Updates on eyes

It's a fairly good day today- it's been a pretty normal and uneventful week. Jordan and I are just working, planning, finishing our decorating and overall relaxing so that I can recover from my injury. My eye is doing okay. I've been fairly pain free and the swelling has been almost non-existent over the past couple days. I did wake up this morning though with a lot of pain- probably just part of the healing process. I look like I'm turning into the Grinch though- there's this nice color of yellowish green all around my eye- it looks like I don't know how to apply my eye shadow :-)

Other than that- we're doing really well. More later....

Where do I begin?? (Beware: LONG post)

No idea how to sum up the past week, but I'll sure try!

Thursday was a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mom brought turkey and dressing, Aunt Beth brought Ham and cranberry salad and I did rolls, pies, side dishes, etc. Everything was delicious and we had a great group of people. We spent the afternoon eating, watching football and finished the night out with Mission Impossible 3. Reagan played softball with my cousin Will in the backyard and Dylan was convinced we'd have a broken window by the end of it, but we made it with no breaks!

Friday we had a relaxing morning and went up to Brentwood for a little flag football action. It was Team Cool Springs vs. Team Spring Hill, but unfortunately us "country-folk" couldn't keep up with Tres, Reagan, Jesse Willits and the rest of the Cool Spring's crowd, so we lost :-) but had a great time doing it. I went to the mall solo while everyone watched the Arkansas/LSU saga, and got almost every bit of our shopping done. The mall was totally do-able, thought I almost lost my cell phone- oops! We saw "Deja Vu" that night, which is a great movie if you have the chance. Very rough though- not sure I'd have given it a PG-13, but hey- they're not asking me

Saturday began with a family picture that my mom has been trying to get us to take for a while. The weather was beautiful here this weekend, so we took full advantage of it and hopefully got a great shot. Jordan and I spent the rest of the day at home doing Christmas decorating and had an early dinner at the Rudd's house with the Cole's, and finished out the day with what else: football- USC vs. Notre Dame which was a very sad ending :-(

And then there was Sunday.... (duhn, duhn, duhn...drumroll, please.....)
The day began normal with an INCREDIBLE church service- Jordan led some strong worship and PR brought a great word. It was our first Sunday without serving lunch, so we went back home for a quick sandwich before frisbee. The boys (Jphen, Tres, JP, Robby) swung into Subway and came over to chill before all headng to the field.

The day was gorgeous- very uncharacteristic for typical November 26ths.....sunny, slight breeze and about 69 degrees. We had a great group and got split into 4 teams- my team trotted off to the second field for our first game. We went down 4-0, and then pulled it back together enough to score 2 goals.....but lost it on a long bomb from JP to Tres that we just couldn't catch. After a short water break, we went back for the second game- against Dylan & Ferris's team. As usual, Ferris and I were guarding each other and in the middle of the first drive, we had a quick turnover, so I took off to get open and get away from her as quickly as possible so Robby could throw me a quick one. In my attempt to "cut" behind Joey and his defender, I did in fact cut it, too close and mine & Joey's heads collided- a horrifying sound and sight followed.

Joey and I found ourselves both on our backs on the ground- Joey not being able to remember how he got there- me holding my head and feeling a lot of some sort of liquid coming out....I look at Ferris who says, "okkkkayy...time for stitches." I stand up and start walking with her towards the car, leaving a bunch of perplexed, wide-eyed youth, startled at the site of blood streaming from their youth leader's face and puddled on the field. Jordan sees me and all he can say is, "I have to go." Needless to say, we got me, Ferris, Jordan and Joey in the car- Joey slurring his words with a slight concussion, me holding a jacket to my head to slow the bleeding....we ended up at Williamson Medical and Joey got a CT scan, I got 16 stitches in 2 layers and we both lived to tell about it! My only regret is that I never got a good look at the wound. They say it was pretty big- and pretty ugly- a couple inches wide and the length of my brow...but, God certainly protected us from something worse.

In all the years of Ultimate Frisbee-these are the first, and hopefully only injuries to occur. What an end to a memorable Thanksgiving weekend!

Greetings from a lovely TN

What a wonderful world! This weekend, specifically yesterday was so much fun. It was wonderful and I cannot believe that I didn't get any pictures from our trip to Florida. I guess it's because Jordan and I both worked a lot. I did get to take off a little early to go to the best jewelry store ever, "Best of Everything!" I found some fun stuff so it was totally worthwhile!

We got back on Friday and caught up on work and church and house stuff. There was a lot to do to get ready for U-turn on Saturday, Worship Arts Gathering on Saturday and the Thanksgiving Praise service on Sunday. But, God's grace was there and the weekend was awesome!

Frisbee was especially fun yesterday!! Jordan put me on his team (of course) and our raggety little underdog team (Jordan always gives himself the disadvantage) took the whole thing, keeping Jordan's unbeaten streak at Ultimate:Spring Hill alive! Kudos to my husband for being really good and using his whole team- the boy knows how to lead a frisbee team! :-) The pictures above are courtesy of Erin Lawlor. It was definitely cold though- I had to bring out my hat and gloves for the occasion.

We spent the rest of the afternoon watching some football, I went to the grocery store for a huge amount of groceries (Tgiving is at my house this year) and then did a bunch of cleaning. We lamented as our dear Colts ended their undefeated season to the Cowboys. Ugh! Didn't they see it coming- the media had been all over it all week about the 3-4 defense and the Chargers taking them out last year. The Colt's have GOT to do something about their run defense! It's time for a BOWL!

More updates to come....got a lot of work to do :-)

Good Morning World!

We're having a great time in Florida. The weather has been beautiful, but it does look like possible rain tonight. Jordan and I have both been working hard- I've been learning a lot in the office, but it seems like the more I learn, the more I realize there is for me to learn...oh well!! I have something to look forward to, right? :-) I have been enjoying my time in the office with Steve and my brother in law, Dan and the rest of the staff there. It's a great office and a great group of people. It's nice to actually see them as opposed to just talking to them on the phone or sending an email.

Steve & Jordan are at the tennis courts and Hope is walking- I'm about to do a little reading before we head into the office. Today is our last day here, but we'll be back December 21st for Christmas. We've had a great time. Last night, Erin & Hope and I went to a women's Christmas Dinner at their church, which was so much fun. Each table was decorated differently, with each hostess bringing china and decor, as well as little treats for each of the ladies. We had dinner and listened to comedian/singer Kay Dekalb Smith, who was delightful- she's actually from Nashville. It was great!

Sorry I don't have any pictures. I'll hopefully get one at lunch today with Nathan and Bethany and cute little Jaxon. Talk to you soon!

Full Weekends and Florida Fun

This weekend was amazing- our first full weekend in the new home and it did NOT disappoint! Friday, Jordan and I went to my cousin Will's 8th birthday party. Chris & Ian made it so much fun- dressed in camo and making those little boys laugh SO hard! It was amazing :-) Will had a wonderful time, although he did get an air soft rifle, which is frightening! After Refuge, Ferris, Janelle, Kyle & Robby came over so K&J could see the house. It was such a fun time. We love having people in our home.

Saturday I woke up at 6:30am to go garage sale shopping with Tracy, Maria & Jenny! So fun! I actually got some great deals: designer jeans for $12, a GREAT totally cute coat for 50 cents, and a Pampered Chef cookie press for $8. It was wonderful and we all found something worthwhile. Afterwards, I went up to Brentwood and met Mom to go to the Christmas Village for a couple of hours. It was so much fun- we tasted and looked and Mom got some really cute things!! Saturday night was U-turn Merge in Spring Hill and it was SO great!!! Jordan and I are so excited about what God is doing in Spring Hill with the youth there. There's lots to see and we have vision for a lot of great things, but God is definitely doing that.

Sunday was wonderful!! Service was awesome and worship was strong. I love what God's doing in Spring Hill- it's totally Newsong and it's just an amazing extension of family. After service, several people came over to pray over our house which was such a blessing! People had some amazing visions and words from the Lord that they spoke over the home and just believing for big things that God wants to do. We ended up having a great evening with a little NFL, frisbee, friends stopping by and relaxing. Jessica came by later and went with me to pick up a quick dinner.

I am now sitting in my wonderful in-laws' home in Naples, Florida. Jordan and I are here for the week so that I can do some more training and stuff with Steve in the office. It's going to be a wonderful week and I'm sure that there will be some wonderful stories to share!

So sorry so long!

Well, you have been patient and you have waited and you have been bearing with me in my delinquincy. I'm sure anyone who's moved into a house understands what Jordan and I have been doing the past week. It's been a crazy week and an incredible week, all at the same time. We had so much help on Friday painting and on Saturday moving in, it was amazing! (big thanks to Lindsey, Ian, JT, Dustin, Reese, Robby, Mom, Wendy, Tami, Chantel, Melissa, Aaron, everyone....) By the time Saturday night rolled around- I really felt pretty settled. Ferris, Martha & Merari had helped me organize my kitchen, Wendy Borst had totally clean our apartment for us- top to bottom, there were tons of guys who helped us move everything in and set it all up, Frank Borst, Robby & Pastor Rob helped us arrange the bonus room- I could go on forever about all the amazing people who helped!!

Saturday night Zach & Joy Griepenstroh & Ian spent the night and went to church with us in the morning. I made Thai Cashew chicken for everyone and we had a great time hanging out, eating, watchin' football and just chillin' in the new place! Sunday was a super fun and awesome day. We went to church early and ate afterwards, then actually got to come home for a bit before Ultimate Frisbee. The weather was gorgeous! I wasn't feeling the best so I didn't play, but I went and watched and took some pictures. (above are some of my favorites)

Then I went back to the house and Mom called b/c she wanted to come and plant some tulip bulbs- so I happily agreed! :-) Kelly Jiroch came over and helped me organize my china cabinet and do a couple of things. We ended up with a big group that night: Mom, Dad, Ian, Chris, Reese, Me & Jordan, Kelly, Robby, Chantel- we made personal pizzas- yummy, and watched some more amazing football! (Go Colts- Undefeated!) It was a wonderful weekend.

Monday, Kyle & Janelle Kellums graciously donated their whole day to help us prime the apartment- we had painted the whole thing before we moved in, so in order to avoid being charged, we had to repaint it all. We were so thankful for them!! The four of us went to Cracker Barrell for breakfast and then spent the day painting away. Thank you to K & J for your time and help- so wonderful!!

So, that's a quick and basic run down. I think things will be a little more "settled," as much as they can be anyway. Jordan and I are both back up and running with our work- which is good. It took us a while to get caught up. PLEASE come see us, if you haven't already. We love having visitors and we want all of you to come see us!

Now- for the house.....I've uploaded the pics to Shutterfly, so click HERE and come on a picture tour of our new house...it's the best I can do until you come and see it for yourself. :-)

BIG love and BIG thanks to all of you! We love you!

Busy, busy bee

Well the weekend was crazy & wonderful, all at the same time. I am slammed today, so I'll give you a brief update with more to follow later. Last Friday was official "painting day" as you can see in the pictures. Lots of people came out to help us and we're SO glad they did. We started early, taping and painting the kitchen, J's office and an accent wall in the Master Bedroom. You can sort of see the colors- the gold is in Jordan's office and then the kitchen is a dark orangeish-brown. It looks beautiful.

We finally finished paiting about 1:00am on Saturday morning- with the faithful few still working hard helping us. The end result was well worth it though- it turned out amazing...you will ALL have to come see it.

I'll post about moving day tomorrow and hopefully get some pics of the house up.
Come see us in Nashville!

WE OWN A HOME!

Amazing! We own a home and it is so exciting. I just keep feeling so incredibly blessed and so provided for. God is awesome! Our closing went so well yesterday- it was all of about 20-25 minutes with no issues at all. Of course we wouldnt- we had the best Mortgage Broker out there. We were so excited yesterday, too, when our closing costs came back way under what we had estimated. God is so incredible and good!

Today is painting day....I'm sure I'll have lots of pictures for you after today. Yes- I did finally pick out colors for the rooms. I found a nice green in my friend, Tracy's 1/2 bath, and match the color to that, I found a beautiful Ralph Lauren deep orange-rust color for the kitchen and the Porter Paint color, Lantern Glow, a soft & pretty gold for Jordan's office. The green will go on an accent wall in our bedroom. That's all we're doing right now. I may eventually paint the guest bath and guest room, but not right now. So we have several people coming over to help us today and then a bunch more coming tomorrow. I'm so thankful for those who are willing to help. It is very much appreciated.

Well, I have to go- lots and lots to do! I just have have to say again- Praise the Lord! He is so good :-)

It's gonna be a whirlwind day...

We are praying that the closing happens. It has been extremely wet and rainy here, so some of our outside grading & landscaping work has been delayed over the past week and half, keeping the builders from getting to everything they needed to. So we are in a race against time today to get the CO in time for a closing this afternoon. Please be praying that things happen in a perfect timing today! It wouldn't be the end of the world if we didn't close this afternoon, but we are believing for perfect timing in all of this! God is faithful.

I didn't get to posting yesterday- this week is seriously funny- this is the first time I've been responsible for moving an entire house, setting up utilities, planning schedules, picking out paint, decorating, etc. etc....it's been fun and challenging and I am certainly learning a lot. Despite all there is to do, I haven't felt "stressed" so I am thankful beyond words to the grace and peace of Jesus throughout this whole process. He is so good and Jordan and I feel like we must be the most blessed couple in the world. Thanks to all of you SO MUCH for your support and help- we love you.

Here are some pics from Halloween night, which we spent with some friends in Spring Hill. The is Ethan Rudd, Cadence Cole and the little baby is Ethan's sister, Eva. They are my little babies until I have some of my own and I LOVE THEM! Cadence was a lady bug and Ethan was a pickle....that's what he told his mom he wanted to be- so that's what he was. I've never witnessed trick-or-treating like I did Tuesday night. Jordan and I pulled into their (the Cole's) neighborhood and the place was reeming with children- EVERYWHERE. There are SO MANY kids in Spring Hill and most are under the age of 8..I walked with Jenny & Tracy with the 2 year olds door to door- it's just hilarious! I wish I could have posted video but you'll just have to believe me when I tell you they are adorable and so precious! Well, it's not posting the rest of the pictures that I'm trying to, so I've got to get going. Click here to see the rest....

Have a blessed day and please pray for a smooth closing this afternoon and grace and joy over the weekend of painting, moving and unpacking!