancies.

First things first:

Christmas at my parents house...

Then, after one short drive to Alabama, Christmas at Jerry's parents house.

Both were a Blast!

On the way home we swung by Memphis with Jamey and Mel to see tiny little Z and her new Mama and Daddy.

So fun :)

And then there was Summer's house-warming party where everyone was in rare form (without the help of even caffeine.. just plain-old crazy running though the veins). At this point only Geoff and Kevin had lost it, which you can tell if you look them closely in the eyes.

Next in photos we have a picture of my good friend Jenny's rehearsal dinner at Nick and Sam's where I had my first steak since middle school. I was pretty sicked out with myself the next day but I didn't feel right about ordering fish at one of the best steak houses in Dallas.

Then there was the wedding which I didn't take many pics at because they had an instant-photo booth set up. Man, an instant-photo booth will bring out the narcissist in the most humble of people.

It was awesome!!

And that brings us up to date!

Sorry you only get the details on events that I took pictures at but those are the only ones I remember at the moment!

For my Mom

2009-03-09T14:18:00.001-05:00

This blog is in honor of my mom who's birthday was on Friday! I am not going to say which number she turned but let's say it's a nice round number that's worth of making note! :)

These are a few of her pics from the University of Alabama homecoming. She got to go on the field because she was a cheerleader when Paul "Bear" Bryant was there!

Obviously, we have cheerleading in common but there is so much more about my mom that I love and and hope to inherit.

To name a few:
Southern Charm, Quick whit, Strength, Beauty (you would never guess her birthday!!), Determination, Positive, Always encourages to do the right thing even when it might go bad (aka: tell the truth about a 'cheerleading shoes' mishap!), Knows more about College football than most guys I know combined!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

My mom and brother Scott

Mom pointing out her brick at the Pi Phi house!

Brother (luckily) standing in front of the Bama Pi Phi house

Don't know my college football trivia but I know that this guy is real good!

Ok, that's it for now. I found my photo cord so hopefully I will get a chance to update soon...

Plus, before my mom's birthday there was another family member with a significant birthday that I will blog on too! I just need a few things first...

Lists of Things

2009-02-01T14:23:00.009-06:00

Things I am enjoying while Jerry is out of town fishing:

1. Being able to park smack dab in the middle of the garage

2. Being able to turn my heating blanket up to full blast when I go to sleep at night

3. Hmm, yep, that's it. COME HOME HUSBAND!

Things I have been obsessing over in my fridge/pantry:

1. Almond stuffed olives. Don't even really like olives but these are irresistible.

2. Blue cheese. A few weeks ago I made blue cheese stuffed turkey burgers and fell in love with the flavor.

3. Smoked Gouda. Why did I waste most of my life without trying this? Why wasn't there intervention?? Are you not my friends?

4. Cinnamon. I have been putting this on anything remotely sweet; coffee, toast, cereal, ice-cream. Yummm

Things I have been doing with my spare time:

1. Cleaning out and organizing all my pictures. This is a CHORE. Right now I have pictures from all time periods in random nooks and crannies of my house and car. It's time for some adult organization. I am only in the beginning stages of this but hope to finish by this time next week... we'll see.

2. Painting. I fell in love with a painting that was expensive so I though I would just try and paint it. Is this the picture of over-ambition? Probably. Anyways yesterday I sat down on my kitchen floor and gave it a go. (That's the one and only bonus to hating your floral print kitchen floor- you can paint on it and not worry too much about making it look bad). Well the picture I was trying to emulate was an abstract and my finished product looks decisively literal. Oh well. Maybe Jerry will like it :)

In closing I would like to apologize for the lack of photos. I can't seem to find the cord that hooks to my laptop. Probably in a nook somewhere with aged photos.

The President, the Passengers, and the Patience of God

2009-01-23T22:08:00.001-06:00

I liked this article. I found it here.

January 21, 2009

Sometimes we are so overwhelmed at being treated better than we deserve that we must exult in the all-sovereign God—the God of birds' flight and Obama’s rise. When King David pondered how many were God’s “wondrous deeds,” he said, “I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told” (Psalm 40:5). That’s the way I feel watching God’s public mercies in the last few days.

Have you considered how unlikely was the crash of USAir flight 1549 in the Hudson River on January 15—not just the rescue but the crash itself? Picture this: The Airbus A320 is taking off at an angle—maybe 30 degrees. It’s not flying horizontal with the earth. Not only that, it is flying fast—not full speed yet, but perhaps four times as fast as your car would go at top highway speeds.

The geese are flying horizontally with the ground, more or less. They are not flying in a cloud like a swarm of bees. They fly level with the ground, often shaped like a V. In view of all that, what are the odds that, traveling at this speed and at this angle, this airplane would intersect with the flight of those geese at that very millisecond which would put a bird not just in one of those engines, but both of them?

Two laser-guided missiles would not have been as amazingly effective as were those geese. It is incredible, statistically speaking. If God governs nature down to the fall (and the flight) of every bird, as Jesus says (Matthew 10:29), then the crash of flight 1549 was designed by God.

Which leads to the landing in the Hudson River—which is just as unlikely. The airbus now has no thrust in either engine. The flight attendants said it was as quiet as a library in the plane without the sound of engines. The plane is now a 77-ton glider with its belly full of fuel. Captain Sullenberger decides to land in the river. Anywhere else would mean one big fireball.

He banks and misses the George Washington Bridge by 900 feet and glides the plane into a perfect belly landing. A few degrees tilt to the front or back or the right or left and the plane would have done cartwheels down the river and broken up. On the water, the flight attendant does not let passengers open the rear door. That would have flooded the cabin too fast. The emergency doors and front doors provide exits for everyone and the plane floats long enough for all of them to climb out. Ferry boats are there almost instantly. The captain walks the aisle twice to make sure everyone is off. Then he leaves. Later the plane sinks.

If God guides geese so precisely, he also guides the captain’s hands. God knew that when he took the plane down, he would also give a spectacular deliverance. So why would he do that? If he means for all to live, why not just skip the crash?

Because he meant to give our nation a parable of his power and mercy the week before a new President takes office. God can take down a plane any time he pleases—and if he does, he wrongs no one. Apart from Christ, none of us deserves anything from God but judgment. We have belittled him so consistently that he would be perfectly just to take any of us any time in any way he chooses.

But God is longsuffering. He is slow to anger. He withholds wrath every day. This is what we saw in the parable. The crash of Flight 1549 illustrates God’s right and power to judge. The landing of the plane represents God’s mercy. It was God’s call to all the passengers and all their families and all who heard the story to repent and turn to God’s Son, Jesus Christ, and receive forgiveness for sin.

I am writing these thoughts on the evening after the inauguration of Barack Obama, the first African-American President of the United States. I cried twice today. There were two points when I was overwhelmed by the magnitude of it all. Once was when I prayed with some brothers after Obama’s speech and was overcome with the sinfulness of my own racist background. The other was in trying to express my emotion to an African-American brother about what this must mean for him.

As much as I reject Obama’s stance on abortion, I am thankful to the bottom of my soul that an African-American can be President of United States. The enormity of it all is unspeakable. This is God’s doing. The geese were God’s doing. The landing of Flight 1549 was God’s doing. And the Obama presidency is God’s doing. “He removes kings and sets up kings” (Daniel 2:21).

And I pray that President Obama has eyes to see. The “miracle on the Hudson” and the “miracle in the White House” are not unrelated. God has been merciful to us as a nation. Our racial sins deserved judgment a thousand times over. God does not owe America anything. We owe him everything. And instead of destruction, he has given us another soft landing. We are not dead at the bottom of the Hudson.

O that Barack Obama would see the mercies of God and look to the One whose blood bought everlasting life for all who trust him. The parables of God’s mercy are everywhere. The point of them is this: God is a just and patient Ruler, and Jesus Christ is a great Savior. Turn. Turn. Turn, O President of the United States and passengers of this planet.

Full of thanks for all God’s mercies,

Pastor John

The Interruption!

2008-12-17T14:31:00.005-06:00

So last week we were interrupted with the classic 'knock on the door.' Actually it was more of a 'frantic banging and doorbell ringing'.

It was a policeman telling us to get out of the house cause there was a fire. So we ran out around back and saw that our shed was in flames about 15 feet high going up the two trees and down the fence. Pretty quickly three fire trucks whipped around the corner, hooked up their hoses and began working on putting it out. (that's gonna be you Kevo!)

I am not going to lie, I was scared. I wasn't really afraid of the house burning down so much as I was afraid seeing a fire so out of control. The result? Feeling vulnerable. And I do not like feeling vulnerable.

But it is good. I hope to become one of those weathered women that knows and trusts in the Lord through experience of Him being faithful. Even when the fire trucks don't come and everything burns to the ground.

So I didn't exactly float around the fire trucks saying "Ah, the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away" but I have hope that Jesus will finish what He has started in me. Even when it looks like we have a long way to go :)

Here are some pics i got once it was clear that the fire was pretty much out:

The aftermath:

And in come the demolition team:

First you hook the dolly (clearly)

Then you tie it to the truck

Then you watch as the impossible happens

Victory.

Little game of tug-a-war

Heave!

HO!

All in a days work!

(Seriously, thanks to all who helped, i know Saturday mornings are precious!!)

Post Addendum:

What caused the fire? Squirrels. They found little squirrel-home residue (nuts and the like). They think they gnawed off the insulation on the electric wires in the shed. If they found a roasted little squirrel I didn't want to know about it!!

From Fall to Winter: All the fun things

2008-12-02T12:11:00.006-06:00

This is my favorite time of year for a few reasons:

1. Lot's of family birthday's
2. Football championships
3. Leaves turning fiery red (even if only slightly here in Texas)
4. Cold weather (thanks to birth control- who knew hormones had a play in what kind of whether you preferred?)
4. Reading by the fire
5. And celebrating Jesus during the Christmas season!

One random thing:

Did anyone know that this is an actual line in Little Drummer Boy-
"The ox and lamb kept time, par-rum-pa-pum-pum."
Weird. Kind of Narnia-ish.

Even after noticing that odd line it's still up there in my top Christmas songs. I love the picture of the little boy playing his heart out, his Very Best (which may or may not have actually been that good) out of love for Jesus.

Anyway, here are some 'Fall to Winter' pics:

Jerry acting very adult and intellectual in the coffee area of the DMA- one of my favorite places to wander.

What's fun is to notice my taste change and change again through the years as different areas in the museum become more or less appealing.

After this we went to my All Time Favorite restaurant, Kenichi. If you go please order the 'Blake' roll and the 'Baked Freddy'. You will die on the spot it's so good. And if you don't, you will definitely die when you get your check.

And everybody loves free birthday desert- especially if it's fried ice-cream (I didn't know we were at the fair).

Sorry for the black and white- i don't even know how that happened- but you needed to see the ice-cream

Another HUGE day of note is when we bought our first Christmas tree! We went to a cute little tree farm and looked for trees. It turns out that the trees at the tree farm were 3 times more expensive, for no visible reason, than the ones at the Neimans/Walmart. So we went back there instead!

Only thing is that at Neimans you can't tell what they look like cause they are all bound up.

But i think we got a good one! It's so pretty!

Yea Christmas!

Happy Birthday Jerry!

2008-10-31T08:00:00.000-05:00

this is my husband...

and he is a Halloween baby...

Today he is turning 29!

So let's celebrate!...

by talking about...

Jerry.

Jerry "The Risk Taker" Williams- who on our first road trip ran out of gas and literally costed off the highway and rolled right to a stop at the only gas station around for miles. (my dad was real happy to hear about that one)

Jerry- who made my dream come true of riding a horse RUNNING (this was no trail ride people!)

Jerry- who has friends that are as silly as he is

And who makes ME act silly too!

Who is always up for adventure (especially if it means he can wear a bandana)

And EXTRA especially if it includes windsurfing

Jerry- who I love to hear sing and strum his guitar

Jerry- who my family loves

Who is one heck of a tree trimmer

See- one heck of a tree trimmer

Who buys me flowers

And plants me flowers

Who's life is complete with a bug zapper and a grill

And who is a mean griller at that.

Who works hard at everything

And who is a joy to build a home with

All in all my husband is...

Happy Birthday my love :)

i am officially getting old...

2008-10-25T16:51:00.004-05:00

but i loooved cheering at Oklahoma so you are just going to have to relive all this with me :)

Every other year OU invites the alumni cheerleaders back to cheer at homecoming. Yea! It was so fun! (Um, but here is the part i can NOT believe... This was my THIRD alumni game so that means i have been graduated how many years??? This can not be! Has that much time really passed? Well the answer is yes, and my aching legs and shoulders can attest to the fact that i am pretty far removed from those days!

Anyway enjoy the pics- at least i know mom and dad will :)

The first hour was spent catching up (which means all the girls going around saying to each other "How are you?? You look great!!" and the guys saying to each other "Whoa! You got fat!"

Then we started to "practice"!

(That's me, Nicole and Laren- we were roommates my junior and senior year.)

This is 'Jelly'- my stunt partner my senior year.

Whooo!

After practice we went to O'Connell's an Irish pub next to the stadium.

This is Rachel, my roommate in the dorms my freshman year :)

(if those walls could talk!!)

Look who's wearing an OU t-shirt!! (usually a staunch Baylor fan but i have been recruiting!!)

And here we go for a game-day warm up! (getting more sore each min that passed by)

ooh- that's not quite so natural feeling as i remember

last pic before the game- i loved the little alum tee's they gave us :)

PREGAME! i always LOVED pre-game! the crowd was always out of control and there was so much energy in the air i'd have goose bumps

i am kind of blending in with the crown but that's me making an "O!!!!!!!!!!!!" with my freshman year partner Robert

On the way out i made Jerry do a little Pi Phi swing-by :)

i slept by the window on the top left. Sooo many memories!

I was going to throw in a few cool pics from back in the day when i was actually cheering (you know, back when i didn't think twice about wearing a skirt the size of a match box and i didn't even know what the word cellulite meant) but i decided that might be a little over the top. :)

anyways, Go Sooners!

my heart will go on

2008-10-08T19:09:00.003-05:00

1. Okra from Mr. Glass
Mr Glass is one of our sweet neighbors. He is probably in his early 80's and he is a hoot. He and his wife have a garden in their back yard and they give us vegetables whenever Jerry comes over to help him with something.

I had never cooked okra so i had Mrs. Glass tell me how to cook it. So i did it just like she said. Fried.

I hardly ever eat anything fried so cooking this was a first. (Well maybe this isn't that big of a landmark because i probably have only cooked 5 legitimate meals in my life.) Anyways it was a vegetable for crying out loud so i figured it could slide under the radar.

And why not eat a hamburger with your fried okra?

Jerry was elated :)

2. Nov 20th

Dawntoya's little baby girl Zip is due on my birthday so i feel like i have special rights to brag about her. :)

3. Titanic
The movie got me again. Seriously, every time I watch it I get my hopes up that this time they will use better wisdom. 'NO, don’t accelerate!! Maybe there are enough lifeboats this time??!!! AGH! I just want Jack and Rose to live happily ever after!! IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR???!!!!'

4. Lame

Sorry this post is lame. I have started blogs that are a bit closer to my heart but the words kept falling short. I found myself militantly yelling at them like a drill sergeant, 'STAND UP STRAIGHT!' ' TUCK THAT SHIRT IN!' but they have not cooperated thus far.

Maybe someday.

is this allowed?

2008-09-22T22:15:00.000-05:00

in light of these things...

1. i got Jerry to sing Christmas carols ('O Holy Night' to be specific) in the car last night with me

2. i took a detour into Hallmark just so i could stand in the isle and look at their Christmas things and smell their Christmas candles. i might have shed a tear.

3. i had my cube-mate's full support when my itunes 'accidentally' rolled through to the Josh Groban Noel album. (Katie is perhaps more Christmas psyco than myself)

...so i light of this i thought i would post some Christmas 2007 pics BECAUSE I WANT TO, OK!!!

yea! my first pea coat (Jerry picked this out all by himself!)

my own left handed glove!

mmmm Christmas lunch! seriously, my mom makes the Best food everrrr. (Stephen, A.K.A. The Ear model, was sacrificed to take this picture)

one of the fun gifts was a bike for my :) so fun!

See now. wasn't that nice? can't you just smell the cranberry candles and sugar cookies? i know some of you have real problems with the mention of Christmas before Thanksgiving so i apologize. no more out burst like this at LEAST until October :)

Jerry finally put his foot down

2008-09-17T20:40:00.004-05:00

this is what we did last weekend.

while waiting for the aftermath of Ike to hit Dallas, Jerry and i decided to drive over to the Shops at Highland Village. on the way over there we had a near collision [emphasis on the word 'near' people!]. i was driving and Jerry was in the passenger seat with his right foot up in the dash board (tacky, i know).

when i made a left turn cutting it a little to close to oncoming traffic for Jerry's comfort, he slammed his foot into my windshield (you know the imaginary break that all passengers use, at least when riding with me.

well the glass cracked as we swerved by a mini van
jerry let some colorful words fly
i let some colorful words fly
he yelled asking me what i was thinking?
i yelled asked him what was he thinking!
then we both died laughing
and finally we settled into the slight depression that always follow an unexpected expense.

but i guess for a weekend that promised to hold a lot more destruction, a cracked windshield's not to bad.

so anyway, eyes on the road and hands at 10 and 2 from now on. i promise...

better late than never

2008-09-10T20:50:00.000-05:00

this is a picture of our new house.

just kidding, this is where we went for our one year anniversary (still not exactly sure where we were, somewhere in the Ozarks between Arkansas and Oklahoma).

dang, we are approaching fall and i am just now posting our 1 year anniversary pictures from spring. i guess this post can be in celebration of our 1.5 year anniversary which is this month??

we did some hiking...

some kayaking (jerry did anyways- the water was waaaay to cold for me to risk falling in)...

and lots of talking and enjoying the scenery.

here's the view of the river that was a lot murkier than normal since there was a storm the night we arrived.

way out there the stars are really bright and the lightening is even brighter! i was excited because one of my favorite things is a lightening storm and that was the second time God planned a lightening storm at the beginning of a little getaway.

there was no tv, dvd or dishwasher so i bought paper plates and read a lot :) i think this book was A Reason for God.

every night Jerry gathered firewood

and with much precision,

and careful alignment,

built us a fire

viola!

Caillou and other things

2008-09-02T21:39:00.009-05:00

no real theme to this post... and i always like a good theme.

between this post and the last i watched Kite Runner. movies like that really stick to me a couple of days and make my thoughts churn. they make me so thankful that we have a perfectly wise God who is fully just and fully merciful. How amazing is that?! Praise Jesus that He would even deal with us! Ugh, some of those scenes ripped my heart right out.

moving on

this weekend we got together with Jerry's family. as always it was a blast! i didn't take many pics but here's one i thought was funny- apparently Caillou is appealing to all ages.

Little Huddie! (um and the unfinished cabinets)

right now Jer and i are watching the Republican National Convention. poor Jer, i make him rewind lot and explain things, which he mostly does very graciously, but every once in a while i will get a, 'babe, maybe if you'd quit blogging and pay attention!'

not to go off on a political tangent but my favorite quote so far hasn't come from Obama, Hillary, John, Sarah or George but from my husband while watching the Democratic National Convention, "i have laughed more watching this than watching Seinfeld!"

anyways, below are a few final beach pics.

this picture may not reflect it but these are Double-red-flag waters which means under no conditions should you get in the water... unless you are named Jerry Williams, then by all means, go ahead and wind surf after the lifeguard has gone home.

Jer, Dad and Scott in front of another favorite restaurant, Hamilton's (aka: Stuffmyface)

Dad and Jer fighting the undertow, me from the safety of the umbrella- although i did venture out there everyday

i like this one of Jer. Should i start a photo business? ;)

i love the beach because it's like a constant pedicure. that perfect white sand gently smoothing my tired heals. quite the metaphor really.

thanks mom and dad for letting us tag along! we love you both!!

a couple thousand words

2008-08-11T12:23:00.009-05:00

here's a peek of the last 24 hours.

our first night: one of our annual stops, the frequented mom and pop shop "Shuck'em's" known for their mouth watering oysters

yummy! (at the beach my eyelashes go on vacation too- no mascara)

me with my book and Jer and Scott with the windsurfing board

little brother, they grow up so fast!

right now we are in due to a brief ocean shower. not to worry. we are neither sad nor dismayed at this cause these sprinkles are always short and sweet... and right now, just in time for lunch.

and just because we miss them here's a pic of megan, stephen and their newest member- Grady aka L.T. (little terror)

what was that!!??

2008-07-23T17:21:00.002-05:00

Short story:
So I knew that in buying a house there would be moments that would push me out of my comfort zone. For example, I have tried to come to terms that there are going to be times when the toilet breaks and I have no landlord to call. Or there might be a time when the AC goes out and there is no Work Order form to fill out while I wait for the job to be completed. I also mentally prepared myself for the vast world of Yard Work and the even vaster world of Yard Work Expenses. BUT what I did not prepare myself for was the semi-wooded area that we would live in and all things ‘wooded’ that would come with it.
For example:
Since we have been living in our house I have twice been followed in by a little gecko. Now I don’t want to be a total complainer here, because while I don’t like any creature that is small and moves faster than me, I must say I prefer a little gecko over all other multi-legged creatures. But Still! I am not about to touch one! So both times I calmly screamed for Jerry while the gecko and I lock eyes in wait.
So:
I come home from work one day minding my own business and head toward the front door. As I near the door I hear loud scurrying behind me and look down to see a miniature alligator running full speed toward my feet. I am not kidding. This overgrown, gecko/crocodile/monster was charging me and I reacted with more failing and screaming than I new I had in me. I am sure that our neighbors raised an eyebrow in wonder at my wild-ethnic-rain-dance or maybe they just nodded in sympathy having also encountered this beast. Who knows? All I was concerned with was getting the heck inside. If I would have felt even one scale of that thing on my toe I am convinced I would have died on the spot. Anyways, it missed my feet and nailed it’s head on the door frame with a loud “THUNK” and then ran off in the other direction as I plunged through the door into safety.
Or so I thought:
Another day I was mindlessly making a mental list of a few odds and ends that I needed to run to the store to pick up. I grabbed my purse and headed up the road to our local Kroger. Normally Jerry and I prefer to do our grocery shopping at Nieman’s (otherwise know as the new Walmart) but I was in a hurry and just needed one or two things. Ready to checkout I headed to the self-checkout area and scan my goods. I snapped open my little coin purse to pull out a $20 and low and behold a Maniac Gecko comes flying out like Superman of his kind and lands smack on the scanner! Of course by this point the checkout line has grown so I have quite the crowd going to watch the new and improved rain-dance. This one had more hard stomps and less flailing arms, all the while sending a message via intense eye’s and head jerks to the 16 year old Kroger worker who was staring at me with a blank expression. The kid just looked at me and said, ‘Where’d that come from?’ Too embarrassed to admit that I was one of those people that carried crawly things around with them I just said, ‘I don’t know!’ and grabbed my receipt and left.
All that it say:
Please don’t judge me. I promise we are not bug people. Jerry has promised to ‘handle’ the situation on account of knowing his wife’s sanity is on the line. I hope you still feel safe to come over… but understand if you don’t. Sheesh.

frivolous updates

2008-07-11T10:52:00.015-05:00

1. my back

it's doing a lot better! i took off about 2 full months from working out and finally eased my back into life with all the moving and house work (plus i got a stomach bug while painting and that was quite the workout... up and down the ladder... updownupdown... i know. TMI. see what living with a boy has done to me?!). i am still not doing anything hardcore but have loved walking around our neighborhood. there are just enough hills and beautiful scenery to get a mini workout without really noticing.

2. the home

well it looks like the "after" pics are going to be a long time coming. in fact i may never posted them even when we are "done" (in 6 years) cause something feels weird about posting them! i don't know why! ha! so if you want to see where we are at in the process, by all means, invite yourself over! we don't have a microwave yet so my usual dinner of popcorn is out of the question but i can always do a frozen pizza in the oven. Suzy Homemaker must be proud.

3. the microwave

one good thing that came from not having a microwave is that i was forced to learn how to use my steamer. (not the little microwaveable bags... you know the real one... the big metal one.) so that was a moment of proudness and accomplishment in the Williams household. now i just have to figure out how to get Jerry to actually eat some veggies. practice for kids i guess.

4. still?!

i have been painting our kitchen cabinets for 10 days now and am not even 1/4th the way done. those cabinets are such liars. i promise they told me, "Hey Lauren! Look how cute we are! We are just cute little kitchen cabinets! Forget about the fact that you have to fill in the old hardware holes, sand, re-drill new ones and not to mention all the crevasses and the possibility that it will all peel off! We are just cute and fun! Come paint us!" LIARS.

5. Stanley

Stanley is dead. for good. i don't want to talk about it.

Meet Ava

2008-07-10T16:11:00.008-05:00

Jill and Shane Steinbach are the parents of a little girl named Ava who is one and a half years old. Ava was recently diagnosed with Moyamoya which is an incredibly rare, life threatening, disease.
There are only a few doctors in the U.S. that specialize in treating Moyamoya and the doctor Ava has been seeing in Dallas was trained under the specialist they are going to see in Boston for surgery. Since February the Steinbach’s have been waiting for Ava to become stable enough for flight and the operation. They recently lined up her surgery and airline tickets and headed out to Boston on the 9th. They are going through preparatory testing now and are set to have neuro-surgery on Monday the 14th.

I have seen pictures of Ava before but got to meet her in person on July 8th. She was so beautiful it almost knocked me over!

As people prayed over her she watched excitedly, offering baby-talk and occasionally squinting her eyes with her hands together in response. At the end of each prayer she would offer an emphatic ‘AMEN!’

Please remember this family on the 14th – Shane, Jill and Ava. What a precious family. They have lived this versus,

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." Psalms 91:1-2

If you want to keep up with them go here (name- avavictoria)

let the mess begin!

2008-06-28T16:33:00.020-05:00

taping...

scraping...

and de-wallpapering!

Prepping for texture (and a 2 second break :) )

and now here comes the texture gun. READY!!...AIM!!

FIRE!!

{please insert a decibel level equal to that of a Jet Engine.}

{also feel free to insert Exhaustion and Texture EVERYWHERE}

but ultimately we have a job well done. way to go guys!

continuing on - clean up...

ceiling painting...

and more prepping for painting!

can i get a witness for the first stripe of color! yea!

and more color! I LOVE the colors of paint! yip!

ha i love this picture :) here's Jerry about to strangle me if i made him pose for one more picture... but he looked like Dapper Dan from Oh Brother Where Art Thou so i couldn't help it!

and finally, moving in!

apparently i over did it on the packing paper...

but all the boxes we put to good use...

and we added a few temporary pieces to liven the place up

this is Jerry's last ounce of energy being joyfully extracted in our very own backyard :)

thank you again everyone for your help! we love you!

welcome...

2008-06-27T22:22:00.012-05:00

to the before pictures!

lovely kitchen- please take note of the floral wallpaper and matching floral tile. always in season

kitchen nook :)

soon to be our "family room" - angle 1

angle 2- the garage is out the door. please let me say that glorious word again. Garage.

and these are the moderately-aged, fully-functioning washer and dryer! yea! the one on the left i call 'Praise' and the one on the right 'The Lord'

and here's the living room

there are no pics of the bedrooms cause they are just square and empty and the bathrooms are basically one big piece of wall paper :) and we haven't done anything with them yet anyway so the before and after would be the same :)

ok the "during" pics are up next :)

"ching ching" hear those door keys?!

2008-06-19T22:47:00.007-05:00

previously i imagined writing this blog with much more vigor but right now it's almost 11:30pm and i am EXHAUSTED!!! on june 16th we closed on our first house!!! believe me, despite the slow typing (which you can't tell) and despite the misspelled words (which i will auto-correct) i am very very... worn out... oh whoops i meant to say EXCITED!

why so exhausted? well lets just say texturing walls (um texturing after popcorn-scraping and wallpaper-removing) is one big death wish.

is this a secret homeowners everywhere are instructed to keep quite about? because i have never heard anyone speak of the Rage Provoking Drama of Wall Texturing!!!

ok. i feel better. i just needed to get that off my chest.

it really is a great house and we could not be more excited to move in and have all things great that are associated with a house. our most favorite of those things being:

BEAUTIFUL big trees

a front yard

a back yard

a guaranteed parking spot

and lots of future memories

(and hopefully, at some point walls that resemble walls again)

before i stumble into bed i must recognize (besides my husband) all the family that have helped out in different ways- YOU ARE GREAT! especially Lecia who can get after some wall paper like nobodies business.

now that's Luscious

2008-05-27T20:48:00.015-05:00

before i got married, in fact before i even knew who Jerry was, i would hang out with my girlfriends from the 1031 hub (including Sum, our honorary hub-mate) and talk about a myriad of things (most crossing way over the line). but every now and then we'd talk about what the guy's would be like that we might marry

it usually went something like, "Dawn, what do you think your husband's gonna say about those ugly boxers you wear all the time?" or "Lauren, do you think your husband will appreciate how those frayed sweatpants go with that retainer?" but often we talked about what we thought was Luscious.

if you don't know what i mean by Luscious you need to look no further than "Diary of a Mad Black Woman" one of our classic faves. while in this movie you could mistakenly take Luscious to mean chiseled abbs and a gorgeous smile, however the true definition (by 1031 standards) looks more like stepping up to the plate and doing what needs to be done with an attitude of commitment, humility and joy.

now let me get back to present day (present day being Memorial Day). my car who's approaching it's 9th birthday let me know with the sad glow of a light that it's alternator and serpentine belt were about to go out.

as in right now.

luckily "now" took place under our car port-

where my husband was able to work on it.

in the middle of the hot day.

for hours.

and fix it.

now that's Luscious.

ps. i would like to give a loud shout out to Kevin Bailey who loving came over to bear with my husband in the hot sun. watch out ladies, that move was also Luscious!

Stanley

2008-05-24T23:17:00.008-05:00

i was given a baby tree.

and i set him on my desk and i forgot about him. he was not planted yet, just in a tube and all wrapped up.

i finally bought him some dirt and a pot, took him out of the tube, and fell in love with him on the spot.

i waited too long to plant him so he is now under strict supervision in the Care Unit of my back porch.

i even said a few prayers over him because his tiny trunk was splintering. i checked on him the next day and he was leaning sadly to the left as if he had given up all hope for life.

i kept watering him and finally got some dental floss to tie him upright.

so now i've got to patiently wait and see if he has taken root.

i dream big dreams for him consisting of long branches and a steady trunk. i told God that i would try not to take it personally if He decided to take his life.

i see myself in this little guy- all bent, splintered and completely dependent on the Lord to bring him life and grow his roots deep.

we will see.

blogging just to be blogging

2008-05-12T22:55:00.006-05:00

1. i am in walking denial that my kitchen floor needs to be mopped.

2. i drank 2 large Sonic waters-with-lime today. (it's a new trick i have found to lure myself into drink enough water.) tasty lime with the crunchy ice we've all come to know and love really gets it down

3. today i drove from I35 to my office with out hitting one red light. do you have any idea the joy that i feel from that?

4. the plant i thought i had killed has come back to us. Jerry performed a miracle that he claims is on par with the multiplication of fish and bread. in other words it was one parched pant. (maybe it would like some Sonic water?)

5. ok let's get out with it. i watch the Bachelor. i do. i watched it and cried. tonight was the grand finally. i loved it and you would have to :)

bending properly at the knees

2008-05-04T19:48:00.005-05:00

Let me launch into this blog by saying the last few days looked NOTHING like I had planned. I will start with this past Wednesday. After work I headed to LA Fitness with Mallory to tackle our Crossfit (otherwise known as Joshfit) workout for the day. Little did I know I was going to be rather humbled in about 15 minutes. So we started off the workout with tuck jumps (yes, simple tuck jumps). I was literally mid jump when I felt something pull/move/snap/strain whatever you want to call it. When I landed I knew something was VERY wrong. By wrong I mean that I was in intense pain and the thought of blinking an eye more or less taking a step made me break out in a sweat. Thank goodness sweet Mallory was there because I might have stayed frozen in the aerobic room in a state of shock for who knows how long.

Side Note: I’d like to add a word of warning here: I went to the gym wearing my retainer… I thought to myself, “I probably won’t talk to anyone anyways?” Classic assumption. Don’t make the same mistake I did.

So Mallory ran to get my cell phone even though I had no idea how that would help but isn’t just holding a cell phone comforting?!

I am not exactly sure how the rest of the few moments went down except that I blacked out and was battling losing my lunch on the aerobic room floor. Throwing up was the last thing I wanted to happen; one, because I feared the pain that would be induced from the hurling motion and two, because I would never be able to show my face in LA Fitness again. So I held it together based on pride and fear and eventually the nausea went away. When the ambulance driver (yes, ambulance- it seemed the only course of action seeing that I couldn’t move) showed up he told me blacking out and feeling sick was a result of my body dealing with pain by releasing a tsunami of endorphins. Isn’t that interesting?! I am constantly amazed at the way God made our bodies. Are we not complex little things?!

Anyway, Jer had been called and was waiting for us by the time we reached the Lewisville Hospital (which I would not recommend; although I would highly recommend the Highland Village ambulance people- they were wonderful). On the ride over I had been given two shots of morphine, which did Nothing. I always thought morphine was a big to-do drug but in my opinion it was the equivalent of water. Once we got into our curtained room they gave me a couple more shots to help with the pain and I was finally able to be moved enough to get an x-ray which showed it was not a bone problem (yea!) but just muscle which meant about a 4 week healing period.

We finally got out of there a few hours later with a couple prescriptions and one doped up Lauren. I thought the adventure for the night was beginning to simmer down once we got home but, no! I guess I decided I needed to puke a couple of times (yep, painful as I’d imagined!) Finally I eased myself into bed, or should I say Jerry eased me into bed.

During those moments at the gym while waiting on the ambulance I felt a gentle nudge of conviction about how often I take my functioning body for granted or more correctly how often I straight up complain about it. It’s one thing to have a cognitive understanding that I am in total dependence on the Lord for every single cell in my body to function normally, but it’s quite another to experience a reminder of that. It’s so easy to assume that I deserve to walk, run and (tuck) jump but instead of being grateful about that I tend to pout about not fitting into those Seven jeans (amen anybody?).

Earlier that week I think the Lord was teaching me something along those lines. I was in a grumpy mood for no reason at all and so I started praying and thanking the Lord for everything (as Jerry always tells me to do even when I’d rather ignore him continue to pout about life). As I was going down the mental list in my mind of things to be thankful for I realized that I sort of unconsciously listed a counter reason for why I am only 50% thankful. My prayer was going something like this: I am thankful for {fill in the blank} but {fill in why I am still not satisfied} I am thankful for … but… So this time for me has been a time of engaging my heart in what I am blessed with. And for the last few days I have been blessed with rest. Lots of rest! About 90% of the day rest!
I need to give a quick shout-out to my mom here for coming over on Thursday and staying home with me since Jerry was at work and again I could barely move with out help. She brought us over lots of yummy food, flowers, did our laundry and EVEN cleaned the bathrooms! Whoa! THANKYOUTHANKYOU!

So that’s the update for me! If all goes well I may have another update coming soon!

weeks in pics

2008-04-27T09:54:00.015-05:00

so i have been meaning to post what we did for our anniversary for weeks now (thanks for asking Kristen!) but that will have to be put on hold once again. why the delay? well i got a new camera (yippee!!!). just as we headed out on our trip my old camera sadly bit the dust for good. she had been showing signs for weeks and, fight though she may, her time had come to an end. Jerry, knowing my passion for blogging, swung into the Best Buy parking lot and put a big smile on his wife's face.

i offered to just get a a throwaway Kodak and said i could make that work with my blog- but we all know that was a lie. i would be a picture-less blogger and would have had to upgrade my blog to one of the intellectual types that doesn't need pictures to stand on it's feet - and i just don't know that i could pull that off. so all that to say, i am very behind on posting some fun events due to putting off figuring out my new camera (which really only took 2 seconds once i sat down to look at it). so here you are for your viewing pleasure:

Our little nephew- sorry for the lack of focus and sorry for the lack of pictures. my camera skills were at an all time low that night.

Jerry's work had a party at the Lone Star Park horse races. it was quite interesting because that was the night we had all that real bad hail. so rather then leaving early we all sat and waited out the storm which made for a long night. and can i just say, i even impressed myself with my small talk ability. unfortunately i am usually a mute at these events but God graced me with some generic sentences and it was really a fun night! ---GO!

the next fun event was my sister's 30th birthday party! whooo hooo! this cake was aaah-mazing!

here's Jer and Stephen- i though this was a good pic :)

and the whole fam :) we had so much fun! sorry to the other guests who aren't photographed. i don't think they'll miss being on my blog though :) (clearly my hair was struggling)

the next night one of Jer's best friends, John, got engagged! yea!

and here's John feeling like quite the man of mans! ha!

me and mel and tess getting some catch up time at Hotel Palimar during the festivities. they are too cute, are they not?!

that's it for now!

ok and i know that i don't have to become a photo-less blog but i will go ahead and try to write something of note in the future. life isn't all photo updates- but they are always fun!! :)

6 little words

2008-04-18T16:33:00.009-05:00

Krysten tagged me to give a 6 Word Memoir!

At first thought i was tempted to refer you to the song by Meredith Brooks, ha! but i am not a mother yet so that won't fit here and the b word might not be the most appropriate one to start off with ;)

so after much fighting among words (some flattering some not so flattering) i decided on these...

Believer- this shapes and infiltrates all of the following words.

Wife- one of the newer words to my collection and i do love it :)

Growing- Praise Jesus

Listener- this is one of my favorite things to do :)

Slow-processor- my dear husband knows this well :) he has learned to give me "processing time" for just about everything :) i think i am just wired to "consider". :)

Can i stop at 5 for now?

I thought of one more! - Determined- i feel like my parents would nod at this one :)

oooh kaY! i am tagging everyone related to me (that means Hayley, Sarah, Molly, Carol, Melissa) and also Niki F, and Andrea L

three hundred sixty-five and counting!

2008-04-05T13:39:00.023-05:00

on March 31st Jer and i just celebrated our 1 year anniversary! yea! finally i have gotten a few pics to post! i know most my blogs are well... about me! aaaaaaand this one will be a little more "heavy on the lauren side" too! but maybe you will see more than just a wedding, who knows :)

these a just a few of all the great pictures that were taken...

These programs were created by my sister-in-law! she is very talented- check out her site!

whoohoo! Jer on fire!

here's Mom helping Mama to get extra beautiful!

and the bride of course has to put in an extra little umpf today!

okay, honestly this is my favorite picture of the whole bunch!

our sweet flower girl is worn out from all the jumping!!

the boys looking very relaxed and adult

aaaand the boys looking rediculious!

ahh, i loved the bridesmaid's flowers

not as much as the beautiful girls themselves though!

here she goes! taking her job VERY seriously! soooo cute i could eat her UP!

dun dun da-dun! me feeling nervous/excited/calm and my Dad looking mighty spiffy!

i loved the back of my dress so much i am tempted to cut it up and make place mats. that might be odd though...

and THIS was THE MOST MEMORABLE moment of it all. saying vows to God that i could never keep apart from His love and grace! what an awesome thing.

HURRAY!!! MRS. WILLIAMS!!!

and my new big family! everyone in this picture i love with ALL my heart!

one happy bride :)

our first dance to the amazing U2 song "One"

whoo! lot's of spins! Jer is a great dancer!

one more- couldn't resist! "Love is a temple, Love is a higher law..." can't you just HEAR it!

now THIS i must say was a blast picking out! it was white chocolate on the outside and Yummy strawberry cake on the inside- perrrrrfect!

the chocolate cake was not too bad either! i love me some chocolate with caramel cake!

aw :)

my beautiful Mom!

ha! um, Jer's Dad is PRETTY CRAZY! heehee ;)

that might be a good one to end on! scanning takes FOREVER!

it was a great night and our first year has been even better... probably because i am married to the sweetest, funniest, most loving and patient guy ever!

i am one thankful girl.

don't judge me

2008-03-17T20:28:00.006-05:00

In one of my recent blogs I was asked to give details of the hiring and firing in my life. Well it got me thinking about my work history and I’d like to give you a few highlights.

Job 1
Limited Too (Jr. year HS)
I was hired with 3 of my best high school girl friends (the same girls I still do monthly girls night with!) We all went to the mall looking for a job and needed the same hours off for games and practice because we were all in cheerleading. Who in the world would hire 4 girls that could only work the same hours? The Limited Too i guess, cause we all got hired on the spot! Anyways, I ended up getting fired because I didn’t show up for work. I totally forgot. Classic.

Job 2
Daycare (Sr. year HS)
I don’t remember the name of this place but it had the word Tree in it. So I went to apply for this job thinking it would be a good match because I love kids. Well I walk in and it’s a little ghetto, but that’s ok right! Ghetto kids are even more fun to love on! So I give them a smashing interview and wha-la! I am hired. Later that week I come in ready to be assigned a group of children or paired up with a teacher to train me but what do you think happened instead? They handed me a broom and pointed me to the janitor’s closet. Looks like they forgot to mention that by ‘day care worker’ they meant ‘toilet bowl cleaner’ (and let me tell you little potty-training boys have no aim). Now I am not one to quit so I really hung in there for a while thinking that surely they would notice that I was magical with children and move me to a room. Low and behold all they noticed was my deflating attitude in dealing with the kids whose poop went awry that day. Eventually we had a meeting where both parties decided it was not a good fit and that I should pack my bag.

Job 3
The Crack House (Summer during college)
Ok, somehow this is the job I forget about most often- probably it’s a means of self-protection. So I hear from some of my guy friends from high school (first red flag) that they are making good money doing a real easy job (second red flag). I go with them one night, get hired on the spot and get handed my first headset… for my new job as a telemarketer (third red flag). So I suite up and got ready to be trained on my first sales call. They hand me a script that we can use but it’s hinted that we have 'free range'; truth was flexible (flag number 4). So what am I selling? We are calling students (under 18, flag number 5) in high school and asking them if they want to purchase a Parent Appreciation Plaque that will have their school name and mascot on it etcetera. I was only getting a few bites and the natural competitor in me came out; I discovered my own script that really got the job done. I would call and ask for the student, hint that I was a fellow student, hint that this was some sort of student council thing and hint that if they didn’t buy this their parents would be the only ones that didn’t get the plaque. Yes, their parents would have to pay for it when it arrived at the door, but don’t worry, they will be so excited to get their plaque it won’t matter! (I won’t even go into the dog and pony show that the cheap plaque actually was.) Moving on, there’s more ground to cover, more flags to reveal. So after week of a job well done it was time for a paycheck. How do you get a paycheck? You ride with high school guy friends to boss’s house where he pays you in cash (flagflagflag). Not to mention your boss is always (ahem, flag) way cracked out. The final red flag is given out for the day when I showed up for work and the place was abandoned. And that's how that one ended.

Job 4
Realtor’s assistant (another college summer)
Not much to say here except that I guess I didn’t learn my lesson from the last experience cause I got paid in cash here too. It was real shady everyone was crazy. To this day they still owe me $700.

I think after that most my jobs were legit- or at least legal.

just an update- nothing profound

2008-03-15T19:18:00.009-05:00

What great weather for a weekend! Friday Jer and I made lunches and took sandwiches to the park. There was a big pond and almost no one else was there except the occasional joggers who trotted by us at a distance. Jerry fished and I read. I love watching jerry fish cause I know that every cell in his body is happy. He is the picture of contentment :) he didn't catch any fish though; come to think of it he has never caught a fish when I am there. He said maybe it was the schizophrenic temperature that had something to do with them not biting or maybe all the turtles in the pond finally ate them all up but I am beginning to think that I am bad luck!

We got some good 'talk time'. It’s so nice getting out of the apartments and away from the usual tasks of life- even if it's just for a couple of hours. It’s good for the soul. We laid under this big tree and watched the bees pollinate it. Then, in typical lauren fashion, I told Jer it was time to go cause I had to pee. So we packed it up and drove up to Bahama Bucks for some yummy snow cones. I got strawberry-grape which turned out to be the best combo I have had yet... it also turned out to be all over my white tee. Whoops. Anyways, on with the day.

We went back to get cleaned up for a dinner with a couple who live downtown. Jer had a loan app at 5:30 so I just rode down to work with him and killed time why he worked by... getting a manicure AND a pedicure. I tell you if that is not blog worthy nothing is. I mean it was wonderful. My toes were tore UP before that! When I look at my shiny pink toes I praise the Lord... you would too if you'd have seen my toes that had been in hibernation all winter. So on to Blue Fish. You know I rarely find a sushi roll that I don't like but there is something to be said for a good ole California roll. Classic perfection if you ask me. Afterwards as if we weren't full enough we went to some place called Pokey O's where you pick out two cookies and ice-cream and they smash it in a sandwich for you! Yum. Why must I adore ice cream?

Saturday I woke up early and went to Recovery. It was great as usual. Jerry and I killed the day by more relaxing until he had to leave me to do parking at the church. I met him up there at 5 it also was great as usual. After that I left to meet up with my girl friends from high school for our monthly girls night. This month we were celebrating Taylor's birthday and went to the Mercy Bar. Jenny had a grilled green apple and cheese sandwich that I am going to try and make at home this week for Jer and I. She said it was amazing and it looked yummy.

Sunday Jer and I had to take my little car to get the oil-changed cause the oil light came on and there was ZERO oil in my car. It wasn't even due for a change! Bummer.

Now I am taking a break from a major spring-cleaning. I mean I was even washing the walls. Whew! I am worn out!

Anyways, I don't know why I felt the need to type a long blog about nothing! Hope it wasn't too boring to read! just felt like typing :) the dryer is buzzing so i must go!

Tagged

2008-03-01T11:11:00.008-06:00

i was tagged by rebekah!

10 Years Ago...

Let's see here i was 17/18 so that would mean i was a junior at South Garland home of the mighty Colonels. i was cheering for the football team and also competing with Cheer Athletics Allstars. i was probably being chauffeured around by Taylor Rusk (now Fields) and acting up with some of my girl friends (Natasha, Jenny, and Rachel). I believe i was dating Jason Mills and soon to be swapping him for Don Bulin.. oh high school :) Yep, i think that's about as far as my world went :)

Things on my to-do list today:
*Work out
*Clean out my trunk
*Hang a mirror on the wall in our bedroom (um this has been on the list for a while now)
*Call about a washer piece (yes, remember the Maytag dryer story? well her sister is in a coma)
*Make a lunch for tomorrow (i hate doing this)

What would i do if i became loaded:
*Travel- there would be no stone unturned and think how fun it would be to be able to pay for friends and family to come with?!
*I am also on board with the laser hair removal on the legs...HEAVEN!!!
*Of course we would give a load away
*I think i would go to the movies alot too. i heart the movie theater :)
*Lots of date nights with my hubby and friends and family- I mean how fun would that be to always be able to pick up the check when you went out with people??!!

Three of my bad habits:
1. Chopping my nails off cause i don't feel like dealing with them. i don't know if it's a habit though
2. Leaving wrappers out- gum and splenda when i season my coffee
3. negative thinking (i like to call it realistic thinking but jer always tells me i am too hard on myself)
(Of course... ice-cream goes with out saying)

Five jobs i've had:
1. Limited Too- Got fired
2. Daycare center- Got asked to leave
3. Cafe Plaid- little coffee shop that i opened at. one of my favorite jobs
4. Eastern Hills Country Club as a waitress and golf cart girl- i loved this job too
5. Centex/Nationstar aka: Hell on earth i shiver when i think about it although Sum and i got to be best buds in that sweat shop
And Currently!... The Village Church- Pastoral Care & Recovery ministry assistant LOVE IT :)

Five things people don't know about me:
1. i feel bad about my last blog. that was kind of mean :( she's just trying to live life
2. i let my favorite perfumes and lotions go bad because i never want to use them cause i don't want to run out. dumb i know
3. i love the food network, i got addicted when i got sick earlier and it was the only thing good on at 4 in the morning
4. if i get depressed i like to do puzzles and listen to dido. ha! kind of nerdy!
5. i hate when people touch my veins- i made the mistake of telling jerry this and he makes it his life mission to push on the big artery on my arm and i want to throw up. whatever this thing is i think it's related to me hating getting my blood pressure taken as well.

Miss Ashley K i am tagging you!!

ps. someone help me make my blog look pretty. how are all you people doing it?

BEWARE OF HEARTBUTT!!

2008-02-29T22:00:00.013-06:00

**Content may not be appropriate for all viewers**

SCENE OF THE CRIME: BAYLOR VS. TX BASKETBALL GAME

(ps beat texas)

WITNESSES: K HELPERT, K RABALAIS, L WILLIAMS, J WILLIAMS

CRIME COMMIITED: ACT OF HB VIOLATION

FURTHER PROOF:

HB ASSOCIATION STANCE: SNAP PICS AND MAKE A CLEAN GET AWAY

recent fun events

2008-02-10T13:54:00.000-06:00

In recent weekends Jer and I convinced two of our favorite couples to bring on the babysitter and hit the town with us. Both these mom's and dad's are such great parents and i admire their commitment to loving and caring for their children. When ever i have kids (Lord willing) i will definitely be calling up these two women to cry, laugh and hound them with questions!

Below are Grant, Sarah, Jer and I at a YUMMY hibachi grill! How can you not love all those hibachi tricks! i always eat twice my weight at those places- i just can't resist!

Another night we went out with Trevor and Erynn the couple who has the Melt Your Heart Cutest Little Sisters EVER! Twice a month we head over to their house to spend time with them and study the bible and worship together. It's so fun! The girls (one 2 and the other 4) "lead" us in worship songs usually Joy to the World or Amazing Grace... unless they get confused and suggest "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". SO CUTE! anyway we stole Trevor and Erynn away for an awesome night at the Cheesecake Factory followed by a Stars game (thanks Mark!).

Other fun events consist of one of the loves of my life getting engaged! It was a great night and i must say KH you looked beautiful- definitely got that 'engaged glow'!

Another fun highlight was getting some QT with my mom at the mall! so fun :) we ate at the California pizza kitchen and covered the whole mall stopping at our favorite shops. MOM we need to take more pictures! here's an older one just to give a shout out.

i can show off one of the items we got though! A fun red dress from the beloved Forever 21 to wear to Cassie's wedding. i got it with a gift card that i'd had for over a year... then i got a shirt from Anthropology with a gift card that i'd had since December 2004!!! What is wrong with me! i am such a gift card hoarder!!

Ok, till the next picture down load...!

Bored watching the super bowl...

2008-02-03T20:32:00.000-06:00

ok Molly got me to do this personality test. i have a love hate relationship with these things- love them because i am fascinated by different personalities, hate them because they take me 10 minutes to answer each question. so this time i just whipped through it. who knows if it's right but i love reading them :)

here are my results:

The Counselor Idealists are abstract in thought and speech, cooperative in reaching their goals, and enterprising and attentive in their interpersonal roles. Counselors focus on human potentials, think in terms of ethical values, and come easily to decisions. The small number of this type (little more than 2 percent) is regrettable, since Counselors have an unusually strong desire to contribute to the welfare of others and genuinely enjoy helping their companions. Although Counsleors tend to be private, sensitive people, and are not generally visible leaders, they nevertheless work quite intensely with those close to them, quietly exerting their influence behind the scenes with their families, friends, and colleagues. This type has great depth of personality; they are themselves complicated, and can understand and deal with complex issues and people.

Counselors can be hard to get to know. They have an unusually rich inner life, but they are reserved and tend not to share their reactions except with those they trust. With their loved ones, certainly, Counselors are not reluctant to express their feelings, their face lighting up with the positive emotions, but darkening like a thunderhead with the negative. Indeed, because of their strong ability to take into themselves the feelings of others, Counselors can be hurt rather easily by those around them, which, perhaps, is one reason why they tend to be private people, mutely withdrawing from human contact. At the same time, friends who have known a Counselor for years may find sides emerging which come as a surprise. Not that they are inconsistent; Counselors value their integrity a great deal, but they have intricately woven, mysterious personalities which sometimes puzzle even them.

Counselors have strong empathic abilities and can become aware of another's emotions or intentions -- good or evil -- even before that person is conscious of them. This "mind-reading" can take the form of feeling the hidden distress or illnesses of others to an extent which is difficult for other types to comprehend. Even Counselors can seldom tell how they came to penetrate others' feelings so keenly. Furthermore, the Counselor is most likely of all the types to demonstrate an ability to understand psychic phenomena and to have visions of human events, past, present, or future. What is known as ESP may well be exceptional intuitive ability-in both its forms, projection and introjection. Such supernormal intuition is found frequently in the Counselor, and can extend to people, things, and often events, taking the form of visions, episodes of foreknowledge, premonitions, auditory and visual images of things to come, as well as uncanny communications with certain individuals at a distance.

haha! i loved the ESP part! hahaha!

if you want to take it your self go HERE

hmmm?

2008-01-31T11:49:00.000-06:00

Find out Which Lost Character Are You at LiquidGeneration.com!
ok- i retook it with jer and i came up with this. i feel good about it!
(jer is kate, hahaha!

Am I the only one?

2008-01-19T15:52:00.001-06:00

I am sure many of you have read or heard of the story of the prodigal son. If by chance you haven’t read it the story is in Luke 15:11-32. Read it or this blog will make no sense. Every time I have heard this story I have always felt bad for the older son. (Which is weird because if I should be able to relate to anyone in the story it’s the younger, screw up brother. I have a sweet and beautiful older sister that was pretty obedient to our parents and never seemed to get in nears as much trouble as I did! But for some reason I always read this story and found myself taking sides with the older brother against the father.) Yes, why ARE you rewarding the younger when it’s the OLDER that has been so obedient? Where IS the sense of Justice?!!

But I always shoved this out of my mind and tried to take from the story what I thought I was supposed to take; that we are all prodigal sons and should be thankful for the forgiveness offered and move on to the next parable.

Well while reading my “Anger” book Jones talks about this parable and says something that I had never really picked up on. Jones looks deeper into the exchange between the older son and the father and I was amazed at what I had been missing. He describes the older brother’s anger as ‘sinful concealing’ opposite from ‘ sinful revealing’. (Sinful revealing is those of us that get angry and explode at others, sinful concealing is those of us that turn inward and withdraw from others.) He describes the older brother this way because in his anger about his younger brother’s warm welcome, he refuses to go into the party. “He did not blow up; he simply withdrew and clamed up. The father, however, did not." Which is interesting but what really got me was the kindness of the father next to the anger of the older son which i had never really seen as wrong. "The father wisely approached his son to initiate conversation and draw out his thoughts. He exposed the man’s resentment toward his father and jealousy toward his brother.”

This may seem small but I had never seen it like that! I had never seen the tenderness of the father reaching out to his first son! So, this lead me to reread the story in Luke and I was again amazed at another big chunk I had been missing.

So the son responds to his father’s initiation by arguing, “All these many years I have served you. I have always obeyed what you said. But you never gave me a young goat so I could have a supper and a good time with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came back, you killed the fat calf. And yet he wasted your money with bad women."
This is where I usually would say to myself, “Yes! What do you say to that?!” But this time I really understood the father’s response. “My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”

Somehow I had always ignored the first sentence, “My son you are always with me.” Not that the father was saying, 'Big deal about you! You are hear all the time.' But he was saying, 'YOU are always with ME. You always have my presence! I am always here, you are always with me!' Isn’t that what we really want?!

On top of that he says, “All I have is yours!” Second to giving him his presence he gives his son all that he has! It's like the father is saying, 'a calf and a party? That's all you want?! But you are with me!? This is all yours!'

How much like the older brother am I that I didn’t hear the father correctly either! So natural it is for me to complain, demand, compare and condemn. Oh, how I want to realize the depth of those words, “My daughter you are always with me” and realize I have everything that I need.

I never knew how much the story of the prodigal son was really about the father.

a few pics

2008-01-13T12:02:00.000-06:00

siblings on my side- Christmas day. (why on earth didn't i take more pictures??!)

tess and i at Mels bachlorette party- yes i had to chop off a little inappropriateness of the cookie we had been decorating.

this is the fun part!!

ah the old roomies! together for mel's bridal shower

mel's wedding day! notice chavon going to work on a tear in mel's dress! ekk! oh but these are the great stories after it's all over!

in the brides room waiting for the big moment

and this is what all those hours of waiting can do to you

Something Great

2008-01-07T22:13:00.000-06:00

Then I heard something great
Like the voice of a multitude
Something Great
Peals of thunder
MIGHTY thunder
Like many waters
The sound of Great waters
Hallelujah!
Give praise to our God!
Something GREAT
Like the sound-
The sound of our LORD
Something GREAT.
From His mouth
Like deep waters
The Lord, mighty in battle
Something GREAT
The voice of a warrior!
I heard Him
Peals of thunder
HALLELUJAH!
A new song!
The sound of thunder
Terrific and mighty
I heard HIM!
The Lord
JESUS

2008-01-06T11:50:00.000-06:00

my first homemade lasagna. i couldn't be more proud if i'd birthed a child.

uprooting anger

2007-12-22T13:35:00.000-06:00

I have never thought much about anger until about 6 months into marriage. Call me naïve but I was kind of shocked to see it coming out in me. It was probably just as prevalent during times living with roommates, but roommates are different; you know they are short term. You can sweep things under the rug and just grin-and-bear-it. But with marriage, it’s clearly different for one reason- the commitment is until God decides to kill me or until He returns to take me home.
Once married, I continued with my usual sweeping anger under rug and finally it dawned on me that I didn’t want to deal with a mountain of stale dust at the 5 year mark. (Especially if I have kids and ESPECIALLY if they are anything like me!)

One day Michael (who I work for) had me order some new books that we are going to start offering at Recovery. Really, I could do to read all of them but the first one that caught my eye was “Uprooting Anger” by Robert D. Jones.
The major draw for me in this book was that I didn’t really understand anger. I have heard people talk about righteous anger and refer to Jesus in the New Testament, and God through out, having anger, so I know that righteous anger is such a thing. I also know that when my husband agrees to return a blockbuster video and then forgets, I get angry! I think my original question was do I have an argument here?! Am I allowed to vent my “righteous anger” at my husband during these times? (I mean clearly, being timely with your rentals is the Right Thing to DO! Am I right or am I right?!)

Ok, obviously I am being a bit factious, but only a bit. I really wanted to understand my anger. If it’s ungodly then with all my heart I want to know.

Let me tell you; I picked up the right book. I have seen my wicked heart and, even more, God’s graciousness so clearly. Although there has been much conviction reading this book there has also been so much joy!! My poor husband has probably grown weary of my running to him to read aloud the newest paragraph that has brought light to my eyes. I can’t think of one person who should not read this.
This book is not merely for people that yell and scream but for the people that have anger in their heart- displayed or not.

I am only on chapter 6 but had to post a little more about the content.

Chapter 1- What is anger?
Chapter 2- Is your anger really righteous?
Chapter 3- Getting to the heart of anger
Chapter 4- Repentance- the road to uprooting heart anger
Chapter 5- Changing our angry behavior: Sinful reveling
Chapter 6- Changing our angry behavior: Sinful concealing
Chapter 7- Anger against God
Chapter 8- Anger against yourself
Chapter 9- Helping others deal with their anger
Chapter 10- Why you must deal with your sinful anger

In chapter 2 he gives three criteria for righteous anger.
1.It reacts against actual sin (as defined in the bible).
2.It focuses on God and His kingdom, rights and concerns, not on me and my kingdom, rights and concerns
3. It’s accompanied by other godly qualities and expresses itself in godly ways.

Although human anger can be righteous, most is not (surprise). This book invites such opportunities to repent and drawn near to God who will provide us with grace in times of anger!

One funny story before I end this too long blog. If you haven’t picked up by now I am usually the clean freak between Jerry and I. He has this loving habit of buying a 6 pack of beer, putting it in the fridge, drinking it over a period of time and Leaving the Box in the Fridge! See, clearly the Right thing to do is to Throw Away the box. When I Lovingly Remind him to Kindly place his box in the trash he looks at me and says, “Babe, it’s my trademark move.”
Classic. :)

blah!

2007-12-21T11:07:00.000-06:00

i know!! i am sick of looking at that old blog too! well this is not a good one now but i will hopefully be getting some good blog time over the holidays! i will say this though. this morning i was turning in my cube to return a hello and i spilt my Exxon coffee all over my jeans! PEOPLE, there is no feeling like wet jeans on your lap and legs. sick. (my sturdy Target thermal mug that i usually use would have never turned over. it's the greatest.)
then, i was helping Bex transport Bauer from fishbowl to Ziploc in the office kitchen. somehow Bauer must have tried to make a break for it cause he toppled the (large) bag off the counter! little Bauer and little Baur poop went all over and floor and... my jeans. so needless to say i can't type much right now cause all i can think about is my grossness! get me home!

Go Bears!

2007-11-06T20:52:00.000-06:00

Every year we alternate whose homecoming game we go to. Last year was OU this year was Baylor! We headed down Friday and went to watch Sing where all the sororities and fraternities perform shows with alot of singing and dancing. Jerry's old fraternity got first place! They were awesome- now i know why all Jer's groomsmen could dance so well! Although i took like zero pictures we had a really good time. i love meeting all Jer's crazy college friends :)

During the trip my favorite pair of black flip-flops (cause they have a little wedge for my 5'1 self) broke!
{Let me insert a little side story here. i was secretly eager to be rid of the black flip-flops because the day before in the Dollar Spot at Target a little kid lost his lunch on my foot. true story. poor little guy.}
i had no other shoes except some red heals which wouldn't bode well with a tail gating party. i ended up buying these Baylor flip-flops which i actually had fun wearing!

Now if Baylor ever steps it up and becomes a threat to my Sooners i'll have to throw them away... but i think we are ok ;)

adventures in babysitting

2007-10-31T21:22:00.000-05:00

here's why i am praying for brunette little babies. recognise the one on the right? best little flower girl ever

GIDDY UP!

So smart :)

What's more fun than watching popcorn pop??

A popcorn party!! Nemo and all :)

behind on blogging part 2

2007-10-28T22:27:00.000-05:00

MEAN GREAN

it was UNT's homecoming so the family piled in the car to visit Scott in all his glory. he and a few roommates are cramed into a house college boy style. they have a great back yard with a Great Big tree...

the girls

the boys

and crazy brother in law

of course Jerry and Scott couldn't be shown up

i will vouch for Stephen that he had an energy drink on the drive up... no excusses for the others.

behind on blogging... feel over whelmed!! :)

2007-10-28T15:32:00.000-05:00

RED REV
Well Bex's page has most the details and Dawn's page has even more but i will tell you it was a great weekend. road tripping with Bex was everything you'd think it would be and getting some QT with Dawn made me a happy little bee. blessed to call them both my friends
STAFF RETREAT
what can i even say! i am am so blessed to be apart of this crazy group of people we call the Village staff. the retreat was restful, encouraging and FUN! gosh what to even write!!!?? we started off our trip amidst a massive rain poor waiting for the buses that were running a "little late". but there must be something bonding about being cold, wet and stuck in the Martin building because it really was fun and i wouldn't have changed anything

once we got to the beautiful open aired camp we ate lunch and kicked off the Krapu football tournament. i must say, the Kaizen way paid off, i caught a touch down pass and led our flag football team to win the Championship! ok we all know that's code for "i got lucky on a 'pity pass' and spent the rest of the game trying to keep out of the way haha! i was proud of myself though considering all my action in the first game consisted of me trying to get my belt on right but whatever! really it was a miracle that no one died. seriously.
photo by bex... laughing hysterically at me.
here's a pic of a few of my roommates for the week. look how cosy we are!! i love these two girls! so fun! (yes we are total nerds and completely ok with that.)

being together with out work to do you get to learn every one's quirky habits and hidden talents. here are a few: seriously funny Mafia narrating abilities, seriously good Mafia straight face abilities, fabulous hair cutting, gifted (and not so gifted, ahem JP) worship leaders, death defying enzone catches, the best flag football trash talkers, eagle-eyed referees, get-a-bloody-nose-and-keep-going girl foot ball player, marathon sleepers, awesome Aerosmith impressionist, sweet servants and coffee re-heaters, and the list goes on. who knew we were so talented?!
wish we could have stayed longer.

Welcome HUDSON!!

2007-10-16T21:32:00.000-05:00

Baby Hudson, nephew number 2 on Jerry's side was born happliy and healthily on October 14th! Welcome little Huddie! You are loved!

(check out sarah's page to see more adorable photos!)

the kaizen way

2007-10-09T20:18:00.000-05:00

So Jerry has been reading a new book called “The Kaizen Way; One Small Step can Change Your Life." The gist of it is that large feats are accomplished by a series of small steps.

Side note:
As true as that statement is it’s slightly infuriating! Almost as bad as when I was a child and didn’t want to go to sleep. I would tell my dad I wasn’t tired and he used to tell me, “Lauren, do you know how God made little children? When they are still and quite they will fall asleep.” True as that was as the time it wasn’t what a little 5 year old wanted to hear.

Anyway, so taking this on Jerry decided that “every night we should commit to picking up our apartment for 3min”. haha! Yes 3 min! But to be honest I thought his goal was not bad- sweet actually considering I am the more uptight with the status of the place.
Here’s the deal with living in an apartment, it takes about two things out of place to make it feel like we are living in a disaster zone, at least in my opinion. Jerry thinks I am loco. Don’t ask if we have ever fought about this… So the point is I am really excited about our new Kaizen way of living.

We are also using this approach in my football training. I got a wild hair and volunteered myself to be apart of our staff retreat football tournament. What was I thinking? I really don’t know anything about football- which Jerry can not believe considering I was on the field for 4 years. I can’t believe it either to tell you the truth. I thought something would have sunk in?? But rather than recant my commitment to the team Jerry has decided I must submit myself to his vigorous training.
We just had our first “practice” and can I just say I have really improved! I learned to hike the ball and even run out and catch it! And I only got hit in the face once.

the morning

2007-10-07T10:48:00.001-05:00

today i had one of those mornings where i woke up feeling Self more than God's presence, ten to one. there was no real reason for me to feel this way cause it was just a morning like any other but i just couldn't seem to shake that blah feeling (the kind where you'd rather be anywhere else than in your own skin... maybe i am alone in this feeling?)
anyway, the night before i was reminded of one of my favorite songs that i hadn't heard in a while and so this morning i sat down, popped in my ipod and listened. the song is called In Christ Alone (it's actually the one that i had sweet dawntoya sing in our wedding- I think there are a few versions but my favorite is the live one by Rita Springer, something about that raspy voice gets me every time).
if i were really high tech i'd post a link to the song but alas you all know that's beyond my skill level- but what i can do is post the lyrics. they are so full of Gospel and fill me with joy and hope. enjoy

In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone! who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath.
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

2007-10-06T15:01:00.000-05:00

BOOMER SOONER!!!

Oh GLORIOUS daaaaaaaay!

2007-09-29T16:52:00.000-05:00

Preface
Unless you have experienced this you are not going to feel my joy.

Forward
So right after we got married Jer and i were donated a Maytag washer and dryer by his sweet grandmother who was updating her own set. The dryer was old and the washer even older but to a newly married couple they were gold!

Crisis
Well low and behold the younger of the set blew up.

Note to the reader
This was seriously devastating for me not being a person who likes to iron. I was so spoiled by that dryer- just throwing things in for a few minutes to shake the wrinkles out.

Character Development
Let me list out for you a few more "joys" of my tribulation:
*Trudging back and forth- rain or shine- to the apartment laundry mat
*Starting a load of wash at night only to realize we just have two (of the three) quarters on hand
*The miraculous weight gain of clothes soaked with water (this usually forced me to enlist the strength of my husband)
*Wondering if your clothes would actually be dry this time when you picked them up
*Wondering if your clothes would be shrunk when you picked them up
*Wondering if your clothes would be there at all when you picked them up

Climax
Today my father in law (in from Alabama) and my brother in law (in from Oklahoma) came over to saturate them selves with football AND take a look at our dryer to see if a Maytag memorial needed to be held or if a resurrection attempt might be made. Well in my anxiety over the future of our little Maytag i did what any other girl would do- I went to the mall. And guess what... after a rather complicated wire transplant and lots of love and prayer... our little May was REVIVED!!!!!!!

Resolution
So as i type little May is humming a long! Way to go Dr. John!!!!!

Foot note
It really is the little things in life :)

Game of tag about your man

2007-09-27T18:17:00.000-05:00

I was tagged by Natalie!

1. Who is your man? John Gerald (some wedding presents we got were addressed to John and Cynthia, ha!)
2. How long have you been together? married 6 months, together two years total in December
3. How long dated? dated 8 months engaged 8 months
4. How old is your man? 28 on Halloween!
5. Who eats more? umm hopefully Jerry!
6. Who said "I love you" first? He did about 2 months in on Super Bowl Sunday ;)
7. Who is taller? Jer
8. Who sings better? Jer
9. Who is smarter? hmm we both have different strengths??
10. Whose temper is worse? we are both pretty laid back but if i had to pick i would say Jerry (but that's just cause i fight with silence which is not really but better!)
11. Who does the laundry? we tyipically do our own actually but Jer usually carries the basket of clothes to the apt dryer (ours croaked)
12. Who takes out the garbage? Jerry praise the Lord!
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I sleep on the right unless we are in a hotel then i like the side with a night stand
14. Who pays the bills? we both do our part but mostly me
15. Who is better with the computer? Jerry hands down
16. Who mows the lawn? When we get a yard i am sure Jerry will do all that- he loves it
17. Who cooks dinner? Cook??? actually i am ramping that up lately- just ask Andrea and Lee Lewis ;)
Jerry: "Babe i feel like i need to eat more rounded meals"
Lauren: "What you mean like dinners?"
18. Who drives when you are together? Jer
19. Who pays when you go out? Whoever has the cash.
20. Who is most stubborn? toss up, hit the right button and we are both pretty tough
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? we are both exceptional at this- ha!
22. Whose parents do you see the most? actually it's pretty equal even though his parent live in Alabama they are always having to come in town for something which i love!
23. Who kissed who first? ok i totally kissed him first but i was an ACCIDENT- i was aiming for his check!!!
24. Who asked who out? You mean after our first "not a date"? He asked everytime :)
25. Who proposed? Jerry :)
26. Who is more sensitive? Hmm, i asked Jer and he says me :)
27. Who has more friends? With in the city limits- me, include the world- Jerry beats everyone
28. Who has more siblings? We tie with two families of 5
29. Who wears the pants in the family? (Um for the record i don't like how this question is worded) but Jerry is for sure the leader :)

Um, i don't know alot of married people to tag! None of them have blogs! ha! mom i think you should start a blog so i am tagging you!! Jen have you been tagged??

why i love my blog

2007-09-13T17:48:00.000-05:00

Tuesday night we had dinner with a couple and we got to talking about a myriad of things ranging from college pranks and well back to college pranks. at one point though we were talking about extroverts vs introverts and where we fall on the scale. i typically described my self as shy but have never understood why because i have lots to say and an intense desire to be known.

i have always loved being asked questions and i am beginning to realize why. it's the assurance that the person asking really wants an answer and more importantly has allotted time in their life to hear it (although i try to get my answer out in ten words or less).

i have this weird unaccounted for fear that while i am pouring my heart out someone will just get up and walk away. i guess it's the fear of rejection or being misunderstood?
i don't know why being misunderstood sounds like death to me but it does. what's so funny though is that i often feel misunderstood cause i don't just come out with what i am thinking! catch 22. (can we say FOM!)

so i've realized that like questions i do even better if the conversation time is mapped out. for example: a car ride, over dinner, ect. things where i know ok i have "X" amount of time to talk. loco, i know.

but if there is no set amount of time to talk then i assume the other person has things to do and is really just interested in sharing a polite nod and then being on there way. so when ever i run into people or in situations where i am forced to mingle (ie: most of life) i find myself trying to end conversations to save the other person the awkwardness of having to end it themselves!

so this brings me to why i love my blog. i feel like i have a little slot of time to share my thoughts. although i do worry keeping it short cause i know most people have probably trailed off... by now!

so there you go. if you have ever though i seem rude cause i say hello and then do an about face this is partly why! sheesh.

please hand me a blue chip

the color code

2007-09-13T17:36:00.000-05:00

ok so i stole this blog from rebekah so all the "fun" credit goes to her! anyway i thought this was pretty close! if you want to give it a go it's http://www.thecolorcode.com/. these tests always take me twice as long as they should cause i am SO indecisive!!

Congratulations. You are WHITE. WHITES are motivated by PEACE. They seek independence and require kindness. They resist confrontation at all costs. To them, feeling good is more important than being good. They are typically quiet by nature, process things very deeply and objectively with great clarity. Of all the colors, WHITES are the best listeners. They respect people who are direct but recoil from perceived hostility or verbal battle.

WHITES need their "alone time" and refuse to be controlled by others. WHITES want to do things their own way and in their own time. They ask little of others and resent others demanding much of them. WHITES are much stronger than people think, but are not often seen for their strength because they don't easily reveal their feelings. WHITES are even-tempered, diplomatic, and the voice of reason; but can also be indecisive, unexpressive, and silently stubborn. When others interact with you, as a WHITE you respond to them best if they are kind, accepting and supporting of your individuality, and if they look for non-verbal clues to understand your feelings.

updates and other things

2007-09-05T20:58:00.000-05:00

Well we’ve had three b-days since I’ve last imported pictures:
Sum’s,

Kristen's (forgot the camera),

and Geoff’s. Shout out.
Between these two parties I also must mention my husband and my dad who both biked the Hotter ‘n Hell. That is a long race my friends. Jer was on his bike for 6.5 hours! Again, shout out. And finally, I must recognize the bible that hug on miraculously to the back bumper of Zig’s car as they drove 25min on GWB and the Dallas toll way! Seriously it just sat there on the edge wedged between nothing and nothing. This is a pic of Jer, Zig and Parker heading out for the race!

Labor Day was a great day cause I got to see sweet Dawntoya! Since all our pool parties are jinxed* we had to relocate in doors. Here’s a pic of Mel, Sum, Dawn and I all picking out and claiming our baby names. Yes, we would all be crazy if every girl** alive didn’t admit to doing the same thing. So we all swore an oath and signed in blood that we wouldn’t steal each other’s names. You know, the usual.

Later that night Jerry and I went on a date to Bonsai Sushi!

It’s so cute when anyone walks in all the waiters and staff stop what they are doing and say, “allo!” which causes everyone in the restaurant already seated to stop and stair at the entering party. So funny!

Anyway I do have a personal update but that will have to wait till the next blog.
*Yes in the past two years ALL our planned pool parties have rained!
**Truth be told Jerry and Jamye chimed in quite a bit too!

sniffing white powdery stuff

2007-08-24T17:31:00.000-05:00

before you call the elders you should know that my dealer is L'oreal. i don't know how i manage to do these things but somehow during a rapid make-up application i inhaled a puff of her Pale Bare Naturale. sneezed for about 10 minutes. rough morning.

8 random facts

2007-08-15T22:12:00.000-05:00

***Bex tagged me a while ago but i have for some reason been putting it off casue i thought i would go blank on coming up with 8 random facts. But really once you get going it's not too bad!
{Insert RULES here}
1. I have had posttraumatic amnesia. (Really what amnesia isn’t posttraumatic?? But i like to throw in the full title cause it make it sound more scary/soap opera-ish!) Although i didn’t enjoy the pain that came with the blow to the head I must say, having amnesia is probably one of the coolest things ever. I mean I can understand head bump=bleeding but I can’t fathom head bump= mind acting like an etch-a-sketch. I mean WHAT is going on up there?!
2. I have a fear of getting my eyes poked. I usually have to bend my straws down in my drink at restaurants.
3. I shout at traffic in a Russian accent when alone in my car. (Actually it's probably more of a blend of accents...)
4. I love boiled peanuts and fried green tomatoes. Can you tell my roots are in the South?
5. I would rather cut off my arm than tumble again. (But there is a part of me that would love to take a gymnastics class)
6. I’m truly comfortable in front of a crowd of 80,000 (Go Sooners!!) but sometimes get so nervous in a one-on-one convo I could pass as a mute.
7. Fruit (watermelon, kiwi, bananas, cantaloupe, pomegranate, apples ect.) often makes me more in awe of God’s goodness, provision and grace than most worship and sermons.
8. I have occasional (ok, daily) thirst attacks. I know I am probably totally fabricating them cause all the hydration really does is make me pee every 45min. (However I am STILL a great road trip partner despite what Jerry may say!)

***i think pretty much everyone i stalk has answered these... Andrea B?? have you been tagged?!!

Beach=Happy

2007-08-12T21:21:00.000-05:00

So I am sitting in my apartment working through a pile of dirty clothes when I feel something come on that resembled an asthma attack. At first I was a bit confused and alarmed but slowly realized that my body was responding to the sudden drop off of vitamin D. So I hustled to get our wet clothes out of the washer and into a laundry basket to be run to the apartment laundry mat (sigh… our 80 year old dryer has finally bit the dust). I thought the remedy might be some time by the pool so as to ease the ocean with-drawls. But as I am rounding the corner that gives view to our pool my heart sinks. A 20X4” pool is simply no match for the breath taking sight that is the Ocean.

Yes for the past week I have been at the Gulf Shores beach living the life (that I am convinced I was made for).

The week began at 4:30am (yes AM) when we clamored in to Jer’s car- me up front, Mel and Jamie (newly ENGAGED!) in the back and Jer at the wheel. And thus was the seating chart for the whole 11 hours.

We finally rolled up to our home for the week and were greeted by John and Lecia, seriously the Best in-laws I could have ever asked for. The rest of the group consisted of Jer's sister Haley, (husband Cody still on call with the Navy); cousin Alissa & husband Brian; brother Grant, wife Sarah & everyone’s favorite of the trip sweet, little, Rhett.

Every night a couple was assigned to cook something. I cooked the only meal I feel comfortable cooking- Mexican pizza. 12 mouths to feed was a little intimidating for someone who just baked her first BOX cake only a few days before.

Hayley, an excellent cook, who made a gourmet meal of peanut chicken also, proved to be a mean jet ski driver! One day, six of us went out to ride jet skis but only three of us had our driver’s license. So the three with the license drove and I was (happily) forced to be a passenger. This was great because I am an excellent leach and thus never thrown off. Oh how I LOVE jet skies in the ocean!!

Like I have hinted at in above paragraphs… I am SUCH a beach person. It’s the only place lying on your back from dusk till dawn catching up on your People magazines is considered “doing” something. Unless you are Jerry of course, then your beach trip will look something more like Boot Camp.

He literally wore him self out EVERYDAY running, throwing, diving, catching, swimming, surfing or… crabbing.

Thirty-two in all!

Yes, he and Jamie had quite the time living their own version of Man Versus Wild. And I quote Jamie directly, “Sometimes when I fly on planes I pray that we will crash on an island like Lost!” Jerry, delighted in having found his sole mate, literally jumped for joy at the idea and said, “YES!! But only with no demonic black cloud-monsters… but actually we could probably cast those out.”

Only time it's ok to leave the beach? A Shopping Spree! Whoo hoo!
Sweet Sarah- Prego with little Hudson- wins the Cutest Prego award.
Like father like son
Last night, all dressed up!
BE CUTER RHETT!
All the boys! (My camera died right before the girl pic, sad.)
Not to sound like the Cleavers but hang out time with family is simply bar none. For example: One night we were playing a board game (yes, board games are a staple in this family) and one of the questions you had to write down a person and a quality you admire most and the challenge actually came in choosing the person. I could have written a paragraph about each.

birds, bugs and chicken...

2007-07-29T16:23:00.000-05:00

Satuday afternoon, driving home from the grocery store, Jerry and i had the strange experience of having a dove land right on our windshield! Yes, we were in the middle of a conversation, sitting a red light when we both jumped and screamed (well maybe i just screamed). This odd looking bird (here on out called Louie) was sitting right up on the windshield staring at us with it's beady little eyes and long neck. we just sat there for what felt like 10 mins looking all at each other before we realized we should take a picture. But the light turned green and we figured he'd fly off realizing his mistake. But no! Long neck Louie just plopped down and made himself comfortable for the ride! It was strange indeed. God is so funny that way! Quirky almost, don't you think!?

Saturday night we had fun going on a triple date with some Jerry's single guy friends that i've come to know and love. i told Jerry i felt like Meg Ryan and Goose out with these two Mavericks trying to get it together! we had a great time downing chips and salsa and laughing mostly about the guy's ridiculous college stories. We even survived a cricket attack.

Sunday night we went to Megan and Stephen's new home and had dinner with Mom, Dad and Scott. Megan cooked a great meal of King chicken casserole followed by key lime pie. Yum! We were eventually called outside to the front yard by the lightning bugs. i haven't seen them in forever but have gallons of child memories that include chasing, catching and sadly, even demolishing.

scott, me and megan

yes, that's a little one on my finger.

the underdog

2007-07-26T14:06:00.001-05:00

Well one thing I though I’d never be caught doing alone, more or less bloging about, is watching a Rocky movie. I don’t know if my mom tossed me outside too much when I was little or what but I missed out on a bunch of the classic movies of the 80’s and thus never took to them. I always laughed at the Rocky series and refused to see them. But in defense of the 80’s I really have never liked “sports movies” in general. Don’t get me wrong I love sports but to me the movies always have the same boring plot and all too accurately timed one-liners.
But anyway, I found myself at home alone one night while Jer played in a volleyball game and decide out of boredom to pop in the latest Rocky and have my laughs at this poor old man trying to have another go at the same old plot. BUT let me tell you, I ate my words! There I was in the palm of the director’s hand shuddering at the gruesome training and rooting for the underdog! That Rocky, he’s pretty tough.
Like all inspirational movies this one got me thinking of my own life; about setting some goals and even longing for some grueling training myself. But that’s where I hit a problem: I seem to have a missing piece of the puzzle.
Ok, for example, I’ve noticed that Jerry and I are very different in these kinds of things (but we actually make a great team). Jerry has always been very confident in knowing what he wants and what his goals are but it’s less natural for him to stay the path and maintain focus.
I on the other hand can stay the monotonous path till there’s nothing left of me but have an extremely hard time figuring out what it is that I am trying to accomplish in the first place. I have in fact prayed many times that if God will just put me in the right lane and say, “On your marks, get set, go” then I would gladly run as hard as I could in the straightest path you’ve ever seen.
But alas, our all-knowing God figures as much about me and is trying to grow me by letting me find the starting point my self. And oh the analogies flow! What sport? Which race? How much does it cost? Do I have the right gear? Am I properly trained? Who will coach me? Will I be more annoying to them than a toothache? Would anyone want me on their team? Can I even figure out how to Mapquest the location in order to show up on time??!! And this is how my mind works. Before I even get going I’ve lost all steam.
And I am not even talking about the classic “who should I marry/what job do I take” questions. It’s deeper than that. It’s an overarching “how am I doing at life” question. In the past, I think I’ve taken to having goals in place cause they are somewhat of a distraction for the truth that I may not really know what I am doing at all! I know that my ultimate purpose is to bring glory to God but must admit that lots of the time I am not even really sure I know what that means.
Among all the confusion I do understand the word “complete.” I can only take hope that God, who more than understands my heart, will finish what he started and understands that I am but dust.
Dang, I kept hoping that this blog will end up something uplifting with the Rocky sound track playing behind it! My poor discipler! I have not found her yet but don’t think I am not praying her in!!

oh the rain..

2007-07-08T15:19:00.000-05:00

here is another fun pic of an attempt at a pool party. we all had a moment of GroupThink and decided that just cause it was cloudy and the weather man predicted rain we'd probably be ok. so we fired up the grill, lathered on the sunscreen and headed out for a fun Memorial Day at the pool... only to be shooed back inside about 20 min later by a down poor that left everyone soaked to the core. it actually turned out to be a pretty memorable day! we ate soggy hamburgers, hot dogs with no buns, and Miss Lindsay Moffet's famous chocolate chip cookies. i am telling you, if you have not tasted these you are truly missing out my friend. just don't bother asking her for the recipe- it's top secret. but don't worry, i have plans that include her, me and a bottle of tequila till i get it out of her!

cinco de mayo/ house warming/we love our friends

2007-07-08T13:00:00.000-05:00

well since i am just starting all this i have to get you up to speed. i am recently married to the love of my life JERRY WILLIAMS! we have had so much fun getting our apartment set up and learing to function like two married adults. Jerry keeps me laughing pretty much non stop- i could not ask for a more loving, understanding husband. pray for that boy! he has one complicated wife he's called to love! but he's doing pretty dang well! anyway here are two pics of our House Warming/Cinco de Mayo party. it was a ton of fun! since we've been engaged we have been praying for a house full of people to love on and have fun with and on this night that is what we got!

Clean slate

2007-07-05T16:34:00.000-05:00

If you know me well at all you probably know that I have an aversion to all things computer (please don’t tell my employers… I need to uphold the guise of competence). Anyway, due to several unfortunate encounters, computers and I have agreed to disagree. Of course in spite of our differences we have come to some terms of agreement when it comes to emailing, checking the bank account and such. But for the most part we try and avoid each other.

Despite all this, starting a blog has been an on going desire for a while (partly so I could finally comment on all the other great blogs out there!) but I never really thought of actually creating one myself. Kind of like the way one thinks of other people that run marathons- not something I’d be good at or able to do. Kinda silly thinking but that is just the undercurrent of thought that I have.

But anyway, I've decided that i am going to overcome a sliver of my fears and take on this blogging thing! …Or at lease try it out for a little while. Really this is quite a leap for me you have no idea! In fact speaking of fears, this is hopefully going to be a new trend in my life- overcoming them I mean. I will keep you posted (no pun intended) on how all that is going. But for now I have wiped the slate clean and am starting afresh- Lauren: 1 Fears: 0