Twenty Nine

It's just a number, right? Wrong. It's the number closest to 30. Twenty nine is how old I'll be Friday. Am I ready to be twenty nine? No.

Currently I'm working at a job that I really like {most of the time}, living in my parent's apartment with Amos and not having much of a social life... Not exactly where I expected to be when I was younger. Everyone has a plan. I did, and I still do. It's just a whole new plan. My plan was high school, NEMCC, Ole Miss, marriage, house, dog, possibly a munchkin... ummm, so far I'm not doing that great for my "plan". Oh, well.

On the other hand, I do have so many things. So many things to be grateful for {even if they weren't part of my plan}. In honor of me turning twenty nine in two days, I think I'll make a list of twenty nine things I am grateful for... Twenty nine reasons to be excited about twenty nine.

1. God, my church, and my Bible - no explanation needed. Life's been tough lately and these things were much needed.
2. Parents - without my parents I would be... well, not sure where I would be.
3. Sister & niece - Courtney has the biggest heart and Chloe is such a hot mess!
4. Amos - let's face it... there's nothing better than a good pup. Amos lets me use him for a pillow, he likes to hug and he loves for me to sit in the floor with him while we watch TV and I rub his ears.
5. Friends - this list has changed, but definitely for the better. I'm a girl with a few friends; a few true friends. I'd rather have a few than several faux friends!
6. Babies - odd one, right? Ha! Babies.are.every.where.around.here. Whitney has little man, Ki, and he is a doll. Just a big, chunky doll with the best pinchable cheeks. Jenessa has red-headed James and he is rotten to the core. He'll just sit and stare and kick his legs and he's content that way. I rotate seeing them when I can and it's great. They're three months apart (to the day!) so they're both at different stages and it's great to watch them grow!
7. Family - I have a huge, close family. At times they all drive me bonkers (we all live next to each other), but they're family and they're already bonkers so I just fit right in.
8. My job - whew. This has been a rough one lately, but I am thankful for my job. This economy sucks. It sucks for small town, Mississippi so I'm thankful for my paycheck twice a month. I'll leave it at that.
9. Insurance - this one might be odd, but when you're blind, sickly, and have bad allergies you tend to see a lot of the doctor; plus the dentist; plus the pharmacy. Our new insurance {BCBS of AL} isn't that great about paying for things, BUT the first two doctor visits are free and all generic meds are $4 each. That's something to be thankful for!
10. Food - let's face it. I like food. The kind full of carbs. The kind that should be limited, but isn't. It's amazing how many people in the US are going without food. School is almost over and it is sad to think how many kids won't get those meals daily. We take so much for granted, but I'm thankful for the food I have and the options I have. Now... my pants might not be so thankful OR forgiving.


11. Freedom - another thing taken for granted in the US. Recently, with the Boston bombings, we had another wake-up that we are not as safe as we think we are. The second amendment is a hot topic at the moment, but the whole "Right to Free Speech" thing needs to be looked at. That's all I'm going to say.
12. Luke Bryan - no words necessary.
13. My Honda! I have had my car for 10 years, making her 11 years old. She has 170,000 miles and still runs pretty well. However, she's been ran hard for many years. I was an on-the-go college kid that wasn't friendly to the car. Last year I did something so not like me. I marched to the car dealership and bought a brand new vehicle with 31 miles on it. I love it, it's exactly what I wanted and I couldn't be happier.
14. Music - I have been introduced to so many new types of music and bands in the last year. Music is like free therapy!
15. Swiffer Sweeper-Vac - with a 200 pound dog in the house that sheds entirely too much, I am so thankful for this little contraption. I switch it on, run it around the floor and then I'm done. I don't have to lug out the big vacuum cleaner every time I need to clean the floors.
16. My own space - yes, I went from my own house, my space, my little area to a garage turned apartment and it has been a HUGE adjustment. In fact, I'm still adjusting to living in it, but I am so thankful to have a place to stay. A free place to stay.
17. iPhone - I would be lost without my iPhone. I had Internet and a laptop at my house, but now I survive on my iPhone.
18. Dr. Pepper - I'm not a coffee drinker. I used to drink Dr. Pepper a little too much, but now I've limited myself. I'm still so thankful for that pop of caffeine!
19. Fridays - Fridays don't come around often or fast enough. I need my Fridays. I usually spend that time rushing the work day away so I can either get home, put my pjs on and do NOTHING or I can throw on some jeans and meet two friends at Mike's. Either way, I'm thankful for Fridays!
20. RB's - I'm thankful for that Friday morning stop for a gas station biscuit and Dr. Pepper! I usually eat cereal, a granola bar or sometimes oatmeal, but Fridays are the day mother and I splurge.


21. Wal-Mart - say what?? Yes. Life is hectic. I am not saying I love that place, but I'm thankful for it. Big difference. It has everything. Need milk and shaving cream and a new shower curtain? Go to Wal-Mart.I'm thankful I don't have to run to multiple places to get what I need.
22. Storage units - weird thing, but it's true. Most of my "life" is packed in Rubbermaid and cardboard boxes and stuffed into a 10x10 storage unit. I'm thankful I have somewhere to put it all and keep it clean and dry while I am in this season of life. One day! One day I'll have somewhere to put it all. It'll be like Christmas opening up all those boxes. I've already forgotten about so much of what I have.
23. St. Ives - while it's not technically a wrinkle cream, it's a nice, thick lotion for my face that helps with the wrinkles! I'm thankful for that container and what it's supposed to do for me and my skin!
24. Target- That big red bullseye is like a sign from Heaven. I don't normally buy a lot from there, but I love to walk around and see what all they have. The closest one is an hour away so I'm thankful when I do get to visit. It has such neat things! Yep, just said neat.
25. Shopping trips with Jenessa - it was April and we were planning our next Jackson trip (aka Christmas!). Now that sweet little James is here I am worried about how our trips are going to change, but Jenessa says they won't. I am so thankful for that time. We load up and head north to Target, Hobby Lobby and Trees N Trends! We might swing by Pier 1 and the mall. Now I'm sure we'll add Babies R Us or Toys R Us to the list. It's just a fun day, an all day trip that we do and I'm thankful for that little time away.
26. ELF cosmetics - I love that stuff! The bronzer is the best and at $3 it's a big deal. I am thankful for cheap make-up! No, I don't get all "dolled up", but I do slather on a little 'war paint' and I hate spending big money on things like that. Thankfully, ELF has some cheap, good things to choose from.
27. Air conditioning {did you know that technically 'air conditioning' isn't what we think it is? AC can be heating or cooling, not just the way we use it in a sentence... moving on...} It's now officially May... in Mississippi... I am so thankful for that little blue dot in my car and in my apartment. I'll definitely be needing it before long.
28. Sun roofs - I've never had a vehicle before that's had a sunroof, but it is pretty dang awesome. Just having the cover part back is nice enough. I don't even have to have the window open. Just that little bit of sunlight coming in is enough.
29. Medication. Ha! Seriously. Where would we all be without medication? It is definitely something I'm thankful for. And if you know me or see me in person often you should be thankful for medication too :)

Yes, I realize those are material things, but those are things I'm thankful for. I am also thankful for things that are materialistic, but who needs to get that deep right now?

The countdown is on. Two more days.

Birthdays!

I realized I never posted pictures of mom and Courtney's birthday cakes! Mom turned the big 5-0 this year (in August!) and we had her a surprise party. The cake tasted even better than it looked!

My sister, Courtney, turned the big 3-0 this year! One of the ladies that works with mom is starting to get into the cake business so mom had her make a cake for Courtney. It turned out great! The bow did get a little out of whack, but we made it work.

If you'll notice there are NO pictures of the birthday girls. I stink at taking pictures! I'll try to do better the next time we're together!

My Best Friend's Wedding

It all started with this cute couple.... Let me rewind for a minute. Mathieu and I met in 8th grade. We quickly became friends. One, Mathieu is a likable guy and two, I tend to have guy friends. We both had Mrs. Rhodes class at the same time; that's how it started. Our friendship grew from there. His family moved to Alaska (Soldotna) a year later but we stayed in touch with MSN Messenger. Who remembers that?! Ugh! My family had dial up (this was 1999 after all) and his did too, so it took forever, but we messaged whenever we could. There were a lot of "are you on?" messages, but that's the fun with messenger. It's instant {who wanted email? not us two}! 

 Fast forward another year and his family moved back. We picked right up where we left off. I remember one night he and our friend Leland {his name is Lee, but Leland is the nickname he earned when we became friends :)} were coming to my house to pick me up and we were going to eat. They drove back and forth past my house about 17 times before they finally made it up the driveway. Leland stayed in the Jimmy while Mathieu came to meet dad. That was fun {oh, being a teenager...} Moving on... we were always close. He got a girlfriend and I had a boyfriend and you know how high school is. But we stayed friends. Then comes junior college and we hardly saw each other. Then I moved to Oxford for my BA and he moved off. I mean across the country! He has lived in Louisiana, Wyoming, Colorado, Illinois and now New York! I'm missing a state, but I cannot think of it at the moment. We talked some while I was at Ole Miss, but not that often.

When I moved back we talked more and in the last few years we have become even closer. He went through a really difficult time while he was living in Illinois and I spent many nights on the phone with him (talking or texting). Then, one night while we were texting he met this cute little blonde, Kelsey. As they say {whoever "they" are}, the rest is history.

The cute couple!

 So, Friday, August 3rd, we loaded up and drove to Illinois. Everyone of his groomsmen were friends of his from high school except one guy that he met while working. All five couples plus me made the 9 hour drive. Illinois is a beautiful state. It was so sad to see that most of their crops were dead. Their crops, income, it was all just in the fields fried and crispy. Thousands and thousands of acres of useless crops. The draught was tough in MS, but it seemed much worse in IL. Closer to Dwight {where we were} the crops were actually green! I was in awe of those windmills. They were HUGE. I need to do a little research for more info, but I do know that if you allow the power company to put windmills on your property, you get around $20,000 per windmill. Yes, you read that right. The power that's generated is SOLD to CANADA. Interesting? Yes!

The rehearsal dinner was held in this new restaurant in downtown Dwight. The bride's mother is the manager there. It's such a cool place. They really put a lot of thought into every.single.aspect. of that building. That firetruck you see used to be a big heep of rusted metal in someones pasture, but the restaurant owner bought it and restored it. They also wanted to pay their respect to the firemen that were lost during 9/11 and they actually have real helmets, flags, etc in the building to showcase. We must never forget that day.

Wedding Day! Us girls decide to do a little shopping before the afternoon wedding so we hit up the nearest mall and shopped, ate, walked until time to get ready. We ended up stuck on the interstate with very, very heavy rain. Everyone had their flashers on and were completely stopped in their lane. We were so worried about the wedding because everything was already decorated and set up! Luckily, the rain stopped and the fields dried up! Matt & Kelsey were married in front of this barn {isn't it awesome?} Such a simple backdrop but a huge statement.

I snapped this picture of the guys waiting on the girls to get ready. The man in white is Mathieu's dad. Mathieu is the taller one to the left of him. Look at those blue skies, green fields and huge windmills!

The groomsmen left to line up so Mathieu and his dad are all alone. Keep in mind these pics are taken with my phone! And no editing!

I told him to NOT put his hands on his hips... such a good listener. Not!

Ralph Lauren shirts, dark Levi's and boots... ahhhh :)

Bridesmaids!

I'm not a frilly, girly person, but I was IN love with her dress. Totally not like me at all, but I loved it. She was such a beautiful blonde bride!

Mr. & Mrs. Mathieu Segerson Vansandt!

From the reception tent looking back at the barn. Love it.

Their first "dance"... haha Matt is not a dancer. At all. This was the best she could get until the very, very end of the reception!

On our way home, we drove through St. Louis. We didn't stop (or slow down) but it looked like a nice place to visit one day!

Nikita put her foot down said we were going to Lambert's. She had never been and wanted the experience. If you've ever visited one then you know the experience I'm talking about! Such good food (HUGE portions) and great tea, but those rolls?! Those rolls and molasses?! This girl could gain some serious weight eating those! We had a 45 minute wait so Nikita and I made ourselves presentable and then snapped a picture or two. Or four. :) You'll have to ignore Dustin. He was such a trooper!

Dustin not only rode in the back seat the entire trip to IL and back from IL, but he also tolerated not only his wife but me in the hotel room. One tiny room, one tiny bathroom and two women! He said "you know you're staying with two women when you use the hotel soap and shampoo then the next thing you know there are 47 bottles of junk in the shower!" Hahaha Dustin has NO idea what he's getting into.... their twin girls turned 3 that weekend. 3 going on 13!

It was a great trip (minus the two speeding tickets and a few detours thanks to the GPS and road construction). I'm so happy for Matt and Kelsey. They are starting their married life in close to Buffalo, NY-- just minutes away from Niagra Falls. I'm jealous! They've invited everyone to come visit and you better believe I'm trying my best to plan a trip!

What I Love Wednesday!

Link up here...

I'm loving these small cans! Of course, I prefer the Dr. Pepper, but I can't find a picture of them so Coke will have to work!

I'm loving this new deo for summer time :)

I love this dress so I bought it, but I have no idea where I'll wear it!

I love this new shirt I bought!

I switched back to Clinique mild soap- you just can't beat it!

I'm loving this new cereal! It is healthy, but still tastes yummy!

Do you love what I love? Or something different? Let me know!