Ah...Summer!

I have to say...summer is my favorite season! Even though when the air turns cool in October and the leaves change and I think Fall might be my favorite...or when the flowers start to bloom and everything turns green and I think Spring might just be the best time of year (I don't care what you say...I'll never like Winter)...then summer rolls in with the 95 degree heat and 100% humidity and I'm reminded of what it means to truly be from the south. We don't just tolerate the heat and humidity...we live it. We don't hide from it...in fact, we intentionally plan our days outside, right in the middle of it. This past weekend was the perfect summer weekend...

I spent most of Saturday out by the pool which is practically in my back yard!

Sunday I spent out on the lake with good Greenville friends and forgot to take pictures but CLICK HERE for a synopsis of the last lake trip I took with these friends and you'll pretty much get the gist of the day...sans Sierra!



I spent the better part of Monday and Tuesday filling planters with pretty plants that hopefully will make it through the summer alive!

For some reason, I think a chair is one of the best spots for a plant...

And then last night, as I was walking up the steps to my deck after turning Sierra out for the final time, I smelled something that always reminds me of summer...so I clipped a few, threw them in a bud vase and sat them on my bedside table...just like my mom used to do when I was growing up.

Is there any better smelling flower than a Gardenia?

I'm Back...

...but who knows for how long! When I wrote the last post, I thought I'd follow it up very quickly with a long one about what I had been up to. Well...it's been two weeks, and I'm less motivated to fill you in on all of my 'happenings' than I was back then...and I'm sure by now you're thinking, "Geez Megan...we are so not interested anymore!" :)

Well...just in case any of you were curious about what my month of April consisted of...

The first picture in the previous post was the glass ceiling of the botanical garden in the Bellagio in Las Vegas! I took a girls trip out to Las Vegas and then on to Pasadena to visit a childhood friend from April 16-22! It was amazing and definitely worth a post all of it's own. Hopefully, I'll get to that one of these days!

The next picture was a piece of the one above. This was another Edisto wedding for another one of the daughter's of the Mother Daughter group that gets together every Christmas. Below is my favorite picture of the night with all the Moms. Look at Gretchen (the bride) and her mom holding hands...




And finally...I've started a new project. I'm knitting again. But I'm still going to keep this one a bit of a secret because I haven't finished the project yet and it's going to someone who checks this blog from time to time, but let's just say there will be another little one besides my precious Godbaby that I'll get to spoil very soon and I can't wait to meet her!

Other than that...life has been pretty normal lately. I've been in and out of town so much lately that I haven't been able to go to my Bible study all that much and tonight was the first night I was able to go in quite a while. We are studying a book that I started reading one year ago today! Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World is a book I would recommend to any girl out there trying to figure out how to fit it all in! I thought at first that I wouldn't be able to relate to the book because I didn't really have a household to run or family to raise...but oh, how I was wrong! Ladies...if you haven't read this one yet, stop now and click here and order it right now! It is so powerful!

Anyway, I found this group of women shortly after I moved to Greenville through a Catholic young adults group. Some of the women are married with and without children, others are single. Some are Catholic, others are Protestant. All are very nice. But I've struggled with this group for some time because there's not a particular leader to the group. I am used to a Bible Study that someone prepares for and actually leads. We normally sit around and go page by page through a book and discuss what we have underlined. One of the things I enjoyed about Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World so much was the discussion questions for each chapter in the back. So tonight, I suggested that we discuss each question and actually read the Scripture passages that the author suggests (imagine that?). We had such a wonderful discussion and I think each one of us walked away having learned more about each other and the work that the Lord is doing in each of our lives.

The reoccurring theme of the night was trying to overcome discouragement. Whether it's dealing with the struggle of being perpetually single (wonder who's struggle that is???) or not being able to conceive a child or never ending stresses at work...all of us realized that we were putting these discouragements in place of our relationship with God. I have prayed over and over and over again for a husband and have started to realize that the better prayer is for peace, contentment, patience and most importantly trust in God that He will provide and that all things are beautiful in His time. It was a wonderful night of coffee, discussion, Scripture and the Spirit!

"He has made everything appropriate to its time, and has put the timeless into their hearts, without men's ever discovering, from beginning to end, the work which God has done. I recognized that there is nothing better than to be glad and to do well during life. For every man, moreover, to eat and drink and enjoy the fruit of all his labor is a gift of God. I recognized that whatever God does will endure forever, there is no adding to it or taking from it. Thus has God done that he may be revered. What now is has already been; what is to be, already is; and God restores what would otherwise be displaced." Ecclesiastes 3:11-15

What Have I Been Up To Lately?

The answer is...lots of things...well, except for blogging obviously. I'll be back, I promise. Sometimes, my muse just isn't with me I suppose. So for now, I thought I'd leave you with a peak at what I've been up to lately...can you guess what I've been doing from these pictures?

My Brush with Greatness

My mom used to always refer to a "brush with greatness" as a time when you met or had some connection or experience with fame.

Like the time I went to the James Taylor concert in high school and made my parents drive by the hotel where he was staying so I could meet him... (yes, they were at the concert with me and my friends but sat several rows back...that's what you get when you think it's cool to claim your parents music as your own...they go to concerts with you).

Or the time I sat across the bar from Charles Barkley in Auburn.

Or when my college roommates and I drove to Columbus, Ga to see a band called Soul Miners Daughter and talked to the lead singer, Jennifer Nettles, who just so happens to be 1/2 of the big time country act Sugarland now.

Well...I just thought I'd share with y'all another "brush with greatness" I've had lately. My good friend David owns a foam insulation company called EcoLogical Insulation which is based out of Auburn, Alabama. I had never heard of spray foam insulation before David started this company but I've actually enjoyed learning more about it over the past year. Their website is pretty cool too...check it out to learn more about this 'green' insulation.

Recently, David and Brycen, David's business partner, were given the opportunity to insulate one of the houses built on Extreme Makeover Home Edition! The episode airs next Sunday, April 26th! David and Brycen were given a narrow window of time to insulate the entire house...starting at 2 a.m.!!! It was a pretty interesting experience according to David.

So...mark your calendars, set your watches, and schedule the DVR for Sunday, April 26th on your local ABC station and watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition and make sure to look out for these two guys...

David and Brycen

Hasn't it gone a bit too far?

Little things drive me crazy. I don't know why. Things that really make no impact on my life whatsoever. Like old women who speed walk on the beach in their bathing suits along with running shoes and socks on. Drives me nuts. Why do I care? Who are they bothering? No one...certainly not me...but it drives me crazy.

Something else that drives me crazy...car decorations. Now...I'll admit that my old Honda had the typical college and sorority decal. However, when I got rid of that car and graduated from college...that was it...I had grown out of that phase of my life. Christian one time put a sticker on my bumper from his girlfriend's bike shop (Pro Bikes in Asheville)...I took it off immediately. Love Christian, love his girlfriend, love bikes, love Asheville...hate car decorations.

Don't even get me started on the monograms! If you are reading this from anywhere else but the South, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Seems that someone decided it would be 'cute' to monogram their car...so now there are a bunch of girls that drive around with curly, swirly monogram decals on their rear windows. In fact, the whole monogramming craze drives me crazy as well...why do some people feel the need to monogram everything?

So, this Christmas I discovered something else to add to my unnecessary annoyances list. The Rudolph antlers and red nose car decorations. They were everywhere! Two brown antlers coming off of the driver and front passenger window and a big red nose on the hood. When New Years came around I breathed a sigh of relief that I wouldn't have to see the silly Rudolph cars until next Christmas. Evidently...it's a seasonal thing. As I was leaving a school the other day, this is what I saw in the parking lot...

Are you kidding me???

I almost forgot...

...to show you more pictures of the cutest baby girl ever! I headed down to Auburn early so I could hang out with Sara Beth on Friday before David, Paige and I left for the wedding. Remember the card I made to with the gift I brought?

How cute is she?
She wouldn't take it off all day!

I found that little rain jacket at TJ Maxx a while ago. When I got to Auburn, of course the first thing I wanted to do was snatch that baby out of Paige and David's arms and have her all to myself. She wasn't too sure about me at first...it had been since football season that I had seen her. As soon as I showed her the present I brought, she stretched out her arms and came right to me! I had also bought her a pig bath puppet. As soon as she saw it, she yelled "Elmo!" Isn't it funny how babies LOVE Elmo! I can't blame them...I love Elmo too!

The next day, I hung out with SB while Paige and David worked. Who knew walking around outside, swinging, playing with dirt, picking up rocks, and blowing bubbles could be so tiring!

"Bubble? Bubble!"
(Repeated over and over by SB)

It was so much fun but by the time I put her down for a nap, I needed one too!

Sara Bizzle getting her groove on to Snoop Dog on David's iPhone.

And yes...she knows how to work the iPhone. This is her showing her mom and her 'Honey' (Paige's mom) how to unlock the keypad on the phone. She literally took her little thumb and slid it across the screen to unlock the keys. She did it more than once...hysterical.

Wow...fun times. Can't wait to see her again! Who knows what she'll be able to do next time!

Sweet Home Alabama!

It's been a busy past couple weeks, folks! And it sure did start off with a bang! I can't even begin to describe how amazing Mitch & Amy's wedding was! I seriously felt like I was at a celebrity event! Everything from the lighting, the food, the music, the flowers, the dresses, the 4000 square foot tent...everything was over the top! I've never been so full at a wedding reception! I felt like I had eaten Thanksgiving dinner! There was even a casserole bar! Sweet potatoes, mac n' cheese, pineapple au gratin, stuffing, waldorf salad...and then the carving station with ham, turkey and beef!

By the way...as you might have noticed...the results of the poll were pretty inconclusive! It was a tie between Dress A and Dress B. So Paige and I had to put on a fashion show for each other to decide which dresses we should each wear. I decided to wear the black dress (Dress A) since it was a bit chilly that night and the black dress just seemed a bit more 'cold weather appropriate.'

There were silver candelabras with roses exploding out of them on every table. Isn't the lighting cool?
Next time we all gather will be for this guys wedding in California!
Mike and Matt--Great Auburn friends...I crashed Matt and Elizabeth's wedding about 7 years ago! We've been good friends ever since!

Elizabeth, Paige and Courtney (Mike's fiance!)

'The boys'...some of the best guys I know

Paige, Beth and me (in the black dress!)

Matt and Beth...David is cracking me up in the background with the undone bow tie!

Christian and Marty...who ALWAYS poses for the camera! I was standing on the sidelines taking pictures of all the couples dancing (typical single girl thing to do)...Marty turned around and immediately strikes a pose...hilarious!

The Auburn crew

It was great being back in Alabama for the wedding! It was even better getting this group all back together. It's a rare thing these days now that we are all spread out across the country so we all feel blessed that we've remained so close for this long!

A Sneak Peak...

...into the most incredible wedding I've ever been to! :) Needless to say, I'm exhausted and am getting ready for my next trip...flying out tomorrow! Check back next week for a long post on the wedding and trip #2 of 6 this weekend! Have a great weekend!

Happy Spring!

Before I forget...don't YOU forget to vote for which dress you think I should wear to Mitch and Amy's wedding this weekend! It's a 6 o'clock wedding in Clayton, AL! I've linked the weather report to the very end of this post under 'BEAUTIFUL weather' if that will help you make your decision...see my previous post for pictures!

Do you ever find a song that you just can't stop listening to? I'm the person who will get a new CD and listen to the same 3 songs over and over and over again until I can sing them in my sleep...and then I move on to a new CD and do the same thing. Lately, I've been obsessed with the song that you hear right now (unless the sound on your computer is muted...which in that case, TURN IT UP! You're missing out!). I thought it only right to force you to listen to Pat Green's new song over and over again while you are reading this blog so that you too can sing it in your sleep! :)

I also decided to upload the song to my blog because it's what I listened to over and over while I was making a little 'Happy Spring' card to go along with a 'Happy Spring' gift for this sweet girl!
I leave to drive down to Auburn today so that I can hang out with Sara Beth tomorrow while Paige and David are at work. We leave for Mitch and Amy's wedding tomorrow evening. I found a cute little rain jacket at TJ Maxx back in January that I've stashed in a drawer until now. What's better than a rain jacket to be prepared for April showers? :) And of course, I needed a cute card to go along with the gift so...I went through all the scraps that I had from the 'Congratulations' card I made a few weeks ago...

...got a little creative in Word...


...used up the rest of the green ribbon I had from my stationery project...

...and wished a Happy Spring to my sweet God baby...

It was a complete coincidence that the flower I made in Word somewhat matched the wrapping paper I used!

So, now I'm off to a fun filled weekend with good friends and BEAUTIFUL weather!

I feel SO cool now!

I finally figured it out! I finally figured out how to change my header so it's not just the boring title! I came across this blog (through another blog, of course) which brought me to this website! I have seen a collage before...where else, but on yet another blog...but never could figure out how to make my own! So yay! I'm excited! I tried to include as many friends and family as possible but if you aren't featured...sorry! Or let me know, and I'll try to add you! :)

On another note...I am super excited to see this guy get married this weekend!
I can't believe I actually posted that picture! The answer to your question is...several. :) Mitch is marrying a wonderful girl, Amy. I am so happy for them! The wedding is in Clayton, Alabama...the closest hotel is in Eufaula...20 minutes away. If any of you have seen Sweet Home Alabama, a lot of the scenes in that movie were shot in Eufaula. Anyways...should be quite an affair. The reception is at the home where Amy grew up. Hopefully, I'll remember my camera and be able to post lots of pictures next week!

Ok...on to more important things than the happy couple...What will I wear? I'm down to 2 dresses and I need your opinion!

Dress A
This was my New Years Eve dress last year and I wore it to Oscar Night this year. I bought it on New Years Eve day last year at some pricey boutique in Charleston. It was big time on sale and I still paid A LOT for it. I love this dress because it has an external zipper, which I just think is cool, it's comfortable, and the best part of all (and I only just discovered this on Oscar Night) it has POCKETS!!! (Btw...Oscar Night is a party that the Junior League of Greenville throws every year on Oscar Night! These are my friends, Meredith and Caryn at the pre-party Meredith and Matt had at their house.)

Dress B
This dress cost me about 10 times LESS than Dress A. I got it at Target! Yep...that's right, Target! The comfort level is right up there with Dress A. I love the column of ruffles and the asymmetrical neckline. The color might be more appropriate for a wedding than black, but it's also closer to my pasty, winter skin color, so either way...I'm in need of a tan! (Speaking of a tan...see below for my great discovery!)

Ok...so I want to know what you think! I've uploaded a poll on the side of my blog...choose Dress A or Dress B! I'll post pictures next week so you can see which one I wore! You have until this Friday at 3:30 p.m. to choose! Please do remember that I will be the ONLY single one in the group so I need to look HOT! :) Just kidding!

On to my great discovery...Have you ever used this stuff before?
It's Neutrogena's MicroMist tanning spray. I was in a hurry to get ready for Oscar Night and realized that my legs hadn't seen the light of day in 6 months! So I ran up to the CVS and grabbed a bottle. I got home, looked at Sierra, and said "Here goes nothin'!" It actually worked really well! I only applied it once and tried to be careful not to overlap any certain area. The thing I liked about it was that it didn't give me too much color. I wouldn't suggest applying it more than a couple times over the course of a few days. I used it every other day for about 6 days (3 applications). By the 3rd application, I could definitely start to see where I missed some places.

Well friends...that's all for now! It's been a rainy, cold, icky mess outside for days now! I'm ready for the 80 degree weather to come back!

Crazy dog in the SNOW!

Look how much snow we got last night! Remember the pictures from my previous post? Okay...I realize it was just yesterday so you probably haven't forgotten them yet. Anywho...I think we got at least 4 inches, if not 5!!! Wow! My neighbor is from Florida and was trying to make a snowman...I didn't have the heart to tell her that she probably wouldn't see another snow like this for the next 5 years!

Sierra had fun in the snow when I took her out this morning. She ran around like a crazy dog and kept sticking her nose in the snow and trying to eat it. This is a major improvement from last night when it was just starting to snow. There was barely an inch on the ground and she wouldn't step foot in it. Poor girl had her legs crossed by the end of the night because she wouldn't go out...once she gave in, she had a great time in the snow and kept wanting to go back out in it.

Braving Mega-Winter Storm 2009!!

This might turn out to be a long post since I haven't posted anything for a while! I don't know how some of you do it...keep up with a blog, that is! I'm amazed when I read blogs of girls who have 3 or 4 kids...how do you find the time?

Anyways...today, it started off looking like this...
I turned on the Weather Channel, and they were calling it "Mega-Winter Storm 2009". Seriously. Supposedly, we're supposed to get 2"-4" of snow! Every time snow has been in the forecast up here, it's just turned out to be a cold, rainy mess. Even if I didn't see any of the white stuff, it was enough to keep me inside for the day and since I cleaned yesterday...

...I needed something to do, so I pulled out this book......and looked up this recipe...
...and started baking!

I've made these cookies before but I wanted to try them again to see if they would turn out better this time. I prepared all the ingredients ahead of time.
I picked up this trick from my mom. I noticed one time when she was making dinner that she prepared everything ahead of time...chopped herbs, measured salt, etc. and set it aside on a plate in small containers. I tried it while I was making the cookies and it really worked well!

So, thanks to my Kitchen Aid Mixer...
...and some really nice cookie sheets I got for Christmas...
...I now have a batch of Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies to completely counteract any effort I might make this week to stay in shape! :)

While the cookies were in the oven, I wasn't ready to leave the kitchen so I figured, "What the heck?"...why not make marshmallows?My dad gave me this mix for Christmas and I thought that we'd probably have a fire going this week and it might be fun to roast marshmallows! It was pretty easy...we'll see tomorrow how they taste...they have to sit overnight.

My urge to bake left me with a mess in the kitchen...after I had just spent the day yesterday cleaning it!

And I guess the weather guys actually know what they're talking about this time...I just looked out the window and look what I saw...

Looks like this little one might have fun playing in the snow tomorrow...
This was what she did the entire time I was baking today...always underfoot she is!

By the way...have you seen last months Southern Living? The one with the yummy Nutter Butter Banana Pudding on the cover? While I was standing in line at the grocery one day, I quickly grabbed it and threw it in my basket! What could be better than bananas and Nutter Butters? Not much! I was excited when friends, Meredith and Matt, had a cookout so I had an excuse to make it.When you do make it (because how could you not?), the recipe says to let it chill from 2 to 24 hours...I suggest letting it chill as long as you can. The longer it chills, the softer the cookies get...they almost become part of the pudding! It's so good!

Well, if you have read this far...GOOD FOR YOU! I'm impressed! I'll just post a few more pictures to let you know what I've been up to for the past few weeks! Hiking, more stationery, obviously not blogging! I'll try to be better!A card I made for friends who just found out they are having a baby!

The rest are from a hike Sierra and I took at Table Rock one day when it was much warmer...only a couple weeks ago!
Where's Waldo?? Can you see Sierra in this picture? Sierra is really good on hikes. I can keep her off the leash most of the time and she'll run about 20 or 30 feet ahead of me and then run back to make sure I'm still behind her! Whenever she sees other people approaching, she turns around and runs back to me so I can put her on the leash!