Happy Birthday, C.S. Lewis.

Happy Birthday, Clive!

To a man whom I can't wait to meet when our days are no longer numbered.

A thinker.

A storyteller.

A lover of the Lord.

I can't wait to have our cup of coffee together when real life becomes the Promised Land,

the Narnia that truly exists.

Because of what he has taught me.

About good and evil

and Mere Christianity

and divine Joy.

Praise the Lord for great men of faith
that point to Him for years to come,
even after they have gone to be with our Great God,
in a world that so desperately needs it.

Five Things Friday

This Friday, instead of stuff, I decided to pick five things I'm thankful for.  It was an easy list to make.

1. For getting to be a part of two large, amazing families. 

2. That my husband liked my from-scratch pumpkin pie.  And told me so.

3. For college friends being in town and close by.  And for awesome breakfast food while we caught up on life!

4. For an extra-comfy overstuffed couch that is perfect for watching movies.

5. For the priviledge of being called Mama for the first time :)

The Best Weekend

Can you believe that we took our sweet boy all the way to Rocky Top and took ABSOLUTELY NO PICTURES?  I am already a failure as a parent... ::sigh::  I will get better at this, right?

But despite no photo evidence, we will commit this past weekend to memory as our first little family trip.

The background checks came back and we debated over plans for our first off campus visit.  Patrick and I went back and forth for days over whether to play it low-key or go for spectacular.  In the end, spectacular just simply won out.  Isn't that just the way it should be?

We surprised our 15-year-old, football-loving, Hokie-fan foster son by taking him all the way to his first ever Vols game. 

We told him we were going hiking, which is truly hilarious if you know Patrick and I.  And hike we did...all the way across downtown Knoxville to Neyland Stadium! The look on his face was priceless.  He was in awe.  

We give all the glory to the Lord for working out the most perfect day.  The weather could not have been better.  The game was one for the records.  I mean, seriously, overtime? An interception on the 4th down and a 95-yard run for the win?  And then the flag on the play.  The suspense.  The agony. The chanting with all the fans.  And finally, the whole stadium erupting at the overturned call and the winning touchdown was good.  It could not have been any more exciting!  The four hour drive up and back.  The larger than life hotdog he came back with at halftime with Patrick grinning by his side.  It was a great, great day.  The perfect mix of excitement, downtime, one-on-one time, and togetherness.

But to hear the words, "This was the best weekend of my life," was the biggest blessing.   To see him at school on Monday morning proudly sporting the T-shirt we bought him, to share some inside jokes, to laugh about my bad driving at 2:00 in the morning, that's what it's all about, right? 

To have the honor to serve in this amazing way is the spectacular part.  To share the love of Christ through relationships that He has brought together is the real gift. 

Five Things Friday

Every once in a while my friend Amanda shares five things she's loving at the moment.

I thought I'd be a copy-cat and share mine too.

Amanda, you should do a link up!

(And you should come home, so we can catch up in person!)

Anyways, here's five things I'm loving at the moment!

You know how much I love Mad Men.  This is like the next best thing!  And my love affair with lipstick and coiffed hair continues.

I may or may not have had a peppermint mocha almost every day this week. Whoops.

I did work out each day, too.  That counts for something, right?



 I'm a little behind on reading the best sellers.  I think this book was all the rage a few years ago but I picked it up at the library book sale this summer for $2.00.  It's written from the perspective of a child with autism.  I have taught/am teaching children on the spectrum, and it gives some insight into their thinking even though it is fictional.  Check it out!

 See those boots right there in the center?  I have those!  And I love them.  They are comfy and cute.  And they were affordable too.

I haven't actually cooked anything out of this but I found it at a discount outlet for a steal.  I've been flipping through it and marking some things I want to try.  Seems like a lot of simple, go-to recipes.

Happy Weekend!

What are five things you're loving these days?



Thankful

Today I'm just so thankful.  My cup runneth over.

Thankful for...

kind, generous friends.

surprises.

peaceful ninth graders (for once!).

a smooth day.

good news.

answered prayers.

The nerd in me is about to explode.

Mumford and Sons music combined with my all-time favorite book Wuthering Heights?

Yes please.

Here's the trailer for the movie, which began showing in UK cinemas on Friday.

Mumford and Sons was asked by director Andrea Arnold to write a piece for the movie, and so they did.  It's called "The Enemy." And it is awesome.

5 Happy Things on Friday

1. Red cups at Starbucks....Christmas is offically on its way!

2. Doughnuts and movies in class today for hard working students. (Bless their little hearts, they have no idea that we are starting a paper on Monday...)

3. I am officially the "Wrestling Team Mom."  They've even ordered me a pink bedazzled T-shirt!  Apparently the job requires mass quantities of rice krispy treats.

4. Did you know that Thanksgiving is in two weeks?  What?!

5. Weekend full of fun things:  Christmas shopping with my mama, coffee with friends, dinner with family, worship on Sunday.  I'm in love with the weekend.

Happy Friday, y'all!!

Finally...A Free Saturday

After a busy, busy, busy but good weekend a week ago, we had a more slow-going Saturday this time around.  I love me a free Saturday.  Love.

Here's all the good parts:

1.  Sleeping in.

2. Impromptu breakfast at a local diner with mom and grandparents.

3. A stop by the farmer's market.  Picking up a bag of end-of-the-season tomatoes for a dollar!

4. A day in the kitchen baking cookies, cleaning out the fridge, radio blaring, and making a salad.

5. Spaghetti dinner with our boy.  Talking football, going through family photos, and feeling a little more comfortable.

6. A win for our Vols!  Finally.

7. Catching up on a week's worth of TV and a cup of coffee with my husband. 

8. Setting the clocks back and an extra hour of sleep.  Desperately needed.


Horay for the weekend!  Can I get an amen?