Funny Giving!

So, as I mentioned earlier, I am giving 29 days of gifts. Inspired by Mrs. Cami Walker.

Today is day 10 and it has been a joy:) I had to laugh today because my idea was a borrowed one. Pay for the meal of the person behind you in the drive through. Sounds great right! Can't go wrong right? Wrong!

Well, when I pulled up to BK there were cars in front of me....but none behind. I was like, what is THIS! I mean I am trying to give and I had no one to give to. I tried to order all slow but still no car. Finally I creep up to the window and someone finally pulls up. Crisis averted!

I inform the lady that I want to pay for my order and the person behind me. My first clue should have been that it took a few minutes. Finally the lady looks at me and says your total is $2.96. Her total is $13.88! I don't know if my mouth dropped open, but my mind was like...geez are you ordering for the whole office! I was a little surprised, but you can't put a pricetag on a gift. Anyway, I still bought her breakfast and can only hope that she enjoyed it! I got a good laugh out of it, this giving thing is powerful and sometimes unexpected!

** I figured the person behind me would order around $7.00, that's why I was a little shocked. Guess I need to stop figurin:)**

Wish List (1 month til the BIG day)

Your 25th birthday only comes around once, and I know that can be said for every birthday...but you get my point:)


I love getting gifts, I can't even hide it, and if you know me then you are not surprised;)


This year if I receive any of the following during my birthmonth of April I would be be ecstatic. *Why just celebrate your birthday....your whole birth month is your time to shine. Claim it!*


WISH LIST:


Princess and the Frog on DVD



This funny book




Michael Buble Crazy Love CD



Twilight New Moon DVD




Any type of lotion, scent etc. from Carol's Daughter!



Gift cards of all shapes and sizes




Board games (to host fun games nights in Athens)



Memories (pictures, etc.) A stroll down memory lane nevr hurt anyone!




I like creativity, a creative gift is always appreciated:) Any gift is always apreciated!!!

WOW

REFRESH.....REFRESH....REFRESH!

Probably not too hard to guess my word of the week:) My Spring Break is here and I get to refresh. It is much needed I will admit. Last week I was having to motivate and drag myself to do things that I usually like to do. Sign that I needed to refresh.

Of course I want to be on my A game for my big birthday month so here is what I am going to do to refresh.
Clean! (dreaded but needed)

go see Wynton Marsalis

have lunch and shopping with Laura Bernice Miles

enjoy time with my mama and daddy

make more solid plans for UGA

manicure/pedicure/eyebrows (I hope!)

Here's hoping that you find time to refresh during the next week! Enjoy!

AH HA Moments

I have had many ah ha moments in my life. Especially during my especially gullible MS and HS years. However, most recently my biggest AH HA Moment was while reading the book above.

I am SUCH a firstborn it is not even funny! I kept turning pages and thinking, Good Grief that is me! Wait I ALWAYS do that! How in the world does he know how I think!

If you are a first born I would recommend this book. I will keep my copy forever. Now, just as any book there were parts that were just so/so. However the majority was scarily spot on. A few snippets....

*I think part of my natural leadership ability is due to being born first.

*I often see choices and big decisions in black and white. I have such a hard time with the middle ground and shades of gray.

* Being a go getter is like breathing to me, in fact I have to hold it back sometimes when I am in a group.

* Lastly, I had to learn to be a group worker. It is natural for me to work hard and to work alone. In fact until very recently that was the way that I preferred it. Rampant individualism= clear sign of a first born.

No matter what your birth order, I say embrace it! There is so much to each of our individual personalities and finding your exact niche is like finding a blissful spot:)

Planning

Obviously to me it is NEVER too early to start planning for a birthday. Especially the big 25!!

My motto is, Whether anyone else is excited, I will be excited enough for everyone!!!

So now I am planning...
bowling night
cake
decorations
gifts (how can the birthday girl plan gifts you may ask;)
friends
destinations
memories
money

I CAN"T WAIT!!! PS- Be on the look out for a 25th birthday wish list post coming soon to a blog near you!

GIVE!!!

I am beyond excited and motivated to start purposefully giving to others. You see, it all started in January when I was browsing the latest biweekly Borders email. Wayyyyyy down at the bottom I saw this pretty light blue book cover and I clicked to get more details. How was I to know that it was going to inspire me in such a fantastic way.


Fast forward to today. Our Book Club is reading this gem for our April selection and I can't wait to discuss it with the other ladies. I personally have started today with Day 1 of giving. I am even going to join the movement at http://www.29gifts.org/ so that I can share my experience with others.

Feel intrguied? Read the book and let me know how it goes for you!

WOW

Annoying is my Word of the Week. Wanna know why I chose it...Huh..Huh;)

* My kids are annoying each other more and more as the days pass by!*

* My very nice dining experience was filled with the annoying rowdiness of uncontrolled kids, and I was not at a kids/family place!*

* My finances are kind of annoying. I dislike owing taxes.*

* Watching too much news is annoying. So I just turn it to Andy Griffith.*

The good anti-annoying news is tomorrow is Friday. Spring Break is almost here!!!

I made this!

First, HAPPY MONDAY! It was a good one.

Yep:) I sure did create this little picture frame. Julie, Rach and I had an oh so nice and relaxing crafting night on Friday!

I am SOOO excited about putting a picture from my fabulous 25th beach birthday in this frame. Best friends, beach, and relaxation. Come on April:)

W.O.W

Friend is my Word of the Week this time around. You see I have been given the gifts of some pretty amazing friends! Someone else said it best when they said that our friends fulfill all of our social/emotional needs. Each friendship is unique because each person has bonded with a certain part of you.

You see I have this friend

- who exemplified what true Christian hospitality was like. Or the one..

- who was my phone talking buddy for years! I mean we talked for hours each night! Also,the one..

- who teaches Kindergarten and always supplies me with crazy stories. Her cooking ain't so bad either;) Or maybe the one...

- who is by far the most creative person I have ever met!

Then there is the friend

- who is like the 3rd Stewart sister. Or...

- the one who has known me the longest. Or...

- the one who is such a social butterfly. Or....

- the one who is so quiet but such a true friend in every sense of the word!

Wait, I didn't even mention

- the Timberlane girls Prayer group that inspired me. Or...

- The 3rd floor Cawthon family that made Tallahassee home.

- OR the sister who always tells me like it is, and motivated me to give up the life of sweatpants and ponytails:)

These are really just a few, but many of them are my core. I draw strength from them and pray that I be as good a friend to them as they have been to me!

Lake Ella

With so much going in my life I have started taking some deliberate time with my God. I needed it and it has calmed me. Above is Lake Ella. Every Saturday morning I head for my three laps and here is what I have learned

God's nature is amazing and simply beautiful

I can free my mind better when I am in nature

Some families do escape the jail of technology and head out to commune with nature

I crave alone time. My "me" time refreshes me.

God is changing me in amazing ways.

If you have been feeling stuck, sad, unmotivated, frustrated. I would say this....take it to nature. Get back where God is clearly evident and see if he does not show you something:)

PS- Also, head to nature you are feeling joyous, excited, cheerful, or calm!

More Cake:)

I'm done. Yep, my 3 weeks of cake decorating classes are over. It was almost therapeutic to sit there and decorate. I am in no way a pro, but I am better than I was when I started!

Above you see a yellow cake with chocolate icing. I then added a bouquet of pale pink roses and a pink ribbon. I used fluffy white icing for the piping on the perimeter. It tastes delicious with a cup of cold milk:) Next stop will be decorating a cake for our April Book Club meeting

If you are reading this and feel like you are stuck in a rut....go get creative. Go on, you will love it and your brain will Thank You.

Word of the Week (WOW)

In a tribute to the wonderful event that will be taking place next week, my Word of the Week is Test. Yep, for those of you who don't have a child or are not in the FL teaching realm the FCAT will be arriving on Tuesday. I am full of mixed emotions!!

However, it did get me thinking about different types of tests.

- I was always pretty good at standardized tests.

- My biggest personal test has been letting go of some old bad habits and filling my life with God's positivity.

- I hope I never have to face the test of being in an absuive relationship.

- My favorite Bible verse about testing is... Test all things;hold fast to what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. (I Thessalonians 5:21-22)

- I took this personal fitness test in Janurary. Here's hoping for improvemnt in May:)

SPRING

It's coming.....

You can feel it in the air:) It's about time to get a pedicure and enjoy some of these beautiful flowers....

Take some time to just breathe in the goodness of God's amazing nature:)