Home

There are few places I call (or at least feel at) home. Even saying "places" is not incredibly accurate. Wes, Peyton, and I have lived in three cities and moved in and out of six different houses/apartments in the last seven years. I have no special attachment to any of the physical addresses, however we have made all of them our home. At the end of every day I feel at home only when all three of us are together.

My mom's is another "place" I feel I can go at ANYTIME. She moved into her house a little over 13 years ago and I technically never lived there. I went away to college two weeks after she and my sister moved in, however, whenever I have come back to Florence this is obviously my home.

My Granny's house is somewhere that I love to be. It is the one place that has always stayed consistent in my life. I have so many memories...trees where mine and my sister's names are carved, the garden that my grandaddy used to drag us out of bed to work in, the barn that no longer stands except for a few pieces that my cousin kept to frame the paintings she gave to the family, the catfish pond where we all "caught" huge 8 lb fish for dinner that night. The list goes on and on. There are some days I have these grand illusions of living on her land and resurrecting the garden that has in the last few years been bare. My dad kept it up for a while but with full time jobs and kids to raise, the grand patch of land that I remember as a girl just waits.

Wes's parents' is a "place" that feels like home. Deborah and Terry have lived in more houses than I can count! They have this fascinating hobby and talent for restoring old homes so you never know just when or where they will be any given amount of time. They say that Aberdeen MS is it for them, but we all secretly wonder, now that the house is restored, if they will be able to do it. However, no matter where they are or the amount of time they stay in one place, it ALWAYS feels like home.

The one place Wes and I have not had for a long time is a church home. We, as a couple, in some ways are like night and day when it comes to God, religion, church, etc. The main thing we agree on that we have always wanted and have had a hard time finding is a place where asking questions (you know really tough-out there-seriously doubting questions) is OK.
That is until now. The first Sunday I walked in Auburn First Baptist Church I felt, for lack of a better word, at home. I thought surely it was too good to be true. I am one that has always hated stereotypes, but I found myself thinking, we aren't "baptists"; we are not the type of people who identify with any one denomination. I even told the pastor that I actually tried really hard over the last several months to find something "wrong" with the community. The only thing I have been successful in finding at AFBC is a group of believers who make it a point of searching for God and serving others. It is a place where "knowing the right answer" doesn't exist. It is a challenging place where you do not have to leave your brain at the door in order to worship. It is not a place where you just "check off" church each Sunday. These people are out in the community of Auburn and Opelika serving people where they are and making a real difference. I would love to list names of all the members who have touched our lives in just a few short months, but I know I would leave someone out. Needless to say, we officially joined a few weeks ago and have never felt such a sense of belonging as we do now.

Today

Because I can't seem to get my thoughts straightened out in my head well enough to transcribe them through the keyboard and on to the screen, and give you a post with a little meat and sincere scepticism, I thought I would tell you about my day.

** See, I can't don't even have the brain power to fix my horrible run on sentence**

It started with Body Pump. My new favorite way to work out. One reason is because it's GOING TO WORK!! The reason I know this is because my friends go with me. And if my friends go with me I am less likely to skip. The second reason is simply because my friends go with me. Today's workout is also worth mentioning because in the middle of our lovely butt shaping squats, the air died. Not a good combination I might add but, we made it through. And as if I hadn't had enough, afterwards I listened to this weird little voice in my head. I TRY to keep her quiet but sometimes she overpowers me. The one that says "today you need to stay and do extra cardio" is not really my friend. I want her to be but usually she is just telling me I'm not_____. (skinny, strong, pretty, blah, blah, blah) I tried to recruit my Body Pump partners but they were smart and went home.

Anyway.... I stayed and read a magazine while I did my high calorie burning machine (which probably is rigged just for people like me who want to believe they can burn 450 calories in 35 minutes)and stumbled across an article about a woman "going green" for 2 weeks. She mentioned several websites she used in her research and I tried my hardest to hold on to one (in my head, since I had no paper) so that when I got home I could look it up. I said the name over and over until I got to the computer and typed it in only to be led to a porn site! What?!!! Turns out I added an "s" where none was needed. Yes, I tend to do that; Parisian's, Belk's, JC Penny's, Victoria's Secrets (none of these stores have an s on the end by the way). By the time I actually got to the correct site I was flustered and the info was unorganized so I messed around on Facebook. Story of my life.

Things did perk up when I met Wes at a Cuban restaurant for lunch. I had a plantain omelet sandwich with spicy black beans(pretty tasty as sceptical as it sounds) and enjoyed talking to my husband about his morning. He had the afternoon off so we went home and tried to discuss the maybe hypothetical, maybe not; "would it be hard to give up all our possessions." That's where my head started spinning again. I needed a practical reason to have a massive yard sale and put our house on the market and he just wanted to talk about the philosophy of what it could imply. Also the story of my life. I am good thinking about an idea in the concrete-give a reason-sure I'll do anything for a good cause-practical kind of way, but throw in abstract-think outside the box-just to know in a moments notice I could... I suck at it. So I took a nap.

Anybody seeing a common thread...

So on a lighter note. I made a new pasta salad for dinner that rocked. If feta cheese, cilantro, chickpeas, and mint sound yummy to you I'll email you the recipe. I may even make it again for tailgating this weekend so I can eat it and wreck my minutes of psycho cardio torture.

So I guess the point is (if you have actually made it this far before deeming me certifiably insane), some days I can wrap my head around tricky little thoughts that make me think there actually is more to life and some days all I can manage are Facebook, a nap, and pasta salad.

Maybe there IS hope

I've said and heard from other moms who have young girls this exact statement: "If the styles for teens don't change, I am going to be one very unpopular mom!"

I read this article from CNN this morning and although it gave me a little hope, it made me realize that I am not too far away from possibly a heated discussion on what is appropriate for tween/teen girls to wear, with my own daughter.

I have always been a little on the overly conservative side with the way she dresses anyway. If it is inappropriate at 14 then it is therefore at 3, 4, 5 , and 6. No midriffs, short shorts, or even leopard print(that may just be a style preference), and two piece swim suits have to resemble a tankini of sorts. I absolutely refuse to allow into the house t-shirts that express rude phases. "I'm the Princess-Brat-Spoiled-Drama Queen-Diva," anything that implies that selfish or bad behavior is "cutsie."

Now don't get me wrong I am a huge fan of her having her own style. I don't really care if she matches and her stubborn will causes a big clash in style from what I think is cute on 6 year old girls and what she likes. Most days she is a blend between hippie and compound girl (if you have ever seen Big Love and know who Nikki is then you get the full picture). She may look a little like a hobo but hey, her style is VERY unique and all her own! I love that about her.

Lately she has started to branch out and I may have gotten a little lax.... She is starting to lean toward "the teenage look." That is what she calls it. It's not bad in and of itself. Not all teens dress like hookers. A pair of jeans and a cute strappy tank from Gap is one of my favorite things she wears. But now she wants to complete that ensemble with her black heels! Yes, I did let her buy them...she wanted them SO bad that she used her own money. So I let it slide and thought oh well, she sees me wear that all the time...

One recent Sunday morning she emerged in a pink sequined top(one that I had somehow failed to take to goodwill as it was about 2 sizes too small), a blue jean mini skirt (not too short and purchased one size too big b/c it had an adjustable waist), and the black heels. My mouth fell open! I quickly made up some excuse about not wanting her to wear denim to Sunday morning church(a total lie) and sent her off to change. Her reply was that I just didn't want her to look cute! I wish I had a picture to show. She looked like she was about to get in her car and head to the mall with her friends to "hang out" aka "meet boys." I made her change.

So where do we draw the line between letting children "grow up" and being a parent who is too over protective, that will no doubt lead to rebellion? Now I know she is ONLY 6, but she won't always be. And I realize that she is only mimicking. She has no clue that the way a girl dresses speaks volumes. She's is too young for that. Oh and how do I teach an age appropriate lesson in those moments...or do I? OK, now I've given myself a headache...

Any thoughts?

Usher meets Showbiz...very funny!

I have not laughed this hard in years!! Wes and I were literally doubled over. The longer you watch the funnier it gets.

Has anyone else seen this?

Wes just called to tell me about this nifty little gadget. I REALLY want!!



I am already obsessive compulsive about upping my miles per gallon. And this lets you play games while driving! This might just make me officially "that girl". You know the one that always drives 3 miles under the speed limit and makes cars line up for miles. Yeah that's me you're behind, cursing. I can't help it...my screen shows every tenth of a mile I gain or lose. It's like the little angel and devil sitting on my shoulders constantly judging me every time I step on the gas. Oh this Kiwi device may just be too much for me to handle.

In honor of the first day of school....

Here is a recap of the summer


**If you click on the "conversation bubble" in the lower left corner the captions pop up.

My How Time Flies!

Had I known then what I was getting myself into....



I'd do it all over again!