Taking A Break

You know, there are so many reasons to take a break. And I'm not just talking about vacation. Taking a break can be SO healthy and so renewing. Whether it is taking a break and going on vacation, or just simply taking 15 minutes during the day to pause and re-group.

Tis the season for taking a break! Geof and I have decided to take a break from our church. I've been there since I moved to Nashville almost 6 years ago. Geof and I have decided to take a break and find a place where we can make more "young married" friends and be more involved. Everyone in the young married group either has kids or is barely out of college. We've been wrestling with leaving OC for several months for various reasons - and this past week we have decided the time is now. Please be in prayer as we shop around. God might lead us right back to OC, but we want to have the wisdom to know where to go. Taking a break is a wonderful thing!

Speaking of taking a break, we leave Saturday and head to Kansas City for Christmas!! YAY!!!

The Christmas concert was AWESOME!! So much fun!! It was great to see my family too. Here are a few pictures...

Merry Christmas!!!

....p.s. Happy Birthday AMY!!!

Weekend Here We Come!

The weekend is almost here!! I am so ready! This has been one of the hardest weeks of my life, so I'm ready to celebrate a weekend with all the girls! Everyone gets in town around 6p tomorrow night and then we'll head out to a nice dinner. Saturday I'm sure we'll have to do some shopping. I have a rehearsal for the big Christmas concert, so they can do most of their shopping without me. :) Sunday night is the big show - should be really fun! I'm ready for it and ready for it to be over with too. The time has come to moooove on.

So, an update on Geof's bad luck from last week... Geof's car was officially totalled. He bought a used 2006 Audi yesterday. It's gorgeous and he got a great deal on it. So, he's in "lala" land over it of course. I'd still take my 4runner over a car any day - but that's just me. Our insurance company is taking "action" against the lady that hit Geof. Not only did she not have car insurance, but she didn't have a license. Good times. She should go to jail. Merry Christmas.

We took our Christmas card pictures last weekend. Here is an early glimpse. I thought they turned out great.

Until next time... happy weekend!!

Bad Luck

Well, we've decided that Geof has a gray cloud hanging over his head this week. This past Saturday he had another bike wreck. It wasn't too major. His chain locked up on him again, so he flew off the bike and skid across the pavement pretty hard. He landed on his knee cap, so he busted up his knee pretty bad (nothing broken). And the road rash on his backside was really bad, but is already healing. So, he was limping around for a few days... He says he's done with cycling for a while. He is frustrated to say the least.
Tuesday evening he was driving home from work when a lady rear-ended him on I-24. She never slowed down. He was not hurt, but we think his car is totaled. Should find out Monday. We just finished paying off that car. And if that isn't enough, here's the kicker - his $4000 bike was in the trunk. Squashed. The trunk couldn't be opened. We have great car insurance - not sure yet if they'll cover the bike. Unfortunately, the stupid lady didn't have car insurance. Our insurance company is going after her for sure!! She will be in big trouble. For the love. Merry Christmas.

Mom, Aunt Sandy, Connie, Kellie, Sarah, and Mimi are all taking a girls trip to Nashville to see me sing in the Christmas concert next weekend. Should be a fun time!! I cannot wait!

I don't have any new pictures to share right now, but hope to soon. Max is doing well. He's at doggie daycamp today, which means we will have a nice and calm weekend. They wear him out so hard at daycamp! He comes home and sleeps for days. Love it.

Happy Friday!!

Okay, so it's been 4 months since my last post. Let's see... what is new with us... Thanksgiving is just around the corner! Yay!! My favorite holiday. The Fall leaves in Nashville are just now starting to change. With the awful drought we had this summer, everything was either delayed or dead from the lack of rain. Usually the Fall in Tennessee is the most beautiful around mid October. And here it is November and things are just now turning. The weather is also perfect though. High 50s. Great football weather! Speaking of football...

How about the COWBOYS!!! Woohoo!!

For Thanksgiving this year, we'll be flying into Dallas and then driving to Tyler with my brother to spend turkey day with my family. Christmas will be spent in Kansas City with Geof's family this year.

Here are some pictures I took of Max back in October. He is such a big boy now!! And yes, still growing...

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Home Sweet Home

Well, we are back in the real world. France was awesome! I'm glad to be home, but not glad to be back in the swing of work and real world "stuff". Here are a few pictures from our trip... we took over 400 pics, so this does not even do it justice. Throw me a comment or email if you want the link to all 400.

Our villa we rented out and our pool...

This is Geof when we went to the beach. Gorgeous beach!

Sunflower fields were everywhere!

Lavender fields everywhere!
Wine tour...

Okay, so it's been a while. What a summer so far! I had a wonderful trip to Tyler back in June. My parents new house is gorgeous!! Here is a picture with me and the kiddos on the back deck.

They were all up here in Nashville the weekend before July 4th. We had a GREAT time! We rented a pontoon boat and jet ski and headed out to the lake. The weather was perfect and we all had so much fun. Sarah made homemade butterfinger ice cream. Um, there are no words. WOW! Then July 4th my good friend Josh Lawrence and his wife, Amy, came to visit from Texarkana. We also had a blast! Heard some great music. I wish I could get them to move up here!!

You may be wondering about our dog, Max. He is doing much better! In fact, we sent him off to professional training for a month. He has been gone since the end of June and we'll get him back when we return from vacation at the end of July. I do miss him! Here is a pretty good picture I took of him before he headed out to school.

So now, Geof and I are preparing for FRANCE! I am so excited that I can hardly stand it. You can go here to see the pictures of our villa we are staying in with friends. Geof's friend, Stephen, and his wife Robin rented out the entire villa. Should be an amazing time. http://www.justfrance.com/properties/pvu50.html In case you can't get the website to open, here is one picture taken from the pool area. We leave before the sun comes on Friday morning. Friday, the 13th. Perfect.

Until I blog again.... Chow!

What A Weekend

Wow, what a weekend. We had a great time with my parents being here. Mom did really well with Max, the pup. Max was fairly calm around them and did great! However... Monday morning when I tried to get him out of his cage to go outside, he couldn't walk. After a couple trips that day to the ER, they decided that the big bag of fluid hanging from his belly was caused by a possible blood vessel that was bleeding. He was in so much pain and running 103 fever. I was so worried! I told Geof that I don't think I can ever have kids if I get this bent out of shape over a dog. Anyway - Tuesday morning we took Max to our normal vet where they admitted him into their hospital there. He's doing better and we should have him back on Thursday. Here is a picture I took of him with my phone on Monday night after his second trip to the ER.

Other devastating news... very close friends of my extended family were in a car wreck Monday. They were on their way to the lakehouse in Texas when the 16 year old driving ran off the road a little bit and then over corrected the wheel. The suburban flipped 3 times, killing his younger brother (13) and seriously injuring his older sister (18) that had to be life flighted and almost bled out. His parents were not injured. The grandparents and other family members were driving in the car behind them, so they witnessed the entire thing. Out of respect, I will not give any more details about the family. Please just be in serious prayer for them as they deal with the loss and with the guilt that I cannot even imagine. What a weekend.